Cultural conservationists have cause to celebrate. They hope the endorsement of the Kathmandu Declaration, adopted by the Ministry for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation in August at an international symposium on illicit traffic in cultural property, will allow existing mechanisms to function better. The 12-point declaration includes establishing a commission of representatives from the Departments of Archaeology and Customs, and the Nepal Police to coordinate protective actions, customs control and recovery of cultural property, establishing a comprehensive record of ownership of all monuments and cultural properties in Nepal, strengthening the Department of Archaeology, and updating and effectively implementing relevant legislation. ?But the most essential issue is local ownership,? says Dr Yoshiaki Kitamura, UNESCO representative to Nepal. ?We can pour millions of dollars into protecting local heritage but if the community does not feel responsible that is useless?. A good way to foster a sense of ownership, says Kitamura ?would be to release a small part of local revenue from cultural income to the community.?