Earlier this year in Egypt, the Coptic Cultural Heritage Protection and Revival Conference, held as part of the IDS-led Middle East Culture Conservation Collective, brought together partners from Egypt, Iraq, and Syria, to celebrate how they have shaped heritage—and how heritage, in turn, has shaped them.
H.G. Bishop Thomas, Metropolitan Bishop of Al Qusiya and Meir (in Egypt) warmly welcomed participants, who attended the conference to share achievements of the Middle East Culture Conservation Collective initiatives in Al Quseya. They highlighted how they successfully integrated heritage with development, and strengthen exchange among heritage gatherers across different regions and generations. It was also an opportunity to exchange stories of the challenges and successes they experienced along the way.
I left the conference with several reflections that deeply impacted me, including the powerful documentary film ‘This Is the Feteer Team’ about women who revived the Coptic tradition of preparing and sharing bread-like food during Coptic seasons. Here I share two reflections from the conference that particularly stood out to me.
A project that is alive: continuous renewal and innovation
The initiatives showcased during the past six months confirmed that the Middle East Culture Conservation Collective project is not static, but continuously evolving. Initiatives such as integrating heritage with environmental awareness for children, and Iota art empowerment sessions for girls, reflect the project’s ongoing creativity and renewal. These initiatives have had a significant impact on communities—engaging different groups such as children and girls and addressing real-life issues including environmental protection and women’s freedom and empowerment. As a result, people began to feel that heritage is part of their everyday reality and life challenges, rather than abstract theories or distant traditions. For many, this was the first time they recognised that heritage is not merely a cultural luxury, but something deeply rooted in everyday life.
Through agricultural seasonal traditions, we were able to highlight the importance of environmental awareness and preservation; and through the heritage of Feteer – the bread-like food – we demonstrated how heritage can become a pathway for sharing, cooperation, and a deeper sense of meaning.
This has also had a profound impact on the heritage gatherers themselves, who continue to find meaning, learning, and personal growth through their involvement in the project.
Communities leading development from within
I found that a key principle emerged during the conference: development cannot be imposed from the outside. Rather, communities should lead development from within. This was demonstrated through:
- The Feteer initiative led by women from the community
- Heritage-and-environment initiatives led by heritage gatherers alongside church servants
- Iota sessions for girls led by heritage gatherers with trainers and artists from within the community
All of this confirms the direction of the project: it does not impose its methodology ‘top-down’, but works from within communities, and through the communities themselves. This gives the project deeper legitimacy and leads to more sustainable success.
Heritage as a mirror of society and a pathway for social change
While the conference presented key statistics on documenting Coptic heritage between 2018 and 2025, it also made clear that the project has moved beyond preservation. Heritage has become a mirror through which communities are understood, revealing that development interventions which ignore local traditions and norms cannot be authentic or sustainable.
From the beginning, the project has focused on documenting heritage first, then designing development initiatives aligned with community culture rather than detached from it. The conference highlighted heritage as a powerful pathway for serving communities—especially marginalised groups.
Personally, I never expected heritage to drive development, yet today I see it empowering children and marginalised girls in meaningful and transformative ways.
The conference included many emotionally powerful moments, including:
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A voice from history and culture
As a former history professor and current regional director of the British Council in Egypt, Mark Howard praised both the heritage gatherers and the conference overall—particularly highlighting the Iota Exhibition. The encouragement and presence of Mark and his team had a profound impact on the heritage gatherers, reinforcing the value of their work and efforts.
He praised both the heritage gatherers and the conference and left us with an important reflection:
“We should truly enjoy the work we do.”
As soon as the conference began and the opening remarks concluded, heritage gatherers started speaking with confidence—not an artificial confidence, but one built over years of experience and practice. In response, Susan Winters commented with admiration on the remarkable development in their confidence compared to when she met them the previous year.
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British Council guests practicing Coptic heritage
In the final activity, the British Council guests engaged in Coptic heritage practices themselves. We prepared papyrus sheets with their names written in Coptic and drawn using Iota art. Heritage gatherers helped them colour these artworks. It was a moment filled with joy and interaction—both for the guests, who visibly appreciated participating in the heritage, and for the heritage gatherers, who saw this appreciation and engagement with their own heritage.
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Heritage and sustainability
One of the most meaningful moments for me was hearing from heritage gatherers whose official project engagement ended years ago, An additional suggested subheading – please do change if you do not like it. Many continue to apply the project’s principles and ethics, and some have even implemented its methodology and initiatives in their own community service.
For example, Rev. Qolta from Assiut, who was a heritage gatherer in 2018 for the Coalition for Religious Equality and Inclusive Development (CREID) programme before becoming a priest, shared that he still applies development sessions in his church and sermons, particularly in relation to social issues such as equal inheritance distribution.
There remains a wide horizon of initiatives, ideas, and areas where Coptic heritage can continue to serve communities and support all social groups. I personally dream of seeing our initiatives extend further to include persons with disabilities, expand our work with children, and design new interventions that bring together different marginalised groups within society through heritage. Over the past years, we have learned that Coptic heritage is not ‘the past’; rather, it is living material—rich with possibilities for meaningful and sustainable change in communities.
The conference brought together 24 current heritage gatherers from Al Quseya, 20 former heritage gatherers from Assiut and Minya, academic and institutional partners and representatives from the British Council, with support from the British Council’s Cultural Protection Fund.
Mina Magdy is a project manager for the Coptic heritage initiative with the Dioceses of Al Quseya and Meir.
