Richard A. Engelhardt was educated in anthropology and archaeology at Yale and Harvard universities. In 1981, he joined the United Nations and from this platform has spearheaded cultural heritage conservation efforts throughout Asia for the past four decades. In 1991, while serving as Head of the UNESCO Field Office in Cambodia, he initiated the International Safeguarding Campaign for Angkor, in recognition of which King Norodom Sihanouk knighted him Commandeur de l’Ordre Royal du Cambodge. From 1994-2008, Engelhardt was UNESCO Regional Advisor for Culture in Asia and the Pacific, and from 2008-2010, UNESCO Senior Advisor for Culture. Engelhardt is currently UNESCO Chair Professor of the Conservation and Management of Historic Towns and Urban Centers.