Tuesday, June 18, 2013
Director-General pays official visit to the Kingdom of Cambodia on the occasion of the 37th session of the World Heritage Committee
On 16 June, during her official visit to the Kingdom of Cambodia, the Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, met with His Majesty King Norodom ...

Tuesday, June 18, 2013
UNESCO and Panasonic renew strategic partnership agreement
UNESCO and Panasonic Corporation announced the renewal of their strategic partnership agreement today. The new agreement will run for two years from ...

Tuesday, June 18, 2013
World Heritage Committee inscribes East Rennell on the List of World Heritage in Danger
The World Heritage site of East Rennell  has been inscribed on the List of World Heritage in Danger due to logging that is affecting the ...

Tuesday, June 18, 2013
African Culture Ministers call for balancing heritage conservation and social and economic development
On 17 June 2013, in the context of the 37th Session of the World Heritage Committee in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, the Director-General, Irina Bokova, ...

Monday, June 17, 2013
World Heritage Committee removes the Iranian World Heritage site of Bam and its Cultural Landscape from danger listing
The World Heritage Committee has decided that improvements in the management and conservation of the World Heritage site of Bam and its Cultural ...

Monday, June 17, 2013
African ministers concerned by the region’s World Heritage sites
Must countries choose between economic development and the safeguarding of heritage? This was the subject of the annual Round Table of African ...

Sunday, June 16, 2013
Watch the live webcast of the 37th session of the World Heritage Committee in Phnom Penh
The 37th session of the World Heritage Committee is now underway in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, from 16 to 27 June 2013. Media contacts: Roni Amelan ...

Sunday, June 16, 2013
Important Khmer statues returned to Cambodia during opening of World Heritage meeting in Phnom Penh
Solemn appeals for the preservation of the heritage of humanity and colourful cultural performances marked the opening of the 37th session of the ...

Friday, June 14, 2013
Jaeger-LeCoultre auction benefits Brazilian Atlantic Islands: Fernando de Noronha and Atol das Rocas Reserves
From 23 to 26 April 2013, the Swiss luxury watch manufacturer Jaeger-LeCoultre, partner of UNESCO’s World Heritage Centre since 2008, organized ...

Friday, June 14, 2013
Enter a "competwition" to win a copy of Benefits Beyond Borders (UK only)
Enter a Competwition for the chance to win 1 of 5 copies of World Heritage: Benefits Beyond Borders!This book was jointly published by UNESCO and ...

Friday, June 14, 2013
Historic Urban Landscape approach explained
This newly published brochure "New life for historic cities: The historic urban landscape approach explained" introduces the Recommendation on the ...

Tuesday, June 11, 2013
World Heritage Candidates announced for 2013 Business Planning Programme
Participants to the 5th annual World Heritage Centre / Earthwatch / Shell "Business Planning for natural World Heritage site managers" year long ...

Sunday, June 9, 2013
UNESCO expert mission evaluates damage to Mali’s cultural heritage
“UNESCO saved the temples of Egypt and rebuilt the Mostar Bridge. UNESCO will rebuild the mausoleums of Mali,“ said UNESCO ...

Friday, June 7, 2013
World Heritage celebrates World Oceans Day!
Over 1,000 new species have been discovered at marine sites since their inscription on the World Heritage List. This data has been compiled in ...

Friday, June 7, 2013
Report of the 40th Anniversary Year activities: Celebrating 40 years of the World Heritage Convention and looking forward to tomorrow
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre has published a brochure reporting the events and activities carried out in 2012 to celebrate the 40th anniversary of ...

Friday, June 7, 2013
World Heritage Committee to inscribe new sites on UNESCO World Heritage List and examine conservation of sites already on the List
The World Heritage Committee will consider the inscription of 32 sites on UNESCO’s World Heritage List during its next session, from 16 to 27 ...

Wednesday, June 5, 2013
UN On-line Volunteers and World Heritage
With almost a thousand sites inscribed on the World Heritage List, the reach of the World Heritage Convention is vast. To better present one important ...

Sunday, June 2, 2013
Director-General of UNESCO reiterates her appeal for the protection of Syria’s cultural heritage
In the wake of alarming media reports on damage to several historic and religious sites in various regions of Syria, I wish to express my grave ...

Wednesday, May 29, 2013
UNESCO and Italy launch new cooperation to restore and conserve cultural heritage in Bamiyan, Afghanistan
Most people know Bamiyan as the site where giant statutes of the Buddha were destroyed by the Taliban in 2001.  But it is the location of other ...

Monday, May 27, 2013
Great Smoky Mountains National Park Hosts World Heritage Fellow
The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is hosting a World Heritage Fellow, Mr. Anoop K.R., Director of Keoladeo National Park in India and Deputy ...

Monday, May 27, 2013
NWHF and WHITRAP sign cooperation agreement for sustainable practice at World Heritage sites
The Nordic World Heritage Fund (NWHF) and the World Heritage Institute of Training and Research in the Asia and the Pacific Region (WHITR-AP), have ...

Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Statement by the Director-General of UNESCO regarding the mission to the Old City of Jerusalem
Following certain media announcements reporting on the cancellation of the UNESCO Mission to the Old City of Jerusalem, Director-General Irina Bokova ...

Friday, May 17, 2013
Rosewood Poaching Turns Violent; Rapid Response Facility Provides Emergency Support
On the 3rd of May, the Rapid Response Facility (RRF) received a request for emergency support in confronting a surge of rosewood poaching in Dong ...

Tuesday, May 7, 2013
Two New Episodes of Patrimonito’s World Heritage Adventures Available Online
World Heritage Education Programme is pleased to announce the release  of "Patrimonito’s World Heritage Adventures" cartoon ...

Friday, May 3, 2013
UNESCO and International Astronomical Union sign new agreement
On 30 April 2013, UNESCO and the International Astronomical Union (IAU) renewed their Memorandum of Understanding at the Organization’s ...

Friday, May 3, 2013
The Director-General of UNESCO Expresses Deep Concern at the Rising Violence in the Central African Republic, at the Heart of the Sangha Trinational Site
The Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, has expressed deep concern over the rise of armed violence, poaching and destruction in the Dzanga-Sanga ...

Friday, May 3, 2013
Collaboration between Two Volcanic World Heritage Sites on Managing Risks to Visitors
Demonstrating an excellent example of cooperation between managers and staff of two of the globe’s most iconic World Heritage volcano sites, ...

Monday, April 29, 2013
Extension of the Netherlands Funds-in-Trust 2013- 2016
After three successful programme cycles of 4 years each, during the period from 2001 to 2012, the Dutch Government decided to extend the Netherlands ...

Friday, April 26, 2013
First European Marine World Heritage Sites conference commits to strong regional cooperation
From 15-16 April 2013, 25 experts from 4 European marine World Heritage Sites were brought together in Tönning (Germany) with the aim to ...

Thursday, April 25, 2013
2nd South East Europe World Heritage Youth Forum for peace and sustainable development held
The 2nd South East European (SEE) World Heritage Youth Forum for peace and sustainable development was held from 6 to 11 April 2013 in Zajecar, ...

Wednesday, April 24, 2013
UNESCO Director-General deplores continuing destruction of ancient Aleppo, a World Heritage site
UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova expressed her deep distress over reports of the continuing destruction which has severely damaged the ancient ...

Friday, April 12, 2013
11th Expert Working Group releases recommendations for Safeguarding the Bamiyan Valley, Afghanistan
A group of Afghan and international experts working on the safeguarding of Bamiyan (Afghanistan), as well as representatives of the Afghan and ...

Friday, March 22, 2013
World Heritage sites participate in Earth Hour 2013
Once again UNESCO will partner with World Wildlife Fund (WWF) for Earth Hour, one of the world's largest and most well-known environmental ...

Wednesday, March 6, 2013
Agreement signed for reconstruction of Kasubi Tombs, Uganda
On 1st March 2013, UNESCO signed the Plan of Operation with the Government of Uganda for the project “Technical and financial assistance for the ...

Friday, March 1, 2013
Syria: The Director-General of UNESCO Appeals to Stop Violence and to Protect the World Heritage City of Aleppo
For more than a year now, I have been expressing on behalf of UNESCO my deep concern about the dramatic humanitarian situation in Syria and the ...

Tuesday, February 26, 2013
World Heritage field guide for climate change adaptation tested at Kenyan World Heritage sites
The field testing of the World Heritage Centre’s field guide for climate change adaptation in natural World Heritage sites was launched last ...

Monday, February 25, 2013
Building capacity for managing natural World Heritage sites in Africa
Managers from 10 World Heritage sites throughout Africa met at the IUCN ESARO regional offices in Nairobi, Kenya to reflect on and learn more about ...

Friday, February 22, 2013
New UNESCO website on Lumbini, the Birthplace of the Lord Buddha World Heritage site
The UNESCO Kathmandu Office has recently created a website on Lumbini, the Birthplace of the Lord Buddha, World Heritage property in Nepal: ...

Tuesday, February 19, 2013
International experts and decision makers gathered at UNESCO adopt Action Plan for Mali’s cultural heritage and manuscripts
An Action Plan for the Rehabilitation of Cultural Heritage and the Safeguarding of Ancient Manuscripts in Mali was adopted at an international ...

Friday, February 15, 2013
UNESCO and the Fondation Franz Weber partner for World Heritage preservation
On 10 January 2013, UNESCO and the Fondation Franz Weber of Switzerland signed a five-year agreement to reinforce support for the Rapid Response ...

Wednesday, February 13, 2013
UNESCO convenes international experts meeting for the safeguarding of Malian cultural heritage
The Director-General of UNESCO, together with the Government of France, is organizing an international Day of Solidarity for Mali on 18 February 2013 ...

Friday, February 8, 2013
Marine World Heritage: The Crown Jewels of the Ocean event calls for support of marine sites
On 7 February, international film stars Clive Owen and Jacques Perrin gave their support to Marine World Heritage: The Crown Jewels of the ...

Monday, February 4, 2013
UNESCO has developed cultural heritage maps and a “Heritage Passport” to help protect Mali’s cultural heritage
In response to the conflict taking place in the northern regions of Mali since April 2012, UNESCO, in collaboration with the National Directorate of ...

Sunday, February 3, 2013
Director-General visits Mali with French President François Hollande
UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova made a visit to Mali on Saturday 2 February with French President François Hollande and the interim ...

Saturday, February 2, 2013
UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova in Mali to spearhead UNESCO’s commitment to safeguard and rebuild Mali’s extraordinary cultural heritage
The Director-General is visiting Mali today with French President François Hollande, with the goal to launch the assessment of the state of ...

Saturday, February 2, 2013
World Wetlands Day 2013
2 February each year is World Wetlands Day. It marks the date of the adoption of the Convention on Wetlands on 2 February 1971, in the Iranian city of ...

Friday, February 1, 2013
Project Publication on Tourism Management at World Heritage Sites of Portuguese Origin and Influence
In January 2013, the UNESCO World Heritage Centre and Turismo de Portugal (the Portuguese Tourism Authority) concluded their joint project on ...

Wednesday, January 30, 2013
UNESCO determined to help Mali restore and rebuild its cultural heritage
UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova today announced that UNESCO will do everything possible to safeguard and rebuild Mali’s extraordinary ...

Monday, January 21, 2013
World Heritage Volunteers 2013 - Patrimonito Voluntary Action - Inspiring change
Are you a youth organization and want to sensitize the young people more about the value of World Heritage sites?  Or are you an NGO and wish to ...

Monday, January 14, 2013
The Director-General of UNESCO urges military forces to protect cultural sites in Mali during air raids and ground interventions
The Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova launched an appeal to all military forces in Mali: "I ask all armed forces to make every effort to ...

Monday, January 7, 2013
UNESCO holds the first International Colloquium on the Conservation of World Heritage Earthen Architecture
Within framework of the World Heritage Earthen Architecture Programme (WHEAP), an international colloquium on the conservation of earthen architecture ...

Friday, December 21, 2012
Best Wishes 2013 from the UNESCO World Heritage Centre
World Heritage sites cover a quater of all marine protected areas on the planet: 46 jewels of the ocean, beautiful but fragile. Lest's protect ...

Tuesday, December 18, 2012
First Expert/Stakeholder Meeting for Management Plan of Pompei, Herculaneum and Torre Annunziata
The First Expert/Stakeholder Meeting took place in Pompei (Italy) on 17 November 2012, within the framework of the project “Towards a governance ...

Tuesday, December 18, 2012
Successful Completion of Climate Change Adaptation Project in the Peruvian Andes
Negotiated with the support of the World Heritage Centre, this 3 year Swiss government financed project entitled "Local Capacities for climate change ...

Monday, December 17, 2012
Nairobi Convention calls for cooperation on marine World Heritage in Indian Ocean
During the recent 7th Conference of the Parties for the Nairobi Convention (December 2012, Maputo, Mozambique), dedicated to "Partnering for a Healthy ...

Sunday, December 16, 2012
US celebrates the 40th anniversary of UNESCO's World Heritage Convention in Washington, and pays tribute to the Honourable Russell Train
The Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, laid out a vision for the World Heritage Convention in the 21st century stunning some 200 people ...

Friday, December 14, 2012
International experts meeting on earthen architecture: its preservation and potential for the future
Forty of the world’s leading experts on earthen architecture—which serves as habitat for up to one third of the world’ ...

Thursday, December 6, 2012
UNESCO pays tribute to the memory of Oscar Niemeyer, a great humanist and an engaged architect
The Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, paid tribute to the great Brazilian architect, Oscar Niemeyer, who died on Wednesday, 5 December, ...

Thursday, December 6, 2012
Panasonic World Heritage 2013 Calendar released in paper, online and tablet PC app formats
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre and Panasonic Corporation present the new tablet PC edition of the 2013 World Heritage calendar. Featuring stunning ...

Wednesday, December 5, 2012
New World Heritage state of conservation information system accessible to public
The World Heritage Centre, with the support from the Flanders Government, has embarked on the development a comprehensive and integrated information ...

Friday, November 30, 2012
2012-2013 World Heritage Map Available
The latest version of the World Heritage map, produced by the UNESCO World Heritage Centre and National Geographic Maps with the generous support of ...

Monday, November 26, 2012
Representatives from 30 Latin American Countries to prepare World Heritage Action Plan
The final meeting in the Second Cycle of the Periodic Report on the State of World Heritage in Latin America and the Caribbean will take place from 3 ...

Saturday, November 24, 2012
The Colmar Forum: enhanced collaboration between Council of Europe, EU, UNESCO, UNWTO and OECD
25 years of Council of Europe cultural routes celebrated in Colmar, France, 21-23 November 2012 The Colmar Forum, organized by the secretariat ...

Wednesday, November 21, 2012
Expert Working Group releases final Recommendation for Safeguarding Herat and Jam
The 3rd Expert Working Group Meeting  for the Old City of Herat and the World Heritage property of Jam (Afghanistan), met at the Museo d’ ...

Friday, November 16, 2012
World Heritage Convention turns 40
The World Heritage Convention, adopted by the UNESCO General Conference on 16 November 1972, turns 40 today. The only treaty for heritage preservation ...

Friday, November 16, 2012
"Passport" booklet highlighting United States’ World Heritage sites published
In celebration of the 40th anniversary of the World Heritage Convention, Eastern National and the National Park Service’s Office of ...

Thursday, November 8, 2012
World Heritage Convention’s 40th anniversary celebration concludes and launches Kyoto Vision
The Closing Event of the 40thAnniversary of the World Heritage Convention concluded today in Kyoto, Japan, after three days of presentations and ...

Thursday, November 8, 2012
Final Meeting of the Second Cycle of the Periodic Reporting Exercise for Latin America and the Caribbean
In the framework of Document WHC-12/36.COM/10C and Decision 36 COM 10C adopted by the World Heritage Committee at its 36th session (Saint Petersburg, ...

Thursday, November 8, 2012
Preparations are being completed in Chile for the final meeting of the Second Cycle of the Periodic Reporting Exercise for LAC
Preparations are being completed in Chile, where almost everything is ready, for the final meeting of the Second Cycle of the Periodic Reporting ...

Tuesday, November 6, 2012
Gala performance by the Cuban National Ballet on the 40th anniversary of the World Heritage Convention
The Cuban National Cultural Heritage Council (CNPC) and the Cuban National Ballet (BNC) offered last October 30 a gala performance on the 40th ...

Tuesday, November 6, 2012
Reflection and future perspectives mark World Heritage Convention’s 40th anniversary closing event in Kyoto, Japan
The opening ceremony of the Closing Event taking place in Kyoto from 6 to 8 November featured a performance by UNESCO Artist for Peace Sarah ...

Monday, November 5, 2012
Closing celebration of World Heritage Convention’s 40th anniversary
A three-day event in Kyoto, Japan, will mark the end of a year-long worldwide celebration of the 40th anniversary of the World Heritage Convention ...

Wednesday, October 31, 2012
The Africa region celebrates 40th anniversary of the World Heritage Convention
On the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the UNESCO World Heritage Convention, over 300 delegates, including 16 African Ministers of Culture, ...

Thursday, October 25, 2012
Vigan, Philippines recognized for best practice in World Heritage site management
The Historic Town of Vigan (Philippines), inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1999, has been recognized as a model of best practices in World ...

Friday, October 19, 2012
International Youth Forum Go4BioDiv at Sundarbans National Park
Thirty-four young messengers (participants) from over 20 different marine World Heritage sites around the world gathered in Hyderabad from 6 to ...

