Immersive Technologies and Digital Heritage Valorization: Modeling, User Experience, and Cultural Mediation

The First International and Interdisciplinary Conference on Immersive Technologies in Cultural Heritage (8–10 May 2025, IHEC Sfax)explored the transformative potential of immersive technologies in the cultural and creative industries (CCIs), particularly within the domain of Cultural Heritage (CH). The conference unites researchers, practitioners, artists, and innovators from diverse fields-including the humanities, visual arts, cinema, music, architecture, economics, and engineering-to investigate how Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR), Mixed Reality (XR), and related technologies are revolutionizing how creators and audiences experience, preserve, and communicate CH. The overarching goal of the meeting is to address the intersection of digital heritage, user experience design, and creative industries through multidisciplinary perspectives into theoretical and practical applications of immersive technologies. In addition to insight generated from diverse perspectives, this gathering also emphasizes the community-driven nature of cultural heritage projects as well as practical challenges, highlighting approaches that ensure digital solutions that are inclusive, accessible, relevant to diverse populations, and environmentally and economically sustainable.