Interview
Francisco Lopez Morales
World Heritage Convention
Francisco Lopez Morales is originally from Mexico. A graduate of the National Autonomous University of Mexico, he also holds a PhD in Urban Studies and Development from the University of Grenoble.
He began his career at INAH (National Institute of Anthropology and History) in Mexico in 1993, in the department of historical heritage inventories and catalogs. Since 2001, he has been Director of the World Heritage Unit of the same institution. He has also published several books on cultural landscapes, vernacular architecture and Mexican heritage, including Arquitectura vernacula in México (Trillas, 1987) and Colonial Treasures of Mexico: the 7 Cities of Gold (Lunwerg, 2008).
A member of ICOMOS for more than 20 years, Francisco Lopez Morales was secretary of ICOMOS Mexico from 1991 to 1997. At the international level, he was Secretary-General of the 15th General Assembly of ICOMOS in Xi'an in 2005, then a Vice-President in the Executive Committee from 2008 to 2011. His involvement in World Heritage started in 1995 when he was appointed advisor to Teresa Franco, Chair of the 1996 Committee session in Merida. He was also a rapporteur for the Committee's session in Helsinki in 2001. In 2003, he oversaw a study on the representativity of the World Heritage List in Latin America, the United States and Canada, the results of which were published in the ICOMOS Monuments and Sites collection in 2004.
Interview with
Francisco Lopez Morales
3 August 2010, Brasilia, Brazil
The audio excerpts are from an interview with Francisco Lopez Morales by Christina Cameron the 3 August 2010. He provides interesting insights into the length and representativity of the World Heritage List and Decisions as well as cases relevant to the implementation of the Convention. Moreover, he raises important issues related to the work of the advisory bodies, and in particular to the work of ICOMOS for cultural property.
- 1. The World Heritage Convention
- 1a. Involvement and role of Francisco Lopez Morales in the Convention
- 1b. Key objectives of the Convention
- 1c. The World Heritage List: length and representativity
- 1d. Decisions and key cases for the implementation of the Convention
- 1e. Session of the Committee in Merida
- 2. World Heritage Committee: balance between professionals and diplomats
- 3. Advisory bodies: ICOMOS and IUCN
- 4. The secretariat of UNESCO: the World Heritage Centre
Oral Archives of the
World Heritage Convention
Under the leadership of the Canada Research Chair on Built Heritage at the University of Montreal, an international team of researchers conducts interviews with pioneers of World Heritage to capture memories of important moments in the history of UNESCO Convention.
Launched in 2006, this initiative is part of the UNESCO History project that celebrated the 60th anniversary of the creation of UNESCO. The Oral Archives project records the precious witness of people closely associated with the creation and implementation of the Convention. Their recollections and views have greatly enriched the book by Christina Cameron and Mechtild Rössler, Many Voices, One Vision: The Early Years of the World Heritage Convention (Ashgate/Routledge, 2013).