Friday, October 19, 2012
Director-General condemns renewed destruction of mausoleums in Timbuktu
Irina Bokova, the Director-General of UNESCO today denounced the renewed destruction of mausoleums in northern Mali, near the World Heritage city of ...

Thursday, October 11, 2012
UNESCO Director-General deplores the increasing threats and possible damage to the Umayyad Mosque in Aleppo, Syria
UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova today expressed utmost concern over the escalation of violence in Syria, in particular in the vicinity of several ...

Monday, October 8, 2012
UNESCO launches Africa Nature programme
On 1 and 2 October 2012, a workshop took place in Nairobi, Kenya to launch the UNESCO Africa Nature Programme, which was developed following the ...

Monday, October 1, 2012
Rock Islands Southern Lagoon and Tubbataha World Heritage sites win Future Policy Award for marine resource management
This year, two Marine World Heritage sites won the Future Policy Award, which celebrates policies that create better living conditions for current and ...

Sunday, September 30, 2012
UNESCO Director-General deplores destruction of ancient Aleppo markets, a World Heritage site
UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova today expressed distress and dismay over the fire that severely damaged the ancient markets in the old city of ...

Friday, September 21, 2012
The International Protection of Landscapes conference results in Declaration on Landscape
The International Protection of Landscapes meeting was organized by UNESCO and the International Traditional Knowledge Institute and held in ...

Wednesday, September 19, 2012
Singapore becomes 190th State Party to the World Heritage Convention
On 19 June 2012, the Government of Singapore officially deposited with the Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, its instrument of ratification, ...

Wednesday, September 19, 2012
The Director-General pays tribute to leading US conservationist and one of the founding fathers of the World Heritage Convention
It was with great sadness that the Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, learned of the passing of Russell E. Train, former President of the World ...

Tuesday, September 18, 2012
10.5 billion tonnes of carbon stored in World Heritage forest sites
A study commissioned by the World Heritage Centre reviews the total carbon stored in trees, leaves forest litter and soil for all 106 World Heritage ...

Tuesday, September 18, 2012
IUCN World Conservation Congress celebrates the 40th anniversary of the World Heritage Convention and calls for maintaining the highest standards for World Heritage
On Saturday 15 September, the IUCN World Conservation Congress ended on the Island of Jeju, Republic of Korea, which harbors the “Jeju Volcanos ...

Monday, September 17, 2012
UNESCO and National Geographic partner with Intercontinental Hotels for Responsible Business Week 2012
InterContinental Hotels & Resorts Responsible Business Week to run from 17-23 September 2012 InterContinental Hotels & Resorts today embarks ...

Saturday, September 15, 2012
The Director-General visits the Historic Quarter of the City of Colonia del Sacramento in Uruguay
UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova traveled to Colonia del Sacramento today, and visited the old city, which became the first World Heritage site ...

Saturday, September 15, 2012
The Jurassic Coast celebrates the Earth in 2012
The Jurassic Coast Earth Festival 2012 was a celebration of England’s only natural World Heritage Site – the Dorset and EastDevonCoast, ...

Friday, September 7, 2012
IUCN World Conservation Congress begins in Jeju, Republic of Korea
The IUCN World Conservation Congress, the world’s largest and most important conservation event, began 6 September on the Island of Jeju, ...

Thursday, September 6, 2012
Job opening: Cultural Heritage Specialist for Arab Regional Centre for World Heritage in Manama, Bahrain
The  recently established Arab Regional Centre for World Heritage (ARC-WH) in Manama, Bahrain, is currently recruiting a Culture Heritage ...

Wednesday, September 5, 2012
2013 UNESCO World Heritage Desk Diary published
Featuring a useful week-at-a-glance design, the Desk Diary is illustrated with colour photos of World Heritage sites, each accompanied with ...

Monday, September 3, 2012
The Director-General congratulates the Italian authorities for progress achieved in the conservation of the iconic World Heritage site of the Archaeological Areas of Pompei and Herculaneum
During her visit to Naples on the occasion of the World Urban Forum organized by UN-HABITAT, the Director-General, Irina Bokova, commended the Italian ...

Thursday, August 23, 2012
Argentina names World Heritage site to the Ramsar List
The government of Argentina has designated its 21st Wetland of International Importance, called the Humedales de Península Valdés ...

Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Patrimonito Chinese Storyboard Competition 2012 Results
In June 2012, the World Heritage Education Center for Youth (Beijing, China) and the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (WHC) launched ...

Friday, August 17, 2012
Director-General deeply concerned by wildfires in Southern Europe
UNESCO is monitoring closely the impact of wildfires in Southern Europe and the southernmost portion of the European Union. The Organization has been ...

Friday, August 17, 2012
Launch of ICOMOS-ICORP website
ICOMOS-ICORP recently launched its new website and Facebook page. ICOMOS- ICORP is the International Scientific Committee on Risk ...

Friday, August 10, 2012
Panasonic organizes UNESCO World Heritage Eco Learning event for Hanoi secondary school students
Panasonic Vietnam, in cooperation with UNESCO’s Office in Hanoi, organized the Eco Learning program on UNESCO World Heritage for students ...

Friday, August 10, 2012
Aleppo must be saved: Call by the Chairman of the World Heritage Committee
"Regardless of political positioning, the public is deeply concerned about the security situation in Aleppo and the safety of its citizens ...

Wednesday, August 8, 2012
Director-General Visits the Buddhist Monuments of Bagan
Close to one thousand years ago, Anawrahta, king of the first Myanmar Empire and a staunch advocate of Theravada Buddhism, embarked on one of the most ...

Monday, August 6, 2012
“World Heritage and indigenous peoples” - on the occasion of the International Day of the World’s Indigenous People, 9 August 2012
At its tenth session, the UN Permanent Forum on indigenous issues (UNPFII) made several recommendations relating to UNESCO, its World Heritage ...

Tuesday, July 31, 2012
UNESCO and the Smithsonian Institution team up to celebrate the World Heritage Convention
The project ‘Protection, Preservation and Prosperity: Stories of World Heritage,’ is being launched today by UNESCO and the Smithsonian ...

Friday, July 27, 2012
The Director-General of UNESCO appeals for the Protection of the World Heritage City of Aleppo
In light of escalated violence in the vicinity of several historic urban areas in Syria, the Director-General reiterates her appeal of 30 March 2012, ...

Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Creation of a Special Fund for the Safeguarding of Mali’s World Heritage sites
Echoing the call of UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova, the World Heritage Committee has established a Special Fund to support Mali’s efforts ...

Friday, July 20, 2012
RRF grant awarded to rebuilt the Okapi Wildlife Reserve
On June 24, a group of armed rebels attacked the headquarters of the Okapi Wildlife Reserve, situated in the north-east of the Democratic Republic of ...

Wednesday, July 18, 2012
Tokyo Expert Meeting (Feb 2012) published
The record of the "International Expert Meeting on the 40th Anniversary" which was held on 16 February 2012 is now available on the Japan ...

Friday, July 6, 2012
World Heritage Centre signs Memorandum of Understanding with the French Marine Protected Area Agency
The World Heritage Centre and the French Marine Protected Area Agency (AAMP) signed a Memorandum of Understanding in support of the conservation of ...

Friday, July 6, 2012
End of 36th session of the World Heritage Committee marked by concern for World Heritage sites in Mali
The World Heritage Committee Friday closed its 36th session after almost two weeks of work under the chair of Eleonora Mitrofanova, the Ambassador ...

Wednesday, July 4, 2012
Emergency appeal for Okapi Wildlife Reserve (DRC) following murderous raid by poachers
*Read about new updates   UNESCO and the nongovernmental organization Fauna and Flora International are launching an emergency appeal to ...

Wednesday, July 4, 2012
21st International Radiocarbon Conference held at UNESCO Headquarters
The World Heritage Thematic Programme, Human Evolution: Adaptations, Dispersals and Social Developments (HEADS) http://whc.unesco.org/en/heads/, ...

Tuesday, July 3, 2012
Beech Forests of Europe – Further Sites for the WH list ?
After a three-day expert meeting held in Italy and ending on 20 June 2012, participants concluded that there is further potential for European beech ...

Tuesday, July 3, 2012
World Heritage Committee calls for end to destruction of Mali’s heritage and adopts decision for its support
The World Heritage Committee on 2 July condemned the destruction of World Heritage sites in Mali and decided on measures to help the country protect ...

Monday, July 2, 2012
Twenty-six new sites inscribed on UNESCO World Heritage List this year
The World Heritage Committee on Monday morning inscribed Lena Pillars Nature Park of the Russian Federation, the last site to be added to ...

Sunday, July 1, 2012
Four natural and four cultural properties added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List on Sunday
The World Heritage Committee on Sunday inscribed eight new sites on UNESCO’s World Heritage List, including Chad’s first World Heritage ...

Saturday, June 30, 2012
Bahraini pearling site and the Mosque of Isfahan inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List
Pearling, testimony of an island economy (Bahrain) and the Masjed-e Jāmé of Isfahan (Iran) were inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage ...

Saturday, June 30, 2012
Sites in Iran, Malaysia, Canada, Slovenia, Spain, Germany, Portugal and France on UNESCO’s World Heritage List
The World Heritage Committee on Saturday afternoon added the following sites to UNESCO’s World Heritage List: Gonbad-e Qābus (Iran), ...

Saturday, June 30, 2012
UNESCO Director-General of UNESCO calls for a halt to destruction of cultural heritage site in Timbuktu
UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova today expressed her distress and dismay over the destruction of three sacred tombs that are part of a World ...

Saturday, June 30, 2012
Mexican tourism project cancelled to protect Gulf of California World Heritage site
The World Heritage Centre received a letter today from the Government of Mexico’s National Commission for Natural Protected Areas formally ...

Friday, June 29, 2012
Church of the Nativity and the Pilgrimage Route in Bethlehem, Palestine, inscribed on UNESCO World Heritage List along with sites from Israel, Palau, Indonesia and Morocco
New sites have been inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List: Birthplace of Jesus: the Church of the Nativity and the Pilgrimage Route, ...

Friday, June 29, 2012
Xanadu (China), Bassari Country (Senegal) and Grand Bassam (Côte d’Ivoire) added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List
The Site of Xanadu (China), the Bassari Country: Bassari and Bedik Cultural Landscapes (Senegal) and the Historic Town Grand Bassam, the first capital ...

Friday, June 29, 2012
UNESCO Director-General preoccupied by fighting in World Heritage sites in eastern DRC
The Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, expressed her utmost concern with the recent fighting in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, which is ...

Thursday, June 28, 2012
Heritage sites in northern Mali placed on List of World Heritage in Danger
The World Heritage Committee on Thursday accepted the request of the government of Mali to place Timbuktu and the Tomb of Askia on UNESCO’s List ...

Wednesday, June 27, 2012
Better conservation in Pakistan and the Philippines allow Committee to remove two sites from World Heritage List in Danger
The World Heritage Committee on Tuesday morning recognized the success of two countries, Pakistan and the Philippines, in improving the conservation ...

Wednesday, June 27, 2012
Panamanian fortifications inscribed on List of World Heritage in Danger
Environmental factors, lack of maintenance and uncontrollable urban developments have been cited as reasons to inscribe the Fortifications on the ...

Tuesday, June 26, 2012
World Heritage Committee places Liverpool on List of World Heritage in Danger
The World Heritage Committee has placed Liverpool Maritime Mercantile City on the List of World Heritage in Danger due to the proposed construction ...

Monday, June 25, 2012
Day 1 in St Petersburg: 2012 World Heritage Committee
Of the 33 sites nominated this year, which ones will make the cut to achieve UNESCO World Heritage status? The first day of the World Heritage ...

Sunday, June 24, 2012
36th session of World Heritage Committee opens with focus on sustainable development
The challenges facing heritage preservation as UNESCO celebrates the 40th anniversary of the World Heritage Convention were the focus of the opening ...

Sunday, June 24, 2012
36th Session of World Heritage Committee Youth Forum: Kazan (Republic of Tatarstan) 1 - 9 July, 2012
The Youth Model of the World Heritage Committee, to be held in Kazan from 1 to 9 July, is designed to attract the attention of young people of the ...

Wednesday, June 20, 2012
UNESCO and NOUH sign agreement for preservation of Historic Cairo
On 11 June, a protocol agreement for a preservation and management project for Historic Cairo (Egypt) was signed by Mr. Samir Gharib, Head of the ...

Tuesday, June 19, 2012
Successful World Heritage Candidates for the 2012 Business Planning Programme
Participants to the 4th annual World Heritage Centre / Earthwatch / Shell "Business Planning for natural World Heritage site managers" year long ...

Friday, June 15, 2012
10 Years of Dutch Support to World Heritage “From Astronomy to Zanzibar” published
Since its inception in 2001, the Netherlands Funds-in-Trust (NFiT) at the World Heritage Centre has served the international heritage community as ...

Tuesday, June 12, 2012
Preliminary findings of UNESCO mission sent to assess earthquake damage to sites in northern Italy
Following the earthquakes that struck the region of Emilia in northern Italy, notably since May 20, the UNESCO Director General Irina ...

Saturday, June 9, 2012
Consultative Meeting on World Heritage and Sustainable Development discusses principles and policy
The Consultative Meeting on World Heritage and Sustainable Development, held in Ouro Preto, Brazil from 5 to 8 February, was a ...

Friday, June 8, 2012
World Heritage celebrates World Oceans Day with new iPhone app
In celebration of World Oceans Day, the World Heritage Centre is launching an iPhone app. This years’ Oceans Day theme “Youth: the Next ...

Friday, June 8, 2012
In Memoriam: Professor Philip Tobias
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre would like to express its sincere condolences to the friends and family of Professor Philip Vallentine Tobias, who ...

Thursday, June 7, 2012
UNESCO mission assesses earthquake damage to sites in northern Italy
As requested by Director-General Irina Bokova, a team of experts has traveled to northern Italy to assess damage to World Heritage sites following ...

Friday, June 1, 2012
World Heritage Committee to consider inscription of 36 sites on UNESCO’s World Heritage List at forthcoming session (St Petersburg 22 June – 6 July)
The World Heritage Committee will consider the inscription of 36 sites on the World Heritage List during its next meeting from 24 June to 6 July, in ...

Wednesday, May 30, 2012
World Heritage Inventory of Earthen Architecture available online
The World Heritage Inventory of Earthen Architecture  is now available in English and French online: ...

Thursday, May 24, 2012
Government of Mali and UNESCO move to protect Timbuktu and other heritage sites in the north of Mali
The Government of Mali and UNESCO have defined measures to safeguard World Heritage Properties in the north of Mali, including the fabled city of ...

Wednesday, May 23, 2012
Launching Of The Rivers And Heritage Website
The Rivers and Heritage website was officially launched on 15 March 2012 at the World Water Forum in Marseille (France), during the session ...

Tuesday, May 22, 2012
Director-General concerned about attacks on World Heritage site of Ghadamès (Libya)
The Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, today called for the protection of Libya’s Old City of Ghadamès inscribed on ...

Tuesday, May 22, 2012
UNESCO monitors damage to heritage in northern Italy following powerful earthquake
The Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, today extended her condolences to the inhabitants of northern Italy for the loss of human life and ...

Thursday, May 17, 2012
Living with World Heritage Conference examines sustainability and local involvement
The conference Living with World Heritage, held in Røros, Norway from 13 to 16 May 2012, was part of Norway`s official ...

Wednesday, May 9, 2012
New Recommendation on the Historic Urban Landscape
On 7 May 2012, UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova and H.E. Ms Katalin Bogyay, Ambassador of Hungary and President of UNESCO's General Conference, ...

Friday, May 4, 2012
Irina Bokova concerned about growing threats to cultural heritage in Mali
UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova expressed her great concern following the desecration of the graves of Sidi Mahmoud in Mali by the Ansar Dine ...

Friday, April 20, 2012
Frontiers of the Roman Empire World Heritage site receives funding to restore portions of Hadrian’s Wall
The World Heritage property “Frontiers of the Roman Empire” has received £537,185 (US$ 850,406) in funding from SITA Trust to ...

Friday, April 20, 2012
Recommendations for transnational heritage corridors of Silk Roads site nomination
Members of the Coordinating Committee on the Serial World Heritage Nomination of the Silk Roads release recommendations for two priority transnational ...

Monday, April 2, 2012
Sydney Opera House, other sites participate in Earth Hour 2012
Sydney Opera House was among the World Heritage sites around the globe participating in Earth Hour 2012, the environmental campaign to draw ...

Monday, April 2, 2012
UNESCO Director-General expresses concern about the situation in Mali
  In reaction to recent events in Northern Mali, UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova expresses her deep concern about the possible ...

Friday, March 30, 2012
Archaeological discoveries
In the sacred place of Tenochtitlan, archaeologists from INAH-Conaculta (The Mexican National Institute of Anthropology and History and the Mexican ...

Friday, March 30, 2012
Director-General of UNESCO appeals for protection of Syria’s cultural heritage
The Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, today called for the protection of the cultural heritage of Syria.   ‘Following a ...

Friday, March 30, 2012
International World Heritage Expert Meeting on criterion (vi)
  The International World Heritage Expert Meeting on Criterion (vi)  and associative values which took place in Warsaw, Poland, 28-30 March ...

Wednesday, March 28, 2012
UNESCO committed to stronger links between World Heritage and Tourism
UNESCO Director-General, Irina Bokova underlined the importance of better integrating cultural heritage preservation and sustainable tourism during ...

Wednesday, March 28, 2012
From World Heritage to Literacy, Philadelphia Embraces UNESCO
World Heritage and literacy were bookends to a day where Philadelphia opened its arms to UNESCO, during the second day of Director-General Irina ...

