Berlin techno officially added to UNESCO cultural heritage list

Techno in Berlin has been officially added to the UNESCO cultural heritage list following a campaign to protect its status.

The inclusion of the music genre in the heritage list comes after a collective of DJs, festival organisers and fans campaigned to have the security of the city’s techno scene after fearing the culture wouldn’t survive without it being added to the list.

As of yesterday (March 13), Berlin Techno has been added to the list of iIntangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) in Germany. It joins five other entries (including mountaineering, fruit wine, and a Bavarian parade named Kirchseeoner Perchtenlauf) that have also been added as well.

Rave The Planet – a non-profit based in Berlin, dedicated to the art, culture, and love for electronic music – took to their official Facebook account to celebrate the addition of Techno into the UNESCO list.

“We did it!” they announced in a post yesterday (March 13). “Congratulations to all the cultural creators who have shaped and contributed to Berlin’s techno culture.”

They continued: “A big thank you to everyone involved who has been with us on this journey since Hans Cousto’s initial idea in 2011. Special thanks to the Expert Committee on Intangible Cultural Heritage at the German UNESCO Commission!”

Rave The Planet began pressing German authorities to apply for intangible cultural heritage status of Berlin techno in 2021. Per Mixmag, the campaign to secure its status followed reports that an estimated 100 clubs in Berlin have closed in the last decade.

Berlin techno culture is recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site!

This another milestone for Berlin techno producers, artists, club operators and event organizers. https://t.co/Bd1EnvJRN4

— clubcommission (@clubcommission) March 13, 2024

Clubcommission – a network of Berlin’s clubs and cultural promoters – also celebrated the news by tweeting on their x/Twitter page: “This another milestone for Berlin techno producers, artists, club operators and event organizers.

Claudia Roth, the Minister of State for Culture, also spoke about the addition to the lost and said that Berlin techno culture stands for “values such as diversity, respect and cosmopolitanism.”

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