Dear readers:

With this new issue, Intervención surfaces into a radically different world due to the global Covid-19 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic, as declared by the World Health Organization (WHO). It is as inopportune as it is impossible to go ahead with the plans as they were projected before this global health crisis, both for individuals and for organizations. At the time of writing this editorial in Mexico, we are still living through peak quarantine, but already you can sense the great uncertainty whilst we begin to perceive the negative social, economic and human impact of the pandemic. In particular for those of us engaged in culture, heritage and humanities, times of even greater difficulty are looming in the face of the inescapable scenario of budget cuts, staff layoffs, and postponement or, in worst case scenarios, the cancellation of projects.

In addition to the time needed to think and consider new ways of acting in the post-Covid landscape (which could last for months or even years), we are likely to need substantial "fine tuning" to the new needs and conditions of all those who depend on cultural goods and products, either for enjoyment, or as part of their identity or livelihood. The recent removal and sinking of the merchant and slave trader Edward Colston’s statue in Bristol, England, during a Black Lives Matter protest stemming from George Floyd’s brutal killing in the USA, evidence the complex relationships with the past and heritage operating in the turbulent “new normality”.

In this dramatic context, Intervención kicks off the new era with edition number 21, which has been in the works for about a year. We have enjoyed 10 years of uninterrupted publication and, therefore, the time has come for the editorial team to implement a transformation of the journal that enables us not only to refresh and strengthen upon what has already been built, but also to expand new horizons, both physically and intellectually. From now on, Intervención will be a bilingual (English-Spanish) digital journal, increasing our exposure and allowing us to reach previously untapped non-Spanish-speaking audiences around the world. Consequently, this requires us to rethink and refine our editorial processes for the journal not only in how we deal with the reception and processing of applications in English but also how to consolidate readers from these new horizons and the academic quality of the journal's content. Therefore, as part of the new measures, we are setting up a carefully selected Scientific Committee which will incorporate renowned national and international specialists from diverse disciplines covering the topics touched on by Intervención.

This expansion has been, and will continue to be, a great challenge for the team, yet it is one that is worth the effort. In a world that is said to be globalized, but that in reality still perpetuates a large number of barriers, it is necessary to undertake and support initiatives that help build bridges and shorten distances. With the undertaking of an English edition, the journal makes a commitment to establish and share dialogues between the valuable knowledge produced in Mexico and other Spanish-speaking countries, and anywhere else in the world that can communicate in English. We seek to both read and be read in other regions that do not share our language thereby challenging linguistic boundaries that so often prolong inequity and restrict the circulation of knowledge. This mission is furthered by our digital proposal for the new era: whilst Intervención has always been fully accessible through our Open Journal System portal (OJS), we have now redesigned the format to optimize digital interaction; a significant qualitative step forward for the journal.

In keeping with the journal’s tradition, in this offering we present a diverse selection of texts belonging to the disciplines of conservation, restoration, museum and heritage studies, and other related fields. The first contribution is a homage to Sergio Montero Alarcón pioner restorer of the Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia (INAH), pillar of this profession in Mexico and co-founder of the Escuela Nacional de Conservación, Restauración y Museografía (ENCRyM); who unfortunately passed away on June 14 of this year. Afterwards, readers will be able to embark on a journey taking them from earthen architecture housing in the Mexican state of Colima, to the new museology emerging in the favelas of Rio de Janeiro in Brazil. They will also find discussions on the role of communities in the creation and updating of digital archives; the conservation of earthen religious built heritage in Cuenca, Ecuador; international policy in the training of conservation and restoration professionals in Mexico, and the conservation of bone remains in a municipal museum in Olavarría, Argentina. Also, as usual, there are two reviews available which, in this instance, cover the book Estudios sobre conservación y restauración, vol. V, as well as a number of specialized events in technology and heritage. As a whole, the articles point to discussions and trends of contemporary relevance, such as the vulnerability of cultural assets in processes of rapid disappearance, the irruption of technology in conservation, understanding and use of cultural products, local and international policies in heritage management and the incorporation of narratives previously considered “peripheral” to the center of museological discourses.

We hope that reading this issue will provide you with some intellectual nourishment to help you continue with your work, despite the unusual and sad circumstances in which we find ourselves; also, that the changes set in motion for the new era will be effective and invite the nomination of international contributions both in well-established and emerging areas that will, undoubtedly, proliferate as a reaction to this shared planetary experience of the pandemic. Intervención has always been an open space for the circulation and debate of ideas, in accordance with international policies of open access to knowledge. In my new role as editor, I will continue this legacy, with an emphasis on highlighting the most urgent issues of our contemporary world. Help us to spread the word!

In closing, I would like to thank and recognize the invaluable work done throughout this whole first period by Dr. Isabel Medina-González, founding editor and the beating heart of Intervención, as well as Paula Rosales Alanis, editorial coordinator and a central figure across all our processes. I would also like to thank the solidarity shown by the Editorial Committee, the team that brings this international academic journal to life, the management of ENCRyM and the INAH’s Coordinación Nacional de Difusión which, from the Subdirección de Publicaciones Periódicas, ensures this project a still vigorous reality.