Wednesday, March 28, 2012
World Heritage and Sustainable Tourism Top Agenda in Miami Leg of Director-General’s Mission to the U.S.
With a stunning visit to the Everglades the day before serving as a strong reminder, Director-General Irina Bokova turned her attention to a ...

Wednesday, March 28, 2012
World Heritage sites participate in Earth Hour
UNESCO will partner with World Wildlife Fund (WWF) for Earth Hour, one of the world's largest and most well-known environmental campaigns in the ...

Thursday, March 22, 2012
GIS boundaries of natural and mixed World Heritage sites available
IUCN and UNEP-WCMC have compiled a KML layer with key information on the natural and mixed World Heritage sites inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage ...

Thursday, March 22, 2012
Jaeger-LeCoultre auction benefits Puerto-Princesa Subterranean River National Park
From 12-15 March 2012, the Swiss luxury watch manufacturer Jaeger-LeCoultre, partner of UNESCO’s World Heritage Centre since 2008, organized its ...

Wednesday, March 21, 2012
Rapid Response Facility helping combat Mt. Kenya fires
On January 15th, forest fires were spotted on the slopes of Mount Kenya, the highest mountain in Africa.  Inscribed onto the World Heritage list ...

Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Venice Declaration adopted at international Conference on "Building Cities Resilience to Disasters in Europe: Protecting Cultural Heritage and Adapting to Climate Change"
The World Heritage Centre took part in a Conference organized by the UN International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UN-ISDR) and the Municipality ...

Friday, March 16, 2012
UNESCO World Heritage Youth Storyboard Korean Competition (2012)
To contribute to the 2012 celebration of the 40th Anniversary of the World Heritage Convention, the Cultural Heritage Administration of ...

Thursday, March 15, 2012
In Memoriam: Professor Herb Stovel, conservationist
Professor Herb Stovel, one of the world’s most renowned experts in heritage conservation, recently passed away in Ottawa, Canada. During his ...

Thursday, March 15, 2012
American National Park Service (NPS) celebrates 40th anniversary of the World Heritage Convention
The National Park Service of the United States of America is celebrating the World Heritage Convention with events throughout the year. For more ...

Tuesday, March 13, 2012
World Heritage Centre expresses concern regarding aeromagnetic and aerogravimetric explorations at Virunga National Park (DRC)
The World Heritage Centre has just been informed that a Ministerial Order, signed on 1 September 2011, delivers to SOCO (South Africa Congo Oil) ...

Monday, March 12, 2012
International World Heritage Expert Meeting on Integrity for Cultural Heritage
Dr. Sami El-Masri, Deputy Director General for Arts, Culture and Heritage, Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority, with the Director of the UNESCO ...

Thursday, March 8, 2012
Aztec Ruins hosts World Heritage celebration
Aztec Ruins, a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1987 as part of the Chaco Culture designation,  celebrated  the 25th anniversary of its ...

Thursday, March 8, 2012
City council grants planning permission for development scheme at World Heritage site “Liverpool – Maritime Mercantile City”
On 6 March 2012, Liverpool City Council’s Planning Committee granted outline planning permission for the Peel Holdings £5.5bn Liverpool ...

Wednesday, March 7, 2012
Construction of a women’s dyeing factory in Bamako
Women in Mali have developed over the last decades specific skills in terms of textile dyeing. This activity provides many employment opportunities ...

Saturday, March 3, 2012
Patrimonito Korean National Storyboard Competition 2012 - Winners
In March 2012, the Cultural Heritage Administration of the Republic of Korea (CHA) and the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (WHC)  launched ...

Friday, March 2, 2012
Exploration of hydrocarbons has been suspended on the Coffee Cultural Landscape, Colombia.
Thanks to Quindío being declared as part of the UNESCO World Heritage property, Coffee Cultural Landscape (Colombia), the exploration of ...

Friday, March 2, 2012
Reactive Monitoring Mission to the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage property (Australia)
A joint international expert mission to the World Heritage property of Great Barrier Reef by the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (WHC), and the ...

Friday, March 2, 2012
Nominations open for the 2012 MIDORI Prize for Biodiversity
Takuya Okada, Chairman of the AEON Environmental Foundation and Honorary Chairman of AEON Co., Ltd., announced today the opening of nominations for ...

Friday, March 2, 2012
3-month trip to India's 28 World Heritage sites
To celebrate the 40th anniversary of the UNESCO World Heritage Convention, two young Indian men, Aniketh MJ and Sulesh Kumar, are planning ...

Thursday, March 1, 2012
The World's Heritage co-published by UNESCO and Collins
UNESCO and Collins are delighted to announce the publication of The World’s Heritage (2nd Edition) – the definitive, best-selling ...

Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Patrimonito and Docomodake bring World Heritage sites to young people
To mark the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the UNESCOWorld Heritage Convention, Dentsu, EVERGREEN Digital Contents and NTT DOCOMO, in ...

Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Expert Working Group releases recommendations for Bamiyan Valley, Afghanistan
Expert Working Group meeting held in Tokyo, releases recommendations for Safeguarding World Heritage property of the Bamiyan Valley, ...

Monday, February 13, 2012
Heritage Heals in Hiraizumi
It is rare for a Director-General to present a certificate of World Heritage in person, but the temples, gardens and archaeological site of Hiraizumi, ...

Thursday, February 9, 2012
Panasonic Eco Picture Diary Global Contest Ceremony held at UNESCO Headquarters
Panasonic Corporation held yesterday, 8 February, the award ceremony of "Eco Picture Diary Global Contest" which the company has been promoting with ...

Friday, February 3, 2012
The Rapid Response Facility Contributes to avoiding the ecological isolation of Romania's Retezat Massif
The Retezat Massif has received a Rapid Response Facility (RRF) grant to undertake urgent snow-tracking surveys in response to a road-building threat ...

Wednesday, February 1, 2012
UNESCO and Goodwill Ambassador Herbie Hancock launch 40th anniversary of the World Heritage Convention
The Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, launched the 40th anniversary celebration of the World Heritage Convention in a ceremony at UNESCO ...

Monday, January 30, 2012
World Heritage Convention turns forty
This year marks the 40th anniversary of the World Heritage Convention, one of UNESCO's most successful programmes and one of the most powerful tools ...

Monday, January 30, 2012
Statement of the United Nations Foundation in Support of the World Heritage Convention’s 40th Anniversary
On November 16, 1972, the international community took a historic step towards safeguarding core, irreplaceable elements of our global heritage when ...

Tuesday, January 17, 2012
ICOMOS advisory mission to the World Heritage site of Seville
From 7 to 9 November 2011, experts from the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) undertook an advisory mission to examine development ...

Friday, January 13, 2012
Rapid Response Facility awards grant to Côte d'Ivoire component of Mount Nimba
The Côte d’Ivoire component of the transboundary Mount Nimba Strict Nature Reserve, inscribed onto the list of World Heritage in Danger, ...

Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Panasonic 2012 World Heritage calendar released in online version
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre and Panasonic have released an online version of the 2012 World Heritage Calendar in five languages. It is available ...

Friday, December 23, 2011
Best Wishes 2012
40 years of protection, 188 States Parties, 936 World Heritage Sites. Join us for the 40th Anniversary of the World Heritage Convention as we ...

Friday, December 23, 2011
Marine Programme - Newsletter January 2012
Read our newsletter to learn about our major accomplishments, including new services that will help improve marine protection efforts around the ...

Tuesday, December 20, 2011
World Heritage Volunteers 2012
Call for Projectsconcrete actions for the 40th Anniversary of the World Heritage Convention The UNESCO World Heritage Education Programme in ...

Thursday, December 15, 2011
Kernavė Archaeological site in Lithuania granted “enhanced protection” in the event of armed conflict
Kernavė Archaeological Site (Cultural Reserve of Kernavė) World Heritage site has been given "enhanced protection" status by the Committee for the ...

Wednesday, December 14, 2011
London 2012 Torch Relay to pass through Ironbridge Gorge World Heritage site
While exact details of the route are still under cover, it has been announced that the Olympic Torch will be carried through Ironbridge Gorge World ...

Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Italy announces support to UNESCO for Safeguarding Cultural Heritage in Myanmar
The Government of Italy has granted 400,000€ to support a new UNESCO project to build capacity for safeguarding cultural heritage in ...

Monday, December 12, 2011
Palestine and the World Heritage Convention
Since Palestine was admitted to UNESCO on 31 October, there have been several misleading media reports about the status of Palestinian cultural ...

Friday, December 2, 2011
Panasonic sponsors The World Heritage Special on National Geographic Channel in 183 countries
The two-year partnership signed between Panasonic and the World Heritage Centre in June 2011 aims to promote sustainable development and increase ...

Tuesday, November 29, 2011
3rd annual Business Skills for Natural World Heritage Site manager training event held
Midway through a discussion on risk analysis, someone jumps to their feet and shouts “ELEPHANTS!!” and within a matter of seconds the ...

Tuesday, November 29, 2011
UNESCO and Italy agree to cooperate on the restoration of Pompeii
UNESCO and Italy have agreed to collaborate on the restoration of the Archaeological Areas of Pompeii, Herculaneum and Torre Annunziata, inscribed on ...

Thursday, November 24, 2011
Scotland hosts global conference on remote access to World Heritage sites
Leading lights in science, technology, conservation and heritage interpretation descended upon Edinburgh on 23 November 2011 for a unique ...

Friday, November 18, 2011
UNESCO World Heritage app downloaded over 13,000 times
To launch the 40th anniversary celebrations of the World Heritage Convention, UNESCO offered the World Heritage iPhone/iPad application (app) free for ...

Friday, November 18, 2011
Presentation ceremony held to recognize tri-national World Heritage site
On 16 November 2011, Kishore Rao, Director of the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, presented a certificate to German Minister for Environment Norbert ...

Thursday, November 10, 2011
State of Conservation of World Heritage Forests report launched
The World Heritage Centre is pleased to announce the publication of the World Heritage Paper #30:  “Adapting to Change – The State of ...

Tuesday, November 8, 2011
World Heritage Centre and Turismo de Portugal cooperate on Tourism Management at World Heritage sites
In June 2011 UNESCO’s World Heritage Centre and Turismo de Portugal, the Portuguese Tourism Authority, signed an agreement engaging in a ...

Monday, November 7, 2011
The G-77 & China at UNESCO celebrates the 40th Anniversary of the World Heritage Convention
A contribution of the G-77 & China in honor of the 40th Anniversary of the World Heritage Convention, in collaboration with UNESCO, the photo ...

Monday, November 7, 2011
2011-2012 World Heritage Map Available
The latest version of the World Heritage map, produced by the UNESCO World Heritage Centre and National Geographic Maps with the generous support of ...

Monday, November 7, 2011
UNESCO kicks off 40th anniversary celebration of World Heritage Convention
The Director-General of UNESCO Irina Bokova today launched the 40th anniversary celebrations for the Convention Concerning the Protection of the World ...

Monday, November 7, 2011
Nine members elected to World Heritage Committee
Nine new members were elected to the World Heritage Committee on the first day of the 18th General Assembly of States Parties to the World Heritage ...

Thursday, November 3, 2011
Elwha River Restoration project underway at Olympic National Park, USA
One of the largest restoration projects in the history of the United States is underway at Olympic National Park World Heritage site in Washington. ...

Wednesday, November 2, 2011
Fires at the World Heritage site of Pitons, cirques and remparts of Reunion Island (Réunion, France)
UNESCO is monitoring with concern the situation in the Pitons, cirques and remparts of Reunion Island, World Heritage site where fires have been ...

Tuesday, November 1, 2011
SIDS Capacity-Building Programme established
On 10 August 2011 the Japanese Government approved the programme proposal "Capacity Building to Support the Conservation of World Heritage Sites and ...

Monday, October 31, 2011
Floods at Cinque Terre World Heritage site
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre would like to express its condolences for the lives lost in northern Italy last week in the floods and mudslides ...

Friday, October 21, 2011
UNESCO convenes Libyan and international experts meeting for the safeguard of Libya’s cultural heritage
UNESCO has invited experts from both inside and outside of Libya to urgently examine the preservation of cultural heritage in the country, notably ...

Friday, October 21, 2011
First International Purple Economy Forum held
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre participated in a round table on “Attractiveness of regional assets: The creation and regionalization of added ...

Friday, October 14, 2011
Flooding in Thailand
Severe flooding in Thailand since mid July has this week inundated the World Heritage property of the Historic City of Ayutthaya, founded in ca. 1350 ...

Friday, October 14, 2011
Cape Floral Region Protected Areas get Conservation Boost from World Heritage Centre Partner
Fauna and Flora International (FFI) a longtime partner of UNESCO’s World Heritage Centre, launched a global appeal this week with the objective ...

Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Training in marine spatial planning of World Heritage marine sites in Mexico
Whale Sanctuary of El Vizcaino and Islands and Protected Areas of the Gulf of California(both located in Baja California, Mexico). The Whale ...

Tuesday, October 11, 2011
A 7000 Euro Grant For The Realization Of A Cultural Project Concerning The Mediterranean World
Born after 31 December 1975 you will be under 30 years of age in 2012. You are a native of a Mediterranean country. You wish to develop a ...

Monday, October 3, 2011
Severe damage to Philippine Rice Terraces by two typhoons
The Northern Luzon of the Philippines was severely affected by Typhoon Pedrin (International Name: Nesat) which crossed the region on Tuesday 27 ...

Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Satellites and World Heritage sites, partners to understand climate change
Financed by the Flemish Government and organized by UNESCO and its space partners, in particular Planet Action, this exhibition uses a series of ...

Friday, September 16, 2011
The World Heritage Centre and History® to raise awareness about preservation across the globe
UNESCO's World Heritage Centre and HISTORY® are partnering to increase awareness about heritage preservation worldwide. As part of the three-year ...

Friday, September 9, 2011
UNESCO's Commitment to Action for the cultural recovery of Jacmel (Haiti) has been accepted by the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI)
UNESCO's Commitment to Action for the cultural recovery of Jacmel (Haiti) has been accepted by the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI). The project was ...

Monday, August 22, 2011
Grand Canyon National Park Hosts U.S. World Heritage Fellow
Mr John Zulu, site manager of Zambia's Mosi-oa-Tunya / Victoria Falls National Park and World Heritage site arrived in the U.S. August 5th to spend ...

Friday, August 19, 2011
18th session of the General Assembly of the States Parties to the World Heritage Convention and presentation of candidatures for the election of members to the World Heritage Committee
UNESCO Headquarters, Rooms XII, 7 to 9 November 2011 The General Assembly of States Parties to the Convention concerning the Protection of the World ...

Wednesday, August 10, 2011
"I Know Where I'm Going”- Remote Access to World Heritage Sites from St Kilda to Uluru Conference
Informatics Forum, 10 Crichton Street, Edinburgh, EH8 9AB (Scotland, UK) At a time of economic crisis and environmental threat, ...

Tuesday, August 2, 2011
[in French only] Lettre d'information de la Convention France-UNESCO N°19
[in French only] Vie de la CFU Réunion du Comite mixte de coordination, 26 avril 2011, UNESCO, Paris. Comite du patrimoine mondial, Paris, ...

Tuesday, August 2, 2011
17th ICOMOS General Assembly and Scientific Symposium on the theme “Heritage: Driver of Development”
The most important triennial gathering of ICOMOS will take place from 27 November to 2 December 2011 for the first time in Paris at UNESCO ...

Friday, July 22, 2011
Caribbean Capacity Building Programme (CCBP)’s training Module 6 on Natural Heritage Management available on line
UNESCO Havana, Regional Office for Culture in Latin America and the Caribbean, is pleased to introduce module 6 of the Caribbean Capacity Building ...

Friday, July 15, 2011
Decisions by 35th session of the World Heritage Committee online
The final version of the Decisions adopted at the 35th session of the World Heritage Committee, which was held at UNESCO Headquarters from 19 to 29 ...

Thursday, July 7, 2011
World Heritage Committee refers decision to revise the boundaries of Selous Game Reserve (Tanzania)
In February, the United Republic of Tanzania submitted a request for a minor modification to the boundaries of the Selous Game Reserve. The 50000 km2 ...

Thursday, July 7, 2011
Report of impact of tsunami on Galápagos wildlife
Eighteen hours after the March 11 tsunami wreaked devastation in Japan, it hit the Galápagos Islands.  Luckily, by then the energy of ...

Friday, July 1, 2011
World Bank and UNESCO: Expanding Opportunities for Collaboration on Culture and Sustainable Development
Memorandum of Understanding Outlines Concrete Joint Initiatives UNESCO and the World Bank have cooperated informally over the past decades, in ...

Friday, July 1, 2011
Five World Heritage Sites in Africa Selected to Participate in Business Planning Programme
After a rigorous selection process, a total of 18 managers from five World Heritage sites in Africa were recently selected for admission into the ...

Thursday, June 30, 2011
Tides of Time Partners Renew Commitment to Marine World Heritage until 2014
In June 2011, Jaeger-LeCoultre, the International Herald Tribune and UNESCO's World Heritage Centre agreed to renew their longstanding 'Tides of Time' ...

Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Four new sites inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List
The Residence of Bukovinian and Dalmatian Metropolitans (Ukraine), the Petroglyphs Complexes of the Mongolian Altai (Mongolia), The Causses and the ...

Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Twenty-five new properties inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List which now numbers 936
The World Heritage Committee has inscribed a total of 25 sites on UNESCO's World Heritage List, including three natural properties, 21 cultural and ...

Monday, June 27, 2011
Sites in Ethiopia, Kenya and Viet Nam inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List
Konso Cultural Landscape (Ethiopia) , Fort Jesus, Mombasa (Kenya) and Citadel of the Ho Dynasty (Viet Nam), have been added to UNESCO's World ...

Monday, June 27, 2011
Six new sites inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List
The Ancient villages of Northern Syria (Syrian Arab Republic), The Cultural Sites of Al Ain (Hafit, Hili, Bidaa Bint Saud and Oases Areas), (United ...

Sunday, June 26, 2011
UNESCO Director-General regrets the announcement of Thailand's intention to denounce the 1972 World Heritage Convention
The Director-General of UNESCO Irina Bokova has expressed her deep regret following the declaration of the Thai Minister Suwit Khunkitti during the ...

Saturday, June 25, 2011
Barbados enters World Heritage List with Bridgetown and its Garrison; Hiraizumi (Japan) and Germany’s Beech Forests also inscribed
The World Heritage Committee has inscribed three new sites on UNESCO’s World Heritage List so far today: the Ancient Beech Forests of Germany as ...

Saturday, June 25, 2011
World Heritage Committee inscribes five new sites in Colombia, Sudan, Jordan, Italy and Germany
The Coffee Cultural Landscape of Colombia (Colombia), the Archaeological Sites of the Island of Meroe (Sudan), Wadi Rum Protected Area (Jordan) and ...

Friday, June 24, 2011
Ancient Chinese cultural landscape, the West Lake of Hangzhou, inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List
The World Heritage Committee has inscribed the West Lake Cultural Landscape of Hangzhou, comprising the West Lake and the hills surrounding its three ...

Friday, June 24, 2011
Japan's Ogasawara Islands on UNESCO's World Heritage List
The World Heritage Committee has inscribed Ogasawara Islands, the Japanese islands situated some 1,000 km south of the country's main archipelago, on ...

Friday, June 24, 2011
Kenya Lake System in the Great Rift Valley and Australia's Ningaloo Coast inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List
The World Heritage Committee has inscribed the Kenya Lake System in the Great Rift Valley (Kenya) and Australia's Ningaloo Coast on UNESCO's World ...

Friday, June 24, 2011
Senegal’s Saloum Delta inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List
The World Heritage Committee has inscribed Saloum Delta (Senegal) and its vestiges of more than two millennia of human occupation on UNESCO’s ...

Friday, June 24, 2011
Contested Tanzania highway project will not cross Serengeti National Park
In an important decision taken at the current session of the World Heritage Committee at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, France, the United Republic of ...

Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Danger listing for Indonesia’s Tropical Rainforest Heritage of Sumatra
The need to mobilize support and raise awareness to overcome threats facing the 2.5 million hectare Tropical Rainforest Heritage of Sumatra has led ...

Wednesday, June 22, 2011
World Heritage Committee puts Río Plátano Biosphere Reserve on Danger List at the request of Honduras
The Honduran World Heritage site of Río Plátano Biosphere Reserve , one of the few tropical rainforest remains in Central America, has ...

Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Successful preservation of India's Manas Wildlife Sanctuary enables withdrawal from the List of World Heritage in Danger
Significant improvements in the preservation of Manas Wildlife Sanctuary have allowed for its withdrawal from the List of World Heritage List ...

Monday, June 20, 2011
Conservation of World Heritage sites under scrutiny: World Heritage Committee meets to examine World Heritage List and inscribe new sites
The future of the World Heritage Convention ahead of its 40th anniversary next year and the growing challenges of heritage preservation were the key ...

Monday, June 20, 2011
'Our Place' Photo Exhibit at 35th session of World Heritage Committee
A selection of 50 photographs of World Heritage sites are on display during the 35th session of the World Heritage Committee held from 19 to 29 June ...

Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Launch of InforMEA – the United Nations Information Portal on Multilateral Environmental Agreements (MEAs)
The MEA Information and Knowledge Management (IKM) Initiative brings together the UN, UNESCO, FAO and UNEP, and 12 global UN Multilateral ...

Tuesday, June 7, 2011
The World Heritage Paper Series N°28: "Navigating the Future of Marine World Heritage" is published
Since the early 1980s, forty-three marine sites have been inscribed on the World Heritage List, covering about 1.4 million km2 of ocean surface - ...

Friday, June 3, 2011
UNESCO and Panasonic partner to promote World Heritage conservation and environmental education
UNESCO's World Heritage Centre and Panasonic Corporation on 3 June announced a strategic partnership agreement to promote sustainable development ...

Wednesday, May 25, 2011
First South-East Europe World Heritage Youth Forum
The First South-East Europe World Heritage Youth Forum is currently underway with the theme 'World Heritage education: Networking for a ...

Friday, May 20, 2011
Parks Canada wins conservation award; celebrates 100 years
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre would like to congratulate Parks Canada on its 100th anniversary, and for receiving the Gift to the Earth award from ...

Friday, May 20, 2011
[in French only] Formation intensive pour gestionnaires francophones de sites patrimoniaux
[in French only] « Construire ensemble l'avenir des sites patrimoniaux : élaborer et mettre en œuvre une gestion durable pour ...

Thursday, May 19, 2011
International Conference "What is the fate of Public Art?"
In celebration of the World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development On the 19th and 20th May 2011, the World Heritage Centre of ...

Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Anti-Poaching Patrols to continue at Niokolo Koba National Park, thanks to Rapid Response Facility emergency support
Niokolo Koba National Park in Senegal was inscribed onto the List of World Heritage sites In Danger in 2007 due in large part to intensive poaching ...

Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Ashgabat Agreement: representatives and experts of twelve Asian countries outline the Silk Roads Heritage Corridors approach for the future Serial and Trans-boundary World Heritage Nomination
Some fifty potential Silk Roads Heritage Corridors have been identified, with twenty corridors being  considered as a medium priority, while ...

Monday, May 16, 2011
UNESCO World Heritage sites iPhone and iPad Application from HarperCollins
UNESCO and HarperCollins Publishers are pleased to announce the release of the world's first fully comprehensive World Heritage sites application ...

Friday, May 13, 2011
World Migratory Bird Day 2011 observed 14-15 May in over 50 countries
The theme for World Migratory Bird Day 2011, celebrated around the world on 14-15 May, is ' Land use changes from a bird's-eye view ' and it ...

Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Dr Kenton R. Miller, nature conservation leader and former IUCN Director General, dies
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre and IUCN are deeply saddened by the loss of one of nature conservation’s leading lights. Dr Kenton ...

Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Human - Elephant conflict: Rapid Response Facility awards emergency grant to the Wildlife Conservation Society of Tanzania
The UNESCO - FFI - UNF Rapid Response Facility awarded an emergency grant to the Wildlife Conservation Society of Tanzania this week in response to ...

Thursday, May 5, 2011
Forty-two sites to be considered for inscription on UNESCO’s World Heritage List in June
Remarkable natural and cultural properties from 40 countries will be considered for inscription on UNESCO’s World Heritage List during the ...

Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Jaeger-LeCoultre auction proceeds support Malpelo Fauna and Flora Sanctuary
From 18-22 April 2011, the Swiss watch manufacturer Jaeger-LeCoultre organized its third online auction for the benefit of World Heritage marine ...

Friday, April 29, 2011
World Heritage Memory Net Launched
World Heritage Memory Net (WHMNet) is a model global digital library of cultural, historical, and moveable heritage collections related to the current ...

Thursday, April 28, 2011
Increase in One-horned Rhinoceros reported at Royal Chitwan National Park World Heritage Site (Nepal)
The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) has released the results of its rhinoceros census in Nepal, reporting a reported 23% increase in rhino ...

Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Expert Working Group releases recommendations for Safeguarding Bamiyan
Following their meeting in UNESCO Headquarters, Paris 3-4 March 2011, a group of Afghan and international experts working on the safeguarding of ...

Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Conclusions of the Second HERITY International Conference
This conference was held in Rome December 3-5, 2008. The conclusions outlined below were reached thanks to contributions from ICCROM, UNESCO-WHC, ...

Tuesday, April 19, 2011
UNESCO for Haiti. 19 April 2011
UNESCO invites Member States, Intergovernemental Organizations, NGOs, the Private Sector and Civil Society to a Conference designed to demonstrate the ...

Thursday, April 7, 2011
Call for applications for the IV° edition of the Master in "World Heritage at Work"
The call for applications for the IV° edition of the Master in "World Heritage at Work", offered by the University of Turin, the Polytechnic of ...

Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Rapid Response Facility Supports Post Tsunami Recovery in Galápagos
The devastating March 11th earthquake that struck the coast of Japan created a powerful tsunami that ravaged the  coastline and brought tragedy ...

Monday, April 4, 2011
2010 - 2011 World Heritage map now available
The latest version of the World Heritage Map, produced by the UNESCO World Heritage Centre and National Geographic Maps with support from Ministry of ...

Thursday, March 31, 2011
Statement from the Chairperson of the World Heritage Committee
Since the Kingdom of Bahrain became for the first time a member of the prestigious World Heritage Committee in 2007, one of the ...

Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Kishore Rao appointed Director of UNESCO World Heritage Centre
Kishore Rao has been appointed Director of the UNESCO World Heritage Centre. An expert in forestry and natural resources policy and planning, Mr Rao ...

Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Director-General urges military forces engaged in Libya to refrain from endangering cultural heritage
The Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, today called on both Libya and the coalition of States implementing a no-fly zone over the country to ...

Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Call for Posters on World Heritage Cities and Climate Change for the 11th OWHC World Congress
In view of the forthcoming 11th World Congress of the Organization of World Heritage Cities in Sintra (Portugal), 22 to 25 November 2011, the OWHC has ...

Monday, March 21, 2011
Statement of the Chairperson of the World Heritage Committee
Following the kind invitation of the World Heritage Centre, I had the great pleasure to attend the meeting entitled "Follow-up to the Second Cycle of ...

Friday, March 18, 2011
Arab States meeting held to define regional programme
From 2008 to 2010, the Arab States Parties to the World Heritage Convention undertook the Periodic Reporting exercise, consisting in assessing the ...

Friday, March 18, 2011
Director-General welcomes suspension of oil prospection at Virunga National Park (Democratic Republic of the Congo)
The Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, has welcomed the announcement by the Minister for Environment, Nature Conservation and Tourism of the ...

Friday, March 18, 2011
35th session of the World Heritage Committee to meet in Paris in June 2011
Due to the prevailing situation in the Kingdom of Bahrain and following consultations with Bahraini authorities, the Director-General of UNESCO, Irina ...

Wednesday, March 16, 2011
UNESCO World Heritage Centre expresses its solidarity with Japanese people following tragic events
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre would like to express its condolences for the loss of lives due to the devastating earthquake and tsunami which ...

Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Tsunami Spares Galapagos Wildlife, but Destroys Marine Laboratory
Minor damage has been reported at Galápagos Islands World Heritage site following the earthquake and tsunami that occurred off the coast of ...

Friday, March 11, 2011
[in French only] Newsletter N° 18 de la Convention France UNESCO
[in French only] Vie de la CFU * Réunion de bilan technique, 3 Février 2011, UNESCO, Paris* Rapport sur les possibilités de ...

Thursday, March 10, 2011
Resource Manual 'Preparing World Heritage Nominations' available online
The second title within the World Heritage Resource Manuals Preparing World Heritage Nominations (First Edition, 2010) series has just been ...

Monday, March 7, 2011
Experts outline future plans for the Cultural Landscape and Archaeological Remains of the Bamiyan Valley (Afghanistan)
Afghan officials and international experts outlined plans for the future safeguarding of the Cultural Landscape and Archaeological Remains of Bamiyan ...

Thursday, March 3, 2011
Ten years on – remembering the tragic destruction of the giant Buddha statues of Bamiyan (Afghanistan)
UNESCO will commemorate the 10th anniversary of the tragic destruction of the giant Buddha statues of Bamiyan with a forum on the event and a two-day ...

Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Statement from the Chairperson of the World Heritage Committee on the earthquake in Christchurch, New Zealand
On behalf of the World Heritage Committee, I was deeply saddened by the news of the earthquake that has caused loss of life and the destruction of the ...

Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Sustainable Indicators in World Heritage Urban Areas, Mexico City, Mexico
A mission was organized from the 30th January - 5th February 2010 in view of strengthening Spanish Funds-in-Trust technical cooperation, focusing on ...

Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Publication of the Comparative Analysis on Archaeology of Hunter-gatherers. Archaeological sites of the Chinchorro Culture
The International Meeting "The Chinchorro Culture from a Comparative Perspective ", took place in Arica, Chile, 5-8 January, 2010. As a ...

Tuesday, February 22, 2011
UNESCO Special Envoy on Preah Vihear to meet with prime ministers of Thailand and Cambodia
UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova's Special Envoy on the Preah Vihear Temple, Koïchiro Matsuura, will travel to Bangkok and Phnom Penh between ...

Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Lightning damages Pratapur Temple of Kathmandu Valley World Heritage site, Nepal
Pratapur Temple in the Swayambhu Monument Zone of the Kathmandu Valley World Heritage site, Nepal suffered damage from a lightning strike at around 5 ...

Thursday, February 10, 2011
UNESCO Director-General to send Special Envoy to Bangkok and Phnom Penh
UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova regretted the continuing tension between Cambodia and Thailand over the issue of the Temple of Preah Vihear. "The ...

Tuesday, February 8, 2011
UNESCO to send mission to Preah Vihear
The Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, today reiterated her call for calm and restraint around the Temple of Preah Vihear, inscribed on the ...

Sunday, February 6, 2011
Director-General expresses alarm over escalation of violence between Thailand and Cambodia
UNESCO Director- General Irina Bokova expressed her deep concern at the sudden escalation of tensions between Cambodia and Thailand on the issue of ...

Thursday, February 3, 2011
Cultural heritage update for Egypt
UNESCO's Director-General Irina Bokova today received assurances from Egypt's new minister for antiquities Zahi Hawass that every possible measure was ...

Wednesday, February 2, 2011
World Wetlands Day is 2 February
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre, Secretariat to the World Heritage Convention, wishes to extend its best wishes to the Secretariat for the Ramsar ...

Tuesday, February 1, 2011
UNESCO Director-General launches heritage and press freedom alert for Egypt
The Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, today launched an appeal to protect cultural heritage and to respect freedom of expression in ...

Friday, January 28, 2011
Three guards and five soldiers killed in attack at Virunga National Park (DRC)
On 24 January 2011, three park guards and five soldiers were killed in a violent attack against one of the patrol vehicles of the Congolese Wildlife ...

Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Last Call: Caribbean Heritage Course in Curaçao
The University of the Netherlands Antilles is organizing a course on Caribbean Heritage in Curaçao from 21 to 25 March 2011 for Module 1 ...

Monday, January 17, 2011
Colorado State University (USA) offers Spanish-language course on Protected Area Management
Applications Open for the Colorado State University Spanish Language Short Course on Protected Area Management.  6 July – 6 August 2011 ...

Friday, January 14, 2011
Kinshasa Declaration to protect DRC World Heritage sites signed
At the invitation of the Congolese Government, the high-level meeting requested by the World Heritage Committee in 2007 (Christchurch 2007) was held ...

Friday, January 7, 2011
Rescuing the Congo's natural world heritage
A high-level meeting between authorities from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and UNESCO will take place in Kinshasa on 14 January to ...

Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Two rhinos translocated to Manas Wildlife Sanctuary
Two rhinos, a mother and a female calf, were translocated on 29 December from the Pobitora wildlife sanctuary to Manas wildlife sanctuary in western ...

Monday, January 3, 2011
Panasonic World Heritage calendar released in online version
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre and Panasonic have released an online version of the World Heritage Calendar in five languages. It is available as a ...

Monday, January 3, 2011
2011 is the International Year of Forests
The World Heritage Centre welcomes the International Year of Forests.  With 104 WH sites recognized wholly, or in part, for their rich forest ...

Saturday, January 1, 2011
Best Wishes from the World Heritage Centre 2011
Best Wishes from the World Heritage Centre 2011

Monday, December 20, 2010
Strengthening the Crown Jewels of the Ocean
Faced with the growing threat of industrialization of the oceans and the persistent rush for marine resources, managers from the 43 marine sites on ...

Monday, December 20, 2010
'Tides of Time Archive' now available online
In 2008, Jaeger-LeCoultre signed a long-term 'Tides of Time ' partnership with the UNESCO World Heritage Centre and the International Herald Tribune, ...

Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Satellite analysis of global mangrove forests released
The United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and the US Geological Survey have released a first ever satellite analysis of global ...

Thursday, December 9, 2010
[in French only] Newsletter N° 17 de la Convention France UNESCO
[in French only] Vie de la CFU  * Signature d'un accord entre l'UNESCO et l'AFD, 9 novembre 2010, Paris. * Réunion de bilan technique, 3 ...

Tuesday, December 7, 2010
UNESCO sends expert mission to investigate state of Pompei’s conservation
Experts from UNESCO's World Heritage Centre and the International Council of Monuments and Sites will arrive in Pompei on 2 December to examine the ...

Monday, November 29, 2010
Four World Heritage sites in Cyprus and Italy granted “enhanced protection” in the event of armed conflict
Three World Heritage sites in Cyprus and a fourth in Italy have been given "enhanced protection" status by the Committee for the Protection of ...

Wednesday, November 24, 2010
Plans underway for the creation of an International World Heritage Rock Art Archive
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre, in cooperation with the University of Witwatersrand, South Africa, organized the international meeting, ...

Monday, November 22, 2010
Monnaie de Paris produces diamond-studded Taj Mahal coin
In partnership with the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, La Monnaie de Paris is offering a 100,000€ coin set with diamonds in the image of the Taj ...

Friday, November 19, 2010
Rapid Response Grants awarded to protect elephants, help with oil spill clean-up
The Rapid Response Facility is an emergency small grant programme that provides rapid assistance to counter major threats to wildlife conservation, ...

Friday, November 19, 2010
Caribbean Heritage Course in Curaçao
The University of the Netherlands Antilles is organizing a course on Caribbean Heritage in Curaçao from 21 to 25 March 2011 for Module 1 and ...

Tuesday, November 9, 2010
In memoriam: Andrzej Stanislaw Tomaszewski 1934 - 2010
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre would like to express its sincere condolences on the death of Andrzej Tomaszewski, renowned professor of built ...

Monday, November 8, 2010
Managing Historic Cities, World Heritage Series n°27
With over 250 properties inscribed on the World Heritage List, cities are one of the most abundant and diverse categories of heritage. This quantity ...

Tuesday, November 2, 2010
UNESCO and the Regional Government of Flanders sign a Trust Fund Agreement for the support of UNESCO’s activities in the field of heritage.
On 2 November 2010, the Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, and Kris Peeters, Minister - President of the Government of Flanders (Kingdom of ...

Thursday, October 28, 2010
Go4BioDiv International Youth Forum held for natural World Heritage sites
The Go4BioDiv International Youth Forum for Natural World Heritage Sites took place from 16-29 October in Mt Fuji and Nagoya, Japan, in parallel to ...

Friday, October 22, 2010
World Heritage at the COP 10 in Nagoya, Japan
From 18 to 29 October, the 10th Conference of the Parties (COP) of the Convention on Biological Diversity is taking place in Nagoya, Japan. The COP ...

Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Fire ravages heart of La Réunion National Park
A fire that broke out on 11 October 2010 in the Maïdo forest at La Reunion National Park on Réunion Island was the worst the area has seen ...

Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Information note on proposed highway in Serengeti National Park
The state of conservation of Serengeti National Park was examined at the 34th Session of the World Heritage Committee meeting in Brasilia, in July ...

Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Youth from around the world concerned with biodiversity protection unites in Japan
In an effort to involve the young generation in the decision-making process and present their experience in biodiversity conservation, young adults ...

Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Director-General calls for cooperation regarding the preservation of the Old City of Jerusalem
On 14 October 2010, UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova convened Israeli, Jordanian and Palestinian experts for a 'brainstorming meeting' to ...

Tuesday, October 19, 2010
A 7000 € grant for a project awarded to a young person from the Mediterranean
You wish to undertake a project related to  Mediterranean cultures or art and crafts ?Are you a national from a Mediterranean country ?Born ...

Friday, October 8, 2010
Message from the Director of the World Heritage Centre on the toxic spill in Hungary
The news of a massive toxic spill that occurred 4 October 2010 at an aluminum plant in Hungary has caused great concern in the international ...

Thursday, October 7, 2010
World Sky Race event is launched in Times Square, New York City
Promotion of the World Sky Race, an unprecedented race among skyships, blimps and zeppelins to begin in September 2011, was launched on two giant ...

Tuesday, October 5, 2010
Inauguration of the transboundary Wadden Sea World Heritage site
The German Minister of the Environment Hans-Heinrich Sander (Lower Saxony) and the Minister of Fishery Dr Juliane Rumpf (Schleswig-Holstein) received ...

Monday, October 4, 2010
International Youth Forum Go4BioDiv to be held in parallel to COP 10 for Convention on Biological Diversity in Nagoya, Japan
In an effort to involve young people in the decision-making process and present their experience in biodiversity conservation, young conservationists ...

Thursday, September 30, 2010
“Heritage and Development: diversity as an alternative”, publication of the proceedings
The proceedings of the special session "Heritage and Development: diversity as an alternative" held on 18 December 2009 in the framework of the ...

Thursday, September 30, 2010
UNESCO launches safeguarding project at New Gourna Village, part of Ancient Thebes World Heritage site
UNESCO, in cooperation with the Egyptian Ministry of Culture and the Governorate of Luxor, will organize the first Scientific Committee meeting on the ...

Friday, September 24, 2010
World Heritage Sites Around the World: Photo Exhibition by Tom Till
One of America's most renowned photographers, Tom Till's work has appeared in magazines such as Time, Life, National Geographic and The New Yorker, as ...

Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Charter of commitment for the management of World Heritage sites in France signed by the Minister of Culture
On 20 September Mr Frédéric Mitterrand, Minister of Culture and Communication, Ms Chantal Jouanno, Secretary of State for Ecology and Mr ...

Tuesday, September 21, 2010
UNESCO and the Smithsonian sign a Memorandum of Understanding for cultural and natural heritage
On 17 September, UNESCO Assistant Director General for Culture Mr Francesco Bandarin signed a three-year Memorandum of Understanding with Ms ...

Thursday, September 16, 2010
Serious flooding at the Historic Monuments Zone of Tlacotalpan (Mexico) World Heritage property
According to reports from the Secretary of the Civil Defense of Mexico, the heavy rains and the downpour of the past few weeks have generated severe ...

Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Rapid Response Facility contributes to project near La Amistad Biosphere Reserve (Panama)
The Panamanian non-governmental organization FUNDICCEP (Fundación de Desarrollo Integral, Comunitario y Conservación de los Ecosistemas ...

Friday, September 10, 2010
[in French only] Les Villes françaises, une référence mondiale en matière de développement patrimonial
[in French only] Besançon, Chinon, Lorient, Rennes et Strasbourg accueilleront, du 28 septembre au 5 octobre 2010, des représentants de ...

Thursday, September 9, 2010
Finland applies Management Effectiveness Assessments to its Cultural World Heritage sites
Finland has taken the lead in applying the Enhancing our Heritage (EoH) management effectiveness assessment toolkit to cultural World Heritage ...

Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Preparatory Meeting for Latin American Periodic Reporting draws to a close
The first preparatory meeting for the Second Cycle of the Periodic Reporting exercise for World Heritage in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) for ...

Wednesday, September 1, 2010
[in French only] Newsletter N°16 de la Convention France UNESCO
[in French only] * Réunion du Comité Mixte de Coordination de la CFU, 11 mai 2010. * Départ d'Isabelle Longuet du secretariat de ...

Monday, August 30, 2010
Second Phase of ‘Business Skills for Natural World Heritage Site Managers programme’ begins
The second phase of the Business Skills for World Heritage programme, designed to develop the business management skills of UNESCO World Heritage site ...

Monday, August 23, 2010
New website on Ireland’s World Heritage sites launched
A new website about Ireland's World Heritage properties and Ireland's Tentative List sites has just been launched. This website contains information ...

Thursday, August 12, 2010
Message from the Director of the World Heritage Centre on floods affection Archaeological Ruins at Moenjodaro
In addition to their dramatic consequences for the affected people, to which the World Heritage Centre expresses its sincere sympathy, the massive ...

Monday, August 9, 2010
Message from the Director of the World Heritage Centre on floods affecting Muskauer Park / Park Mużakowski (Germany/Poland)
For the second time during 2010, news of massive floods across Central Europe is causing great concern to the World Heritage community, for their ...

Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Minister of Culture of the Kingdom of Bahrain nominated new Chairperson of World Heritage Committee
The Minister of Culture of the Kingdom of Bahrain, Shaikha Mai bint Mohammad Al Khalifa, has been named new Chairperson of the World Heritage ...

Monday, August 2, 2010
World Heritage Committee inscribes Russian site on World Heritage List and approves extension to Swiss site
The UNESCO World Heritage Committee meeting in Brasilia today inscribed a natural site in the Russian Federation on the World Heritage List and has ...

Monday, August 2, 2010
World Heritage Committee inscribes a total of 21 new sites on UNESCO World Heritage List
The 34th session of the World Heritage Committee meeting in Brasilia since 25 July today finished its consideration of nominations for the World ...

Sunday, August 1, 2010
World Heritage Committee also approves three extensions to World Heritage properties in Austria, Romania and Spain
The World Heritage Committee meeting in Brasilia has today approved extensions to three cultural sites in Austria, Romania and Spain. The approved ...

Sunday, August 1, 2010
World Heritage Committee inscribes three new cultural sites, three natural sites and one extension on World Heritage List
The World Heritage Committee meeting in Brasilia has today has inscribed three new cultural sites, including two in Mexico and one in Brazil. It also ...

Saturday, July 31, 2010
World Heritage Committee inscribes Ngorongoro Conservation Area (Tanzania) as Cultural World Heritage Site
The World Heritage Committee meeting in Brasilia today inscribed the Ngorongoro Conservation Area (Tanzania) as a cultural property on the World ...

Saturday, July 31, 2010
World Heritage Committee inscribes seven cultural sites on World Heritage List
The World Heritage Committee meeting in Brasilia has inscribed sites in Saudi Arabia, Australia, India, Islamic Republic of Iran and, for the first ...

Saturday, July 31, 2010
World Heritage Committee inscribes five new cultural sites on World Heritage List and approves two extensions to existing properties
Imperial Citadel of Thang Long-Hanoi (Viet Nam) becomes 900th site on UNESCO World Heritage List The World Heritage Committee meeting in Brasilia has ...

Friday, July 30, 2010
World Heritage Committee inscribes Everglades National Park on List of World Heritage in Danger
The World Heritage Committee, holding its 34th session chaired by João Luiz da Silva Ferreira, the Minister of Culture of Brazil, inscribed the ...

Friday, July 30, 2010
World Heritage Committee inscribes Rainforests of Atsinanana (Madagascar) on List of World Heritage in Danger
The World Heritage Committee holding its 34th session chaired by João Luiz da Silva Ferreira, the Minister of Culture of Brazil, has inscribed ...

Friday, July 30, 2010
World Heritage Committee inscribes two new sites on World Heritage List
The World Heritage Committee holding its 34th session in Brasilia under the chairmanship of  João Luiz da Silva Ferreira, today inscribed ...

Thursday, July 29, 2010
List of World Heritage in Danger: World Heritage Committee inscribes the Tombs of Buganda Kings (Uganda) and removes Galapagos Islands (Ecuador)
The World Heritage Committee holding its 34th session chaired by João Luiz da Silva Ferreira, the Minister of Culture of Brazil, has inscribed ...

Thursday, July 29, 2010
World Heritage Committee inscribes Bagrati Cathedral and Gelati Monastery (Georgia) on List of World Heritage in Danger
The World Heritage Committee, holding its 34th session chaired by João Luiz da Silva Ferreira, the Minister of Culture of Brazil, has inscribed ...

Monday, July 26, 2010
Thirty-nine properties to be considered for inscription on UNESCO’s World Heritage List
Thirty-nine nominations from 33 countries will be considered for inscription on UNESCO's World Heritage List during the meeting of the World Heritage ...

Monday, July 26, 2010
UNESCO and Brazil establish heritage management Training Centre for Portuguese and Spanish-speaking countries
UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova and the Minister of Culture of Brazil, João Luiz da Silva Ferreira today signed an agreement establishing ...

Tuesday, July 20, 2010
World Heritage Mission to Haiti
Within the framework of the Emergency International Request submitted by Haiti after the devastating 12 January 2010 earthquake, the World Heritage ...

Tuesday, July 20, 2010
New project for the preservation of the World Heritage Property in Nepal: Lumbini, Lord Bhudda’s Birthplace starts with funds from UNESCO/Japanese Fund-in-Trust
A new project for the conservation and management of Lumbini, the Birthplace of Lord Buddha, one of the UNESCO World Heritage properties in Nepal has ...

Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Managing Disaster Risks for World Heritage Resource Manual
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies to the World Heritage Committee, ICCROM, ICOMOS and IUCN are launching the first title within ...

Friday, July 9, 2010
The Operational Guidelines for the implementation of the World Heritage Convention are now available in Portuguese
The Operational Guidelines for the implementation of the World Heritage Convention are now available in Portuguese. The Operational Guidelines define ...

Wednesday, July 7, 2010
UNDP launches the second edition of “Picture this”
The United Nations Development Programme has launched the new edition of "Picture this", an international photo contest. Through the photo ...

Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Equatorial Guinea ratifies World Heritage Convention
On 10 March 2010, the Government of Equatorial Guinea officially deposited with the Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, its ...

Tuesday, July 6, 2010
World Heritage Committee to meet in Brasilia to inscribe new sites on UNESCO’s World Heritage List
The World Heritage Committee will consider requests for the inscription of new sites on UNESCO’s World Heritage List when it meets for its 34th ...

Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Joint Workshop establishes successful basis to scale-up marine World Heritage
From 30 June to 4 July 2010, the International Academy for Nature Conservation, Isle of Vilm, Germany, hosted an expert workshop that set the basis ...

Monday, July 5, 2010
Wildlife authority of Côte d’Ivoire awarded Rapid Response Facility grant to combat poaching after period of civil unrest
Comoé National Park in Côte d'Ivoire lies in a region particularly affected by the Ivorian civil war, which lasted for five years until ...

Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Greenpeace and WWF present 125,000 signatures to UNESCO to save world’s oldest, deepest and largest lake
UNESCO today received a petition of signed by 125,000 people around the world protesting against the re-opening of a paper and pulp mill on the shores ...

Wednesday, June 23, 2010
World Heritage in the Congo Basin
The World Heritage Centre has recently published a new booklet entitled "World Heritage in the Congo Basin". This publication is intended for both ...

Wednesday, June 23, 2010
New web-tool shows critical migratory waterbird sites need urgent protection
A new website launched by Wetlands International, BirdLife International and the UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC) reveals major ...

Wednesday, June 23, 2010
2nd Ibero-American Youth Forum held Aranjuez, Spain
Aranjuez, the only Spanish site declared a Cultural Landscape in UNESCO´s World Heritage List, is hosting the 2nd World Heritage Ibero-American ...

Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Third sub-regional meeting for 2nd Cycle of World Heritage Periodic Reporting opens in Yaoundé
World Heritage site managers of 22 States Parties have been meeting in Yaoundé, Cameroon, since 21 June, 2010, to advance in the preparation of ...

Monday, June 21, 2010
UNESCO World Heritage Centre launches international competition to create new episode of Patrimonito cartoon
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre has launched an international storyboard competition for the creation of the next episode of the animated series ...

Monday, June 21, 2010
Call for project proposals financed by the African World Heritage Fund
The African World Heritage Fund (AWHF) strives towards the effective conservation and protection of Africa's natural and cultural heritage. AWHF is ...

Friday, June 18, 2010
Message from Francesco Bandarin, Director of the World Heritage Centre, on current conservation issues at Lake Baikal
Since the 33rd session of the World Heritage Committee (Seville, 2009), the World Heritage Centre and IUCN have received a large number of letters ...

Thursday, June 3, 2010
UNESCO welcomes backing by President of Russian Federation for the preservation of St Petersburg
The World Heritage Centre of UNESCO has welcomed the support given by the President of the Russian Federation, Dmitry Medvedev, to the World Heritage ...

Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Damage to the Archaeological Park and Ruins of Quirigua as a result of tropical storm Agatha
Severe torrential rain has resulted in flooding and mudslides across much of Guatemala, causing some communities to be entirely cut off and requiring ...

Friday, May 21, 2010
Message from Francesco Bandarin, UNESCO Assistant Director-General for Culture, on floods affecting European World Heritage sites
The news of massive flooding across Eastern Europe, and the threat that this poses to World Heritage sites in Poland has caused great concern to the ...

Thursday, May 20, 2010
Call for Papers – Journal of Cultural Heritage Management and Sustainable Development
The new Journal of Cultural Heritage Management and Sustainable Development (JCHMSD), is currently considering papers for inclusion in its first ...

Thursday, May 6, 2010
Jaeger-LeCoultre affirms commitment to marine conservation at Global Conference on Oceans
During the Fifth Global Conference on Oceans, Coasts, and Islands held at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, France from 3-7 May,  Mr. Yves Meylan, ...

Monday, May 3, 2010
[in French only] Newsletter N° 15 de la Convention France-UNESCO
[in French only] Actualités sur l'avancement des projets cfu : * Le projet « Niger - Loire : gouvernance et ...

Monday, April 26, 2010
Damage to Great Barrier Reef assessed; stricter shipping surveillance proposed
An inspection team has found the damage resulting from the 3 April grounding of a bulk carrier on the Great Barrier Reef (Australia), a World ...

Thursday, April 22, 2010
Jaeger-LeCoultre auction proceeds support Sundarbans National Park
After last year's groundbreaking Tides of Time campaign, luxury watch manufacturer Jaeger-LeCoultre organized a second auction on March 18, 2010. This ...

Tuesday, April 20, 2010
2nd cycle Master’s degree Course in science for the conservation-restoration of cultural heritage (SCoRe)
The conservation and preservation of cultural heritage is an interdisciplinary field requiring close cooperation between conservator-restorers, ...

Friday, April 16, 2010
Call for applications for the 3rd edition of the Master programme on "World Heritage at Work"
The call for applications for the 3rd edition of the Master programme on "World Heritage at Work", offered by the University of Turin, the Polytechnic ...

Wednesday, April 14, 2010
UNESCO recommends reconstruction of Ugandan World Heritage Site
UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova today expressed her relief at the news that the reconstruction of the Tombs of Buganda Kings at Kasubi (Uganda) ...

Wednesday, April 14, 2010
WHC Director Francesco Bandarin appointed new UNESCO Assistant Director-General for Culture
Francesco Bandarin (Italy), Director of UNESCO’s World Heritage Centre since 2000, was appointed today UNESCO’s new Assistant ...

Monday, April 12, 2010
Rapid Response Facility grant for conservation group to benefit Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System
The Rapid Response Facility (RRF) has awarded Belizean conservation group Wildtracks with a grant to assess proposed dredging and mangrove clearance ...

Monday, March 22, 2010
World Heritage Centre expressed concern to the Minister of Cultures of Bolivia on Tiwanaku
With the objective of addressing issues related to the preservation of Bolivian World Heritage properties, the Head of the Latin America and Caribbean ...

Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Director-General calls for calm and offers support following fire and subsequent protests at Ugandan World Heritage site
Irina Bokova, Director-General of UNESCO, today expressed her sorrow over the tragic fire that ravaged the Tombs of Buganda Kings at Kasubi, a World ...

Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Jaeger-LeCoultre launches its second online auction for the preservation of World Heritage sites
After last year's groundbreaking Tides of Time campaign, Jaeger-LeCoultre's second online auction on March 18, 2010 will benefit the preservation ...

Friday, March 5, 2010
Damage to Chilean heritage sites evaluated after earthquake
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre expresses its condolences for the victims of the 8.8 magnitude earthquake that occurred in Chile on 27 February. ...

Wednesday, March 3, 2010
2009-2010 World Heritage map now available
The latest version of the World Heritage map, produced by the UNESCO World Heritage Centre and National Geographic Maps with support from the United ...

Friday, February 26, 2010
Pilgrims killed in stampede at Djingareyber Mosque in Timbuktu
During the evening of 25 February 2010, in Timbuktu (Mali), a stampede occurred amidst a crowd gathered outside Djingareyber Mosque. Among the ...

Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Successful first year entices organizers to double training capacity for business planning at World Heritage sites
At a year-end strategy discussion, Shell, Earthwatch and the UNESCO World Heritage Centre evaluated the results of the first year of work under ...

Monday, February 22, 2010
Director-General of UNESCO deplores loss of life and offers support after collapse of Meknes minaret
Following the collapse of a minaret in the World Heritage city of Meknes, Director-General Irina Bokova expressed profound sympathy Sunday and said ...

Tuesday, February 16, 2010
'World Heritage Papers Series No. 26: Cultural Landscapes' now available online
World Heritage Papers Series No. 26: Cultural Landscapes, A Handbook for Conservation and Management may be downloaded from the UNESCO World ...

Friday, February 12, 2010
Damage evaluated at Machu Picchu after torrential rains
In response to the recent impacts of torrential rains at the Historic Sanctuary of Machu Picchu, a technical visit of the UNESCO World Heritage Centre ...

Thursday, February 11, 2010
Establishment of Category 2 Centres on World Heritage officially launched
Two official signatures took place recently at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, France to establish new Category 2 Centres dedicated to World Heritage ...

Monday, February 1, 2010
Alpine Convention and World Heritage Convention Secretariats Meet
On 18 January 2010 a meeting took place at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, France between the Secretariats of the Convention on the ...

Monday, February 1, 2010
[in French only] Newsletter N°14 de la Convention France-UNESCO
[in French only] novembre 2009 - janvier 2010 Actualités sur l'avancement des projets CFU : * Atelier Fleuves et patrimoines. Paris, ...

Monday, February 1, 2010
February 2nd is World Wetlands Day
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre, Secretariat to the World Heritage Convention, wishes to extend its best wishes to the Secretariat for the Ramsar ...

Friday, January 29, 2010
Belize Conservation NGO Receives Rapid Response Facility Grant in Support of the Belize Barrier Reef System
The latest World Heritage site to benefit from the Rapid Response Facility (RRF) is the Belize Barrier Reef System (BBRS).  Recognized in large ...

Thursday, January 28, 2010
Torrential rains cause death and damage at Peruvian World Heritage sites
Torrential rains which have occurred in Peru over the last five days have caused the death of a tourist and a tour guide, and have impacted two World ...

Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Heritage in Haiti
While saving lives and providing humanitarian relief remain the absolute priority of the international community in helping Haiti deal with the ...

Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Belgium reinforces its engagement for World Heritage Sites in Danger in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Belgian government has recently given its financial support to the 3rd phase of the project "Biodiversity Conservation in Regions of Armed ...

Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Beijing Appeal for Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Change at World Heritage properties in the Asia and the Pacific region
National Government Officials and World Heritage site managers, essentially from 24 countries in the Asia and the Pacific Region, but also from other ...

Friday, December 18, 2009
Germany gives 3.2 million dollars for the safeguarding of Ivorian parcs and reserves
Germany has just offered the Côte d'Ivoire's Park and Reserves Foundation 1,5 billion CFA Francs (US$ 3.2 millions). According to Mr Stephen ...

Thursday, December 17, 2009
Director General presents UNESCO climate change initiative at Copenhagen Conference
Irina Bokova, Director-General of UNESCO, yesterday presented UNESCO's climate change initiative at a press briefing held during the 15th Conference ...

Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Restoration works continue despite violent storms at the Great Mosque of Djenné
Restoration works begun on the site the Great Mosque of Djenné, Mali in January 2009, financed by the Aga Khan Trust for Culture, continue with ...

Monday, December 14, 2009
Enhancing our Heritage Toolkit now available in Spanish
The publication 'World Heritage Paper Series n°23 - Enhancing our Heritage Toolkit, Assessing management effectiveness of natural World ...

Tuesday, December 8, 2009
UNESCO saddened by loss of Goodwill Ambassador Professor Ikuo Hirayama
Irina Bokova, Director-General of UNESCO, expressed her deep sadness at the death of Professor Ikuo Hirayama, UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador, on 2 ...

Thursday, December 3, 2009
Google and UNESCO announce alliance to provide virtual visits of several World Heritage sites
Sites of outstanding universal value inscribed on the World Heritage List - the Palace of Versailles in France, the historic centre of Prague in the ...

Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Natural Science courses open at the new Jurassic Studies Centre in Lyme Regis
On the occasion of the launch of the new Jurassic Studies Centre, situated at the centre of the natural World Heritage Site of Dorset and Devon's ...

Monday, November 30, 2009
Ifugao Province, Philippines and Italy's Cinque Terre Park sign Twinning Program
On 25 November 2009, the UNESCO World Heritage sites of the Ifugao Rice Terraces in the Philippines and Cinque Terre in ...

Thursday, November 26, 2009
Exhibition of Aksum Obelisk Re-installation opens in Rome
On 25 November 2009, the exhibition 'Aksum Rediscovered: the Re-installation of the Obelisk' was opened in Rome, Italy at the Headquarters of the Food ...

Friday, November 13, 2009
Business Skills training sessions begin for World Heritage sites
The Business Skills for World Heritage Programme, a collaboration between international environmental charity Earthwatch, global energy company Shell ...

Tuesday, November 10, 2009
'Patrimoine mondial de l'UNESCO : les sites marocains' is published
The book 'Patrimoine mondial de l'UNESCO : les sites marocains' ('UNESCO World Heritage: the Moroccan sites') is a voyage to an exceptional part ...

Thursday, October 29, 2009
General Assembly elects 12 new members to World Heritage Committee and sets priorities for future of Heritage Convention
The General Assembly of States Parties to the 1972 World Heritage Convention replaced more than half the 21 members of the World Heritage Committee ...

Thursday, October 29, 2009
Poland is the Denkmal national partner 2010
Denkmal, European Trade Fair for Conservation, Restoration and Old Building Renovation 18 - 20 November 2010 After Italy (2004), France (2006) and ...

Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Twelve members elected to World Heritage Committee
Twelve new members were elected to the World Heritage Committee during the 17th General Assembly of States Parties to the World Heritage Convention, ...

Friday, October 23, 2009
UNESCO and online travel giant TripAdvisor launch World Heritage partnership
TripAdvisor, the world's largest on-line community of travellers, and UNESCO launched a partnership on Thursday to mobilize travellers' support to ...

Thursday, October 15, 2009
A 7000 Euro Grant For the Realization of a Cultural Project Concerning the Mediterranean World
You are a native of a Mediterranean country. Born after 31 December 1980 you will be under 30 years of age in 2010. You wish to undertake a project ...

Thursday, October 8, 2009
Statement by UNESCO’s World Heritage Centre on mission to study conservation and infrastructure development in Ibiza
Representatives from the national, regional and local authorities led by Spain's Permanent Delegate to UNESCO, Ambassador María Jesús ...

Tuesday, October 6, 2009
17th General Assembly of States Parties to the World Heritage Convention and the 35th UNESCO General Conference
The 35th session of the General Conference is meeting from 6-23 October 2009, and the 17th General Assembly of States Parties to the World Heritage ...

Thursday, October 1, 2009
2010 UNESCO World Heritage Desk Diary Published
The UNESCO World Heritage Desk Diary 2009 has just been published. Featuring a useful week-at-a-glance design, it is illustrated with 79 colour photos ...

Tuesday, September 29, 2009
'The World's Heritage' co-published by UNESCO and Harper Collins
The most complete guide to World Heritage sites has been co-published by UNESCO and Harper Collins with the title The World's Heritage: A unique guide ...

Thursday, September 10, 2009
World Heritage Centre signs agreement with DBU for site conservation in Europe
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre and the German Federal Foundation for the Environment (Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt, DBU) have signed a Partnership ...

Tuesday, September 8, 2009
Rapid Response Facility launches new website
The Rapid Response Facility (RRF), the emergency small grants programme jointly operated by Fauna & Flora International (FFI), UNESCO World ...

Monday, September 7, 2009
Great Barrier Reef Outlook Report published
The Great Barrier Reef Outlook Report 2009, prepared by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, is the first comprehensive assessment of the ...

Thursday, September 3, 2009
Agreement between the Algerian Ministry of Culture and the INRAP with the support of the World Heritage Centre
On 21 July 2009, the Algerian Ministry of Culture and the National Institute for Preventive Archaeological Research (INRAP) signed a cooperation ...

Monday, August 31, 2009
[in French only] Newsletter N°13 de la Convention France UNESCO
[in French only] février 2009 - août 2009 Vie de la CFU : Réunion de bilan Réunion de bilan de la Convention ...

Monday, August 24, 2009
Marine spatial planning and World Heritage
Last June UNESCO's Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) and Man and the Biosphere Programme (MAB) published the guide, "Marine Spatial ...

Monday, August 17, 2009
10th Anniversary of the France-UNESCO Convention
Signed in 1997 and entered into force in 1999, the France-UNESCO Convention for architectural, urban and landscape heritage is a tool for cooperation, ...

Friday, July 31, 2009
Experts engage with climate change education at international seminar, UNESCO HQ, Paris, 27-29 July
"Why do I have mangoes in July?" was the title of one of the presentations at a three-day expert seminar on climate change education at UNESCO HQ in ...

Friday, July 31, 2009
Case Studies on Climate Change and World Heritage English, French and Spanish UNESCO World Heritage Centre
Originally published in 2007 in English, this publication has now been reprinted for the third time in English and translated into French and Spanish. ...

Monday, July 20, 2009
TripAdvisor pledges support to World Heritage
Following a discussion with Francesco Bandarin, Director of UNESCO's World Heritage Centre, Christine Petersen, Chief Marketing Officer of ...

Sunday, June 28, 2009
Cities of Caral-Supe (Peru) and Levoča (Slovakia) added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List
The Sacred City of Caral-Supe (Peru), the oldest centre of civilization in the Americas, was inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List by the ...

Sunday, June 28, 2009
Georgia’s Historical Monuments of Mtskheta inscribed on Danger List
The World Heritage Committee, chaired by María Jesús San Segundo, the Ambassador and Permanent Delegate of Spain to UNESCO, inscribed ...

Sunday, June 28, 2009
13 new sites have been added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List which lost one site while three were placed on the Danger List
The World Heritage Committee holding its 33rd session chaired by María Jesús San Segundo, the Ambassador and Permanent Delegate of Spain ...

Saturday, June 27, 2009
Tower of Hercules (Spain) inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List alongside two Swiss watch-making towns
The World Heritage Committee, chaired by María Jesús San Segundo, the Ambassador and Permanent Delegate of Spain to UNESCO, has ...

Saturday, June 27, 2009
Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System and Colombia’s Los Katios National Park enter UNESCO’s Danger List
The World Heritage Committee meeting in Seville, under the chair of María Jesús San Segundo, Ambassador and Permanent Delegate of Spain ...

Saturday, June 27, 2009
Stoclet House (Belgium) inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List
The World Heritage Committee, chaired by María Jesús San Segundo, the Ambassador and Permanent Delegate of Spain to UNESCO, has ...

Saturday, June 27, 2009
British Aqueduct and Canal inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List, French Saltworks extended
The World Heritage Committee, chaired by María Jesús San Segundo, the Ambassador and Permanent Delegate of Spain to UNESCO, has ...

Friday, June 26, 2009
China’s sacred Buddhist Mount Wutai inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List
The World Heritage Committee, chaired by María Jesús San Segundo, the Ambassador and Permanent Delegate of Spain to UNESCO, has ...

Friday, June 26, 2009
Maps of World Heritage sites in Democratic Republic of the Congo presented by Belgian Federal Science Policy Office
On 13 March 2009 in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the latest maps of World Heritage sites produced by the Belgian universities of ...

Friday, June 26, 2009
Wadden Sea, Italy’s Dolomites and Philippines’s Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List
The World Heritage Committee, chaired by María Jesús San Segundo, the Ambassador and Permanent Delegate of Spain to UNESCO, has ...

Friday, June 26, 2009
Jaeger-LeCoultre and the International Herald Tribune continue to support the World Heritage Marine Programme
The Tides of Time programme, initiated in 2008 through a partnership with Jaeger-LeCoultre and the International Herald Tribune, has entered its ...

Friday, June 26, 2009
Cidade Velha becomes Cape Verde's first World Heritage site
Cidade Velha has been inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List, marking Cape Verde's entry to the international community's inventory of properties ...

Friday, June 26, 2009
Ruins of Loropéni (Burkina Faso) inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List
Burkina Faso joined the rank of countries that have World Heritage properties on their territory with the inscription of the Ruins of Loropéni ...

Friday, June 26, 2009
Sacred mountain in Kyrgyzstan enters List along with Iran’s Shushtar water system and Royal tombs in Republic of Korea
Sulamain-Too Sacred Mountain of Kyrgyzstan has become the country’s first site to be inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List. Shushtar ...

Thursday, June 25, 2009
10th Weimar Summer Courses, “Milestones of Democracy – European Memories 2009”
The Weimar Jena Akademie in partnership with the Bauhaus Universität Weimar and co-financed by the European Union, is organizing its 10th edition ...

Thursday, June 25, 2009
World Heritage Committee removes Baku from Danger List welcoming improvements in the ancient city´s preservation
The World Heritage Committee has welcomed the success of the authorities of Azerbaijan in preserving the Walled City of Baku with the Shirvanshahs' ...

Thursday, June 25, 2009
Dresden is deleted from UNESCO’s World Heritage List
"Every time we fail to preserve a site, we share the pain of the State Party," declared María Jesús San Segundo, the Ambassador and ...

Monday, June 22, 2009
Twenty-seven new sites up for inscription on UNESCO World Heritage List as Committee opens session in Seville
The 33rd session of the World Heritage Committee, chaired by María Jesús San Segundo, the Ambassador and Permanent Delegate of Spain to ...

Friday, June 19, 2009
José Maria Abecasis Soares & José Tavares begin their journey to five World Heritage glaciers
José Maria and José, founders of the ICE CARE project, left UNESCO Headquaters in Paris this morning following a meeting with Mr Kishore ...

Thursday, June 18, 2009
1st Ibero-American World Heritage Youth Forum
Spain, host of the 33rd session of the World Heritage Committee, is organizing the first Ibero-American World Heritage Youth Forum. Participants will ...

Saturday, June 13, 2009
World Heritage Centre and Research Centre for Islamic History, Art and Culture sign Cooperation Agreement
On 12 June 2009, the Director of the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, Francesco Bandarin and the Director-General of the Research Centre for Islamic ...

Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Nahanni National Park Reserve is expanded
The Honorable Jim Prentice, Canada's Canada's Environment Minister and Minister responsible for Parks Canada, has introduced a bill which resulted in ...

Friday, June 5, 2009
Director-General visits four UNESCO World Heritage Sites in northern Portugal
On 21 and 22 May 2009, the Director-General of UNESCO, Mr Koïchiro Matsuura, visited four World Heritage Sites in northern Portugal. He was ...

Thursday, June 4, 2009
Artist for Peace Missa Johnouchi visits UNESCO
On 28 May, after a visit to UNESCO's Director-General, UNESCO Artist for Peace Missa Johnouchi met with Mr Francesco Bandarin, Director of the World ...

Friday, May 29, 2009
UNESCO and Chile Launch Ecotourism Training Project on Easter Island
UNESCO's Director-General, Koïchiro Matsuura, and the President of the Republic of Chile, Michelle Bachelet Jeria, presented today in Paris a ...

Tuesday, May 26, 2009
World Heritage Committee to meet in Seville to review state of conservation of 178 sites and add new sites on List
The World Heritage Committee will consider requests for the inscription of new sites on UNESCO's World Heritage List when it meets for its 33rd ...

Tuesday, May 19, 2009
In memoriam: Michel Parent
The World Heritage Centre wishes to pay tribute to Michel Parent, a leading personality of world cultural heritage, who passed away last week at the ...

Friday, May 15, 2009
Business Skills for World Heritage Training Programme Launched
The first World Heritage sites to participate in the Earthwatch "Business Skills for World Heritage" programme were selected today. A total of 9 site ...

Thursday, April 30, 2009
Registration deadline for the master's degree course "World Heritage at Work"
The master's degree course "World Heritage at Work", offered by the University of Turin and the Polytechnic of Turin and organized by the ...

Monday, April 27, 2009
World Heritage Scholarships in U.S. National Parks
As part of a commitment to sharing its expertise, the US National Park Service (NPS) is offering training opportunities to qualified candidates who ...

Thursday, April 23, 2009
Director-General inaugurates exhibition celebrating re-installation of the Aksum Obelisk
On 23 April 2009, the Director-General of UNESCO, Mr Koïchiro Matsuura inaugurated an exhibition at UNESCO Headquarters celebrating the ...

Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Recommendation adopted by the participants of ten Asian countries of a serial Itinerant Workshop on the Conservation and Management of Persian, Timurid and Mughal Architecture
With the financial support of the World Heritage Fund, as well as national organizers of India, the final of a series of "Itinerant Workshops on the ...

Monday, April 20, 2009
UNESCO presents exhibition on reconstruction of Aksum obelisk
An exhibition - photographs and a video installation - at UNESCO will celebrate the reinstallation of the Aksum obelisk. The show will give visitors a ...

Monday, April 20, 2009
World Heritage Centre expresses condolences for victims of earthquake in Italy
The World Heritage Centre has noted with great concern the news of the earthquake that struck near L'Aquila, Central Italy, on Monday, 6 April ...

Thursday, April 16, 2009
World Heritage Centre signs agreement with INRAP for site conservation
On 2 April 2009 at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris Mr Francesco Bandarin, Director of the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, signed an agreement with INRAP, ...

Friday, April 10, 2009
7th Meeting of the Liaison Group of the Biodiversity-related Conventions held
The Liaison Group of the Biodiversity-related Conventions (BLG) is a coordinating mechanism among Conventions for joint activities and shared tools in ...

Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Public Lecture: World Heritage - Urban Areas and Historic Cities (The University of Queensland)
This lecture presents a brief history of attitudes to conservation in the 20th Century - the key concepts underpinning the Venice Charter (1964) ...

Friday, April 3, 2009
World Heritage Rainforests in Madagascar threatened by illegal logging and trafficking of precious wood
UNESCO was recently informed of two serious threats at the Marojejy and Masoala national parks in the north of Madagascar, which ...

Tuesday, March 31, 2009
50th anniversary of Nubia Campaign
UNESCO, Egypt and Sudan have started commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Nubia Campaign, a defining example of international solidarity when ...

Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Director-General celebrates inscription of the Madâin Sâlih site on the World Heritage List during official visit to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (16-19 March 2009)
From 16 to 19 March 2009, Mr Koïchiro Matsuura, Director-General of UNESCO, paid his third official visit to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He was ...

Friday, March 20, 2009
Tubbataha Reef Marine Park in the Philippines receives £13,540 from an auction organized by Jaeger-LeCoultre
The World Heritage site of the Tubbataha Reef Marine Park in the Philippines will benefit from the total amount of £13,540 collected through an ...

Friday, March 20, 2009
Greenland Students visit UNESCO to learn about World Heritage, the Arctic and Climate Change
18 students from Greenland visited the UNESCO World Heritage Centre on 16 March 2009 to learn more about World Heritage, the Arctic and climate ...

Thursday, March 19, 2009
International Workshop and Expert Meeting held on Starlight Reserves and World Heritage
The International Workshop and Expert Meeting "Starlight Reserves and World Heritage - scientific cultural and environmental values", was held in ...

Monday, March 16, 2009
International Workshop and Expert Meeting on Starlight Reserves and World Heritage held in Fuerteventura, Spain
The International Workshop and Expert Meeting "Starlight Reserves and World Heritage - scientific cultural and environmental values", was held in ...

Monday, March 2, 2009
L’OREAL-UNESCO Awards 2009 "For Women in Science" - Professor Beatriz Barbuy - Laureate 2009 for Latin America
"For her work on the evolution of the stars from the birth of the universe to the present time." (Jury Citation, General Public) "For her work on the ...

Thursday, February 26, 2009
Jean-Michel Jarre becomes Artistic Director of the World Sky Race
UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador Jean-Michel Jarre has agreed to become the Artistic Director of the World Sky Race launched in a partnership between the ...

Monday, February 23, 2009
Artist for Peace Ms Missa Johnouchi supports World Heritage
On 23 January 2009, Artist for Peace Ms Missa Johnouchi met with Mr Francesco Bandarin, Directer of the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, to ...

Friday, February 13, 2009
Bridge Collapses at Hampi World Heritage Site (India)
On 22 January 2009, the Anegundi Bridge at the World Heritage Group of Monuments at Hampi collapsed, killing eight construction workers. The ...

Friday, February 13, 2009
Devastating fire at the Royal Palaces of Abomey (Benin)
The Royal Palaces of Abomey in Benin were ravaged by a fire on 21 January 2009 which destroyed several buildings. A brushfire, whose origins are still ...

Friday, February 13, 2009
Joint efforts for the preservation of World Heritage in Mozambique
Dutch and the Flemish Governments join Japan, UCCLA and Portugal in financing the San Sebastian Fortress rehabilitation project On 18 December 2008, ...

Thursday, February 12, 2009
Jaeger-LeCoultre watch to be auctioned for World Heritage preservation
In the context of the partnership between Jaeger-LeCoultre, The International Herald Tribune and UNESCO, the Jaeger-LeCoultre Manufacture has designed ...

Wednesday, February 11, 2009
2008-2009 World Heritage map now available
The latest version of the World Heritage map, produced by the UNESCO World Heritage Centre and National Geographic Maps with support from the United ...

Monday, February 9, 2009
[in French only] Newsletter n° 12 de la Convention France-UNESCO
[in French only] Actualités sur l'avancement des projets cfu : Formation «patrimoine culturel et développement local». ...

Sunday, February 1, 2009
Cook Islands ratifies the World Heritage Convention
On 16 January 2009, the Government of the Cook Islands officially deposited with the Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, its ...

Monday, January 26, 2009
The Silk Road: An AMNH/UNESCO World Heritage Expedition through Central Asia
Discover the rich history of the Silk Road on a guided visit to six World Heritage sites from April 12 to 27, 2009. The American Museum of Natural ...

Wednesday, January 21, 2009
UNESCO Lima seeks international specialists for World Heritage sites
The UNESCO Lima office, through an agreement with the National Institute of Culture of Peru, is providing technical assistance for the development of ...

Wednesday, January 7, 2009
Garamba National Park (DRC) attacked by LRA rebels
On 2 January 2009, Ugandan rebels known as the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) attacked Garamba National Park, one of five World Heritage sites in ...

Friday, December 19, 2008
European Commission contributes €2.5 million to Central Africa World Heritage Forest Initiative
On 18 December 2008, the European Commission and UNESCO signed an agreement in Libreville, Gabon for a contribution of €2.5 million to the ...

Friday, December 12, 2008
Australian Government reinforces its Funds-in-Trust for conservation of Angkor and other heritage properties
The Australian Funds-in-Trust, established in August 2008 between the UNESCO World Heritage Centre and the Australian Government, has been ...

Friday, December 12, 2008
World Heritage Publications available in Bulgarian
Brochures on the World Heritage Convention and World Heritage in Young Hands programme are available in Bulgarian. "Our World Heritage" and "Today ...

Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Béthanie Wins UNESCO Heritage Award
Béthanie - the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts Landmark Heritage Campus has been awarded an Honourable Mention at the 2008 UNESCO ...

Tuesday, December 2, 2008
UNESCO signs partnership with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)
Dr. Keiji Tachikawa, President of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and Koïchiro Matsuura, Director-General of UNESCO, on 2 December ...

Thursday, November 20, 2008
UNESCO-ICOMOS reactive monitoring mission to the World Heritage site of Edinburgh
Experts from UNESCO's World Heritage Centre and from the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) undertook a reactive monitoring mission ...

Monday, November 10, 2008
From Olympia's Workshop on World Heritage and Disasters: Joint Communiqué of the UNESCO World Heritage Centre and the Hellenic Ministry of Culture
The devastating fires that raged across Greece in the summer of 2007 seriously affected the World Heritage site of Olympia, stopping short of ...

Monday, November 3, 2008
[in French only] Newsletter n° 11 de la Convention France-UNESCO
[in French only] Actualités sur l'avancement des projets CFU : « Niger - Loire : gouvernance et culture ». ...

Thursday, October 30, 2008
Declaration by the UNESCO Director General concerning Virunga National Park, World Heritage site
The Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, said today he was alarmed by the violent incidents taking place in the province of North Kivu ...

Thursday, October 30, 2008
UNESCO and the IAU sign key agreement on Astronomy and World Heritage
A Memorandum of Understanding is to be signed today, 30 October 2008, between UNESCO and the International Astronomical Union (IAU). The IAU will be ...

Friday, October 24, 2008
UNESCO - Vocations Patrimoine fellowships awarded to young preservation professionals from around the world
Five young heritage professionals from Canada, Egypt, Hungary, Peru, and Zimbabwe, received UNESCO-Vocations Patrimoine fellowships to pursue post ...

Monday, October 20, 2008
World Heritage Centre Receives World Tourism Award
The World Heritage Centre has been awarded the 2008 World Tourism Award in recognition of its ‘outstanding guidance, support and encouragement ...

Monday, October 20, 2008
Places of Wonder and Discovery, the first book published by Our Place, is now available
The first book published by Our Place, is now available. The first in a series of ten books produced in collaboration with the UNESCO World Heritage ...

Monday, October 20, 2008
2009 UNESCO World Heritage Desk Diary Published
The UNESCO World Heritage Desk Diary 2009 has just been published. Featuring a useful week-at-a-glance design, it is illustrated with 79 colour photos ...

Monday, October 20, 2008
World Heritage Review n°51 - World Heritage and Spiritual Heritage
World Heritage is a quarterly magazine featuring in-depth articles on World Heritage sites around the world written by experts and illustrated with ...

Thursday, October 16, 2008
Australian Funds-in-Trust Agreement created to support World Heritage activities
A Funds-in-Trust Agreement to support World Heritage activities was established in August 2008 between UNESCO and the Australian Government, thanks to ...

Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Netherlands FIT to enhance management effectiveness at Borobudur
With a view to enhancing the capacity of the Indonesian national and local authorities to improve the state of conservation at Borobudur Temple ...

Monday, October 13, 2008
Spain Honors the UNESCO World Heritage Centre
On the occasion of the 15th anniversary of the ‘Association of World Heritage Cities of Spain’, celebrated in the city of Avila on 17 ...

Friday, October 10, 2008
Violent clashes in southern sector of Virunga National Park
Over the last few days, Virunga National Park has been the scene of violent fighting between the Congolese Army and Congrès National pour la ...

Tuesday, September 23, 2008
UNESCO and World Air League join forces to promote lighter-than-air transportation
The World Heritage Centre and the World Air League, a U.S.-based nongovernmental organization, will present an ambitious new partnership at UNESCO ...

Friday, September 12, 2008
Jaeger-LeCoultre and International Herald Tribune provide support to World Heritage Marine Programme
With the support of Jaeger-LeCoultre, Swiss luxury watch manufacture, the World Heritage Marine Programme will begin a series of conservation ...

Friday, September 5, 2008
Inauguration Ceremony for the Aksum Obelisk
“The reinstallation of the Aksum Obelisk is a source of pride for UNESCO,” said Assistant Director-General for Culture, Françoise ...

Friday, August 8, 2008
[in French only] Newsletter n° 10 de la Convention France-UNESCO
[in French only] Actualités sur l'avancement des projets de la Convention France Unesco. Saint Louis du Sénégal : Suivi de ...

Friday, August 1, 2008
Mission accomplished: Aksum Obelisk successfully reinstalled
Aksum, August 1 - The third and last block of the Aksum Obelisk was successfully mounted by the UNESCO teams yesterday 31 July in its original ...

Monday, July 28, 2008
Second block of Aksum Obelisk successfully re-installed
In the framework of the Aksum Obelisk reinstallation project funded by Italy, the second block of the Aksum Obelisk was successfully installed on 25 ...

Thursday, July 10, 2008
World Heritage Committee requests close surveillance of Bordeaux, Machu Picchu, Timbuktu and Samarkand
The World Heritage Committee has asked that “reinforced monitoring” be applied to four properties on UNESCO’s World Heritage List in ...

Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Three new sites inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List
The Bahá’i Holy Places in Haifa and Western Galilee (Israel) are inscribed for the testimony they provide to the ...

Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Twenty-seven new sites inscribed
The World Heritage Committee, meeting for its 32nd session, finished inscribing new sites on UNESCO’s World Heritage List on 8 July with the ...

Monday, July 7, 2008
Eight new sites, from the Straits of Malacca, to Papua New Guinea and San Marino, added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List
The World Heritage Committee meeting in Quebec City has added eight new cultural sites to UNESCO’s World Heritage List on the morning of the 7 ...

Monday, July 7, 2008
Canadian fossil park, an Icelandic volcanic island and archipelago in Yemen among sites added to UNESCO World Heritage List
The World Heritage Committee, meeting for its 32nd session, inscribed 13 new sites on UNESCO’s World Heritage List in the afternoon and evening ...

Sunday, July 6, 2008
Slave hideout in Mauritius, Nabataean archaeological site in Saudi Arabia and earthen houses in China inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List
The mountain of Le Morne, a former hideout of runaway slaves in Mauritius, a Nabataean archaeological site in Saudi Arabia and earthen houses in ...

Sunday, July 6, 2008
Armenian monasteries in Iran added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List
Fortified Armenian monasteries in Iran were added to the new sites inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List on 6 July. The Armenian Monastic ...

Friday, July 4, 2008
Avian Malaria found in Galápagos Penguins
On July 1st the Galápagos National Park announced that the parasite causing avian malaria was found in several Galápagos penguins by ...

Friday, July 4, 2008
World Heritage Committee keeps Dresden Elbe Valley on UNESCO World Heritage List, urging an end to building of bridge
The World Heritage Committee has decided to retain Dresden Elbe Valley on UNESCO World Heritage List in the hope that the building of a four-lane ...

Thursday, July 3, 2008
32nd Session of World Heritage Committee opens in Quebec
The 32nd session of the World Heritage Committee opened on July 2nd with an official ceremony in Quebec City, which is celebrating its 400th ...

Monday, June 23, 2008
World Heritage Committee to meet in Quebec to inscribe new sites on UNESCO’s World Heritage List
The World Heritage Committee will consider requests for the inscription of new sites on UNESCO's World Heritage List when it meets for its 32nd ...

Monday, June 23, 2008
First phase of Aksum Obelisk re-installation successfully completed
The first phase of the re-installation works of the Aksum Obelisk, also known as Stele 2, in its original location at the World Heritage site in ...

Friday, June 6, 2008
News from the Our Place-World Heritage Centre Partnership
Online images of World Heritage sites, an outdoor exhibit and a new book project are among the most recent developments of the partnership between the ...

Friday, June 6, 2008
Loss and Damage Assessment after China Earthquake
Officials continue to assess the damage following the devastating May 12 earthquake in China, where approximately 69,000 people were killed and 19,000 ...

Friday, June 6, 2008
Discovering and Preserving World Heritage sites with Indiana Jones
In coordination with the release of the film Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, Friends of World Heritage (the UN Foundation, the ...

Friday, June 6, 2008
Policy Document on the Impacts of Climate Change on World Heritage sites Published
The "Policy document on the impacts of climate change on World Heritage properties", adopted by the 16th General Assembly of States Parties ...

Tuesday, June 3, 2008
ICOMOS Study “Cultural Landscapes of the Pacific Islands” Published
Cultural Landscapes of the Pacific Islands: ICOMOS Thematic Study by Anita Smith and Kevin L. JonesThis is the first regional thematic study on ...

Friday, May 23, 2008
Re-installation of Aksum Obelisk to begin soon
Works to begin the re-installation of the Aksum Obelisk, also known as Stele 2, in its original location will start June 4th at the World Heritage ...

Thursday, May 15, 2008
Fire damages recently restored Liverpool landmark
A fire tore through the Bluecoat Art Gallery in Liverpool, United Kingdom early Tuesday morning, just two months after extensive renovation works. The ...

Wednesday, May 14, 2008
New Publication on Frozen Tombs of the Altai Mountains
This publication marks the end of the Preservation of the Frozen Tombs of the Altai Mountains Project, which was launched in 2005 and carried out by ...

Tuesday, May 13, 2008
New Master Course in "World Heritage at Work" Accepting Applicants
A Master Course in "World Heritage at Work" has been created by the Universita degli Studi di Torino (Italy) and the Politecnico di Torino ...

Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Fire threatens Garajonay World Heritage site, Spain
Firefighters have been struggling since last weekend to prevent a fire from spreading into Garajonay National Park, situated in the middle of the ...

Friday, April 25, 2008
New Episode of Patrimonito's World Heritage Adventures on Protecting Mountain Gorillas
The sixth episode in the animated series Patrimonito's World Heritage Adventures is now available, and focuses on the plight of mountain gorillas and ...

Wednesday, April 9, 2008
Deadline extended for applications to UNESCO-Vocations Patrimoine Fellowships for World Heritage site managers
Training World Heritage site managers is one of the most valuable investments in heritage conservation, particularly as these sites confront the ...

Wednesday, April 9, 2008
UNESCO concerned about fire damage at Italy's Castello di Moncalieri, a royal residence on World Heritage List
The Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, today voiced concern about damage caused to the Castello di Moncalieri, in the Italian Province of ...

Tuesday, April 8, 2008
[in French only] Newsletter n° 9 de la Convention France-UNESCO
[in French only] Actualités sur l'avancement des projets CFU : Le Comité mixte (CMC) de la Convention FRANCE-UNESCO a eu lieu le 28 ...

Monday, April 7, 2008
UNESCO Director-General expresses regret over destruction by fire of historical Québec landmark
The Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, today expressed his deep regret at the destruction of Québec’s ancient drill hall, a landmark ...

Wednesday, April 2, 2008
New European Network for Landscape launched in Florence
On 23 February 2008, 40 representatives of 26 Non Governmental Organizations (NGOs) from Italy, Germany; Ireland, Spain, the United Kingdom and the ...

Wednesday, March 26, 2008
UNESCO and Fine Arts Department Launch New Website for Sukhothai, Si Satchanalai and Kamphaeng Phet
Visitors to Sukhothai, Si Satchanalai and Kamphaeng Phet will now be able to click onto a new website to get information about historic monuments, ...

Thursday, March 20, 2008
Natural heritage experts review protected areas in Congo Basin to identify those suitable for World Heritage inscription
As part of the ‘Initiative for World Heritage Forests in Central Africa' , UNESCO's World Heritage Centre organized an expert workshop on March ...

Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Ecuador’s “Galápagos Invasive Species” Fund gets injection of US 2.19 million dollars
The Ecuadorian National Environmental Fund's "Galápagos Invasive Species" account received a major injection of US$2.19 million on March ...

Tuesday, March 18, 2008
World Heritage Centre ends 2008 map mailing campaign
The World Heritage Centre has concluded this year's map outreach campaign with its mailing of the 2007/2008 World Heritage Wall Map featuring 851 ...

Friday, March 14, 2008
[in French only] Le Comite de pilotage oriente les actions CAWHFI de l'année 2008 sur deux priorités : le renforcement de la gestion des aires protégées, l'implication effective des acteurs concernés.
[in French only] Les 10 et 11 mars 2008 la troisième session du Comité de pilotage annuel de l'initiative pour le Patrimoine Mondial ...

Wednesday, March 12, 2008
See World Heritage sites in 360 degree imaging at non-profit website
WHTour.org, a non profit organization sponsored by the J.M. Kaplan Fund, announces that 80 World Heritage sites shot in the Middle East and East ...

Monday, March 10, 2008
UNESCO report recommends the construction of a tunnel instead of a bridge in Dresden World Heritage site
The international mission of experts sent to review plans to build a bridge in the cultural landscape of the Dresden Elbe Valley (Germany) in early ...

Saturday, March 8, 2008
Cyclone Jokwe
The cyclone Jokwe on 7-8 March 2008 caused considerable damage to the Fortress' coral rock base and defensive walls and there is an urgent need for ...

Thursday, January 31, 2008
International mission to review the construction of a bridge at the cultural landscape of Dresden Elbe Valley (Germany) from 4 to 5 February
In November 2007, UNESCO and the Chairperson of the World Heritage Committee regretted the decision of a German court to authorize the construction of ...

Friday, January 18, 2008
Call for Entries: 2008 UNESCO Asia-Pacific Heritage Awards for Culture Heritage Conservation
Entries are now being accepted for the 2008 UNESCO Asia-Pacific Heritage Awards for Culture Heritage Conservation. The awards programme, in its ninth ...

Friday, January 18, 2008
UNESCO World Heritage Centre confirms opposition to building of a tower in the Historic Centre of St. Petersburg
UNESCO has confirmed the World Heritage Committee's decision of July 2007 to request the authorities of the Russian Federation to halt the planned ...

Wednesday, January 16, 2008
2007-2008 World Heritage Map Available
The 2007-2008 World Heritage map, the third to be produced in collaboration with National Geographic and Hewlett Packard, is now available. The goal ...

Wednesday, January 9, 2008
UNESCO's World Heritage Centre and Nature Conservancy launch online course on Sustainable Financing of Protected Areas
UNESCO's World Heritage Centre, in cooperation with the Nature Conservancy, one of the world's largest nature conservation organizations, and ...

Friday, January 4, 2008
[in French only] Newsletter n° 8 de la Convention France-UNESCO
[in French only] Actualités sur l’avancement des projets : Alger, Algérie – Zabid, Yemen : appui aux demandes du Centre ...

Friday, December 21, 2007
Best Wishes from the World Heritage Centre
A turreted castle in the icescape of Antarctica evokes not just the sublime beauty of nature but also its impermanence. Preserving this fragile ...

Thursday, December 20, 2007
United Nations 62nd General Assembly proclaimed 2009 the International Year of Astronomy
On 20 December 2007, the United Nations 62nd General Assembly proclaimed 2009 the International Year of Astronomy. UNESCO was designated as the lead ...

Friday, December 7, 2007
Sundarbans World Heritage site devastated by cyclone, according to UNESCO experts who visited the site
Bangladesh was struck by a powerful cyclone on November 15 which left more than 3,000 people dead and millions without shelter. While a major ...

Friday, December 7, 2007
UNESCO regrets U.K. government's decision to cancel A303 road improvement scheme for Stonehenge World Heritage property
UNESCO regrets the U.K. government's decision to cancel the A303 Stonehenge Road Improvement scheme on the basis of cost concerns and hopes that ...

Friday, December 7, 2007
Renewed fighting threatens mountain gorillas in Virunga National Park
Heavy fighting broke out again on December 3, 2007 between the DRC army and rebel forces of general Nkunda north of the city of Goma, in North Kivu.  ...

Friday, December 7, 2007
Brasilia celebrates 20th anniversary as World Heritage site
UNESCO and the Federal District Government held a ceremony on 7 December 2007 to celebrate 20 years of Brasilia's inscription as a World Heritage ...

Monday, December 3, 2007
Final “Sharing our Heritages” (SOH) master class in France and Belgium
Over the past two years the World Heritage Centre of UNESCO has defined a strategy that aims to encourage universities worldwide to develop World ...

Friday, November 30, 2007
Djibouti ratifies the World Heritage Convention
On 30 August 2007, the Government of Djibouti officially deposited with the Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, its instrument of ...

Monday, November 26, 2007
Inscription of Old Town of Regensburg with Stadtamhof on UNESCO’s World Heritage List
The official ceremony  to mark the inscription of the Old Town of Regensburg with Stadtamhof on the World Heritage List took place at the historical ...

Thursday, November 15, 2007
UNESCO regrets decision on construction of bridge that threatens delisting of Dresden Elbe Valley from World Heritage List
UNESCO regrets the decision of a German court to authorize the construction of a bridge likely to lead to the deletion of the cultural landscape of ...

Monday, November 5, 2007
Award of five UNESCO-Vocations Patrimoine fellowships to meet new economic and safeguarding challenges of heritage
Five young heritage professionals from around the world received UNESCO-Vocations Patrimoine fellowships to pursue post graduate research at ...

Monday, November 5, 2007
Anna Amalia Library re-opens after extensive restoration
The Anna Amalia Library, part of Germany's Classical Weimar World Heritage site, re-opened to the public on October 24 after extensive restoration ...

Monday, November 5, 2007
Restored Venaria Reale Palace re-opens
The Baroque palace of Venaria Reale, built by the Savoy dynasty outside the city of Turin, has been re-opened to the public after eight years of ...

Friday, October 26, 2007
Nine new members elected to World Heritage Committee
Nine new members have been elected to the 21-member World Heritage Committee in charge of implementing UNESCO's Convention Concerning the ...

Wednesday, October 24, 2007
Members elected to World Heritage Committee
The 16th General Assembly of States Parties to the World Heritage Convention elected 5 new members to the World Heritage Committee. The following ...

Wednesday, October 24, 2007
[in French only] 16e Assemblée générale des Etats parties à la Convention du Patrimoine mondial
[in French only] Le Directeur général a ouvert, le 24 octobre 2007, la 16e session de l'Assemblée générale des Etats parties à la Convention de ...

Wednesday, October 17, 2007
UNESCO World Heritage Desk Diary 2008 Now Available
The UNESCO World Heritage Desk Diary 2008 has just been published. Featuring a useful week-at-a-glance design, it is illustrated with 77 colour photos ...

Thursday, October 4, 2007
Terrorist attacks damage Pakistan Buddha
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre was informed of two attacks on an ancient rock carving of a seated Buddha located near Janabad in north-west ...

Thursday, October 4, 2007
International Melina Mercouri Prize awarded to Russian Federation's Borodino Battlefield
At a ceremony held today at UNESCO Headquarters Mrs Françoise Rivière, Assistant Director-General for Culture, gave the award for the International ...

Monday, October 1, 2007
[in French only] Newsletter n° 7 de la Convention France-UNESCO
[in French only] Actualités sur l'avancement des projets :Turin, Italie: Réunion technique d'urgence sur le site du patrimoine mondial du ...

Friday, September 14, 2007
Donate online to support World Heritage conservation
It's easier than ever to participate in the preservation of World Heritage sites by making an online donation on the UNESCO World Heritage Centre ...

Friday, September 7, 2007
Tragic accident at Kilwa Kisiwani World Heritage site
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre sends its condolences to the family, friends and colleagues of Ruzna Amli, a young Tanzanian woman from Songo Mnara, ...

Thursday, August 30, 2007
New Book on World Heritage Sites in the Philippines
Living Landscapes and Cultural Landmarks: World Heritage Sites in the Philippines by Augusto F. Villalon, Photographs by Neal M. Oshima, Publisher: ...

Thursday, August 23, 2007
UNESCO Mission rallies support for the preservation of the mountain gorillas of the DRC
A mission of experts led by UNESCO has rallied the support of the authorities of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the United Nations ...

Tuesday, August 21, 2007
UNESCO joins United Nations effort in response to Peruvian earthquake
UNESCO's World Heritage Centre extends its deepest sympathies to those who have been affected by the powerful August 15 earthquake in Peru, which ...

Tuesday, August 21, 2007
Inscription of Lopé-Okanda site (Gabon) on UNESCO’s World Heritage List
Gabon celebrated the inscription of its Lopé-Okanda site on UNESCO's World Heritage List over the weekend of 11-12 August 2007. Spanning four ...

Tuesday, August 14, 2007
"Journalisme et Patrimoine Mondial" just published
Heritage advocates often reproach journalists for not being sufficiently interested in their field and for being only able to speak about it in a ...

Tuesday, August 7, 2007
Dubrovnik Saved from Wildfires
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre is relieved that the wildfires around the city of Dubrovnik (Croatia) are now under control and would like to pay ...

Tuesday, August 7, 2007
New Episodes of Patrimonito's World Heritage Adventures available
Two new episodes, the fourth and fifth in the series Patrimonito's World Heritage Adventures ,are now available. 4th: Ethiopia ...

Thursday, August 2, 2007
Winners of Patrimonito Storyboard Competition 2007 Announced
The winners of the most recent Patrimonito Storyboard Competition have been announced. The winning storyboard will be developed into the next ...

Thursday, August 2, 2007
Director-General voices concern over fate of Virunga National Park gorillas
The Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, is concerned over attacks perpetrated against the mountain gorillas of the Virunga National Park in ...

Friday, July 27, 2007
Virunga National Park: 4 more gorillas slaughtered
The death toll continues to rise in Virunga National Park (Democratic Republic of the Congo), where three females and one male silverback gorilla were ...

Monday, July 9, 2007
UNESCO confirms that it is not involved in the "New 7 wonders of the world" campaign
In order to avoid any damaging confusion, UNESCO wishes to reaffirm that there is no link whatsoever between UNESCO's World Heritage programme, ...

Thursday, July 5, 2007
[in French only] Newsletter n° 6 de la Convention France-UNESCO
[in French only] Actualités sur l'avancement des projets : Fleuve Niger et patrimoine : projet europeen Formation internationale à la gestion des ...

Friday, June 29, 2007
Three new sites inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List
The World Heritage Committee today finalized this year's additions to UNESCO's World Heritage List with the inscription of three new sites: ...

Friday, June 29, 2007
Twenty-two new sites inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List, and one deleted during Committee meeting in Christchurch
Christchurch, New Zealand, 29 June - The World Heritage Committee inscribed 22 new sites on UNESCO's World Heritage List during its ongoing ...

Thursday, June 28, 2007
World Heritage Committee inscribes two natural, one mixed, and four cultural sites onto UNESCO’s World Heritage List
The World Heritage Committee today inscribed two natural sites on UNESCO's World Heritage List: Teide National Park (Spain); Primeval Beech Forests of ...

Thursday, June 28, 2007
World Heritage Committee inscribes four new cultural sites on UNESCO’s World Heritage List
The World Heritage Committee on Thursday afternoon inscribed four cultural sites on UNESCO's World Heritage List: Iwami Ginzan Silver Mine and its ...

Thursday, June 28, 2007
Bosnian Bridge among five new sites inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List this evening
Christchurch, New Zealand, 28 June - The World Heritage Committee on Thursday evening inscribed another five sites on UNESCO's World Heritage ...

Thursday, June 28, 2007
Oman's Arabian Oryx Sanctuary : first site ever to be deleted from UNESCO's World Heritage List
Christchurch, New Zealand, 28 June - The World Heritage Committee on Thursday took the unprecedented decision of removing a site from UNESCO's ...

Thursday, June 28, 2007
World Heritage Committee approves Auschwitz name change
Christchurch, New Zealand - The World Heritage Committee has approved Poland's request to change the name of Auschwitz on UNESCO's World Heritage ...

Wednesday, June 27, 2007
Natural sites in Madagascar, China and Korea inscribed on UNESCO World Heritage List
Christchurch, New Zealand - The World Heritage Committee on Tuesday decided to inscribe the three new sites on UNESCO's World Heritage List: the ...

Tuesday, June 26, 2007
Galápagos and Niokolo-Koba National Park inscribed on UNESCO’s List of World Heritage in Danger
Christchurch, New Zealand - The World Heritage Committee today inscribed the Galápagos (Ecuador), and Niokolo-Koba National Park (Senegal) on ...

Monday, June 25, 2007
World Heritage Committee keeps Dresden on UNESCO World Heritage List but warns against bridge project
Christchurch, New Zealand - The World Heritage Committee on Monday decided to keep Dresden Elbe Valley (Germany) on the List of World Heritage in ...

Monday, June 25, 2007
Royal Palaces of Abomey and Kathmandu removed from Danger List
Christchurch, New Zealand - The World Heritage Committee has removed Royal Palaces of Abomey, Benin, and Kathmandu Valley, Nepal, from the List of ...

Sunday, June 24, 2007
Florida Everglades and Río Plátano Biosphere Reserve removed from Danger List
The World Heritage Committee has decided that improvements in the preservation of the Everglades National Park (Florida, USA) and Río Plátano ...

Saturday, June 23, 2007
World Heritage Committee opening in Christchurch
Christchurch, New Zealand, 23 June  - The Pacific region's traditional respect for both natural and cultural preservation was celebrated at the ...

Tuesday, June 19, 2007
UNESCO launches the re-erection project of the Aksum Obelisk
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre today signed the contract with Lattanzi SRL construction company to begin the re-erection of the Aksum obelisk. Also ...

Friday, June 8, 2007
Agreement to Eradicate Rabbits on Macquarie Island
The Australian and Tasmanian Governments have today reached an agreement to jointly fund the eradication of rodent pests on Macquarie Island, ...

Friday, June 8, 2007
Virunga National Park: Mountain gorillas remain target for armed groups
On Friday June 8, 2007, a female gorilla was shot in the southern sector of Virunga National Park, and her 3-month old baby was found sitting on her ...

Monday, June 4, 2007
Torrential landslide at the Kamchatka Volcanoes World Heritage Site
The World Heritage Centre expresses its deep concern after a torrential landslide of snow, mud, stones, trees and vegetation at the Geyser Valley in ...

Friday, June 1, 2007
Annual Cultural Heritage/Europa Nostra Award Winners Announced
The European Commission (DG EAC) and Europa Nostra, the pan-European Federation for Cultural Heritage, has announced the laureates of the annual ...

Friday, June 1, 2007
Committee to review 45 candidates for inscription on UNESCO’s World Heritage List
The World Heritage Committee will consider requests for the inscription of 45 new sites on UNESCO's World Heritage List when it meets for its 31st ...

Thursday, May 31, 2007
‘Managing Rock Art World Heritage Sites’ Workshop Held
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre, in collaboration with the Centro Camuno per i Studi Preistorici (CCSP) and the Ministero per i Beni et le Attività ...

Wednesday, May 23, 2007
Fire on Cutty Sark, of Maritime Greenwich World Heritage Site
The World Heritage Centre expresses its deep concern after the fire on the Cutty Sark tea clipper, part of the Maritime Greenwich World Heritage site ...

Tuesday, May 22, 2007
First Extraordinary Session of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage
At its first session in Algiers (Algeria), November 2006, the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage ...

Wednesday, May 16, 2007
Inauguration of a World Heritage Training and Research Institute for Asia and the Pacific Region in China
The Government of China will launch a World Heritage Training and Research Institute for Asia and the Pacific Region in China. The inauguration ...

Tuesday, May 15, 2007
Prince of Wales inaugurates World Heritage site of the Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape
The Prince of Wales received the UNESCO certificate for the Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape during the inscription ceremony on 10 May 2007 at ...

Friday, May 11, 2007
Director of World Heritage Centre Delivers 4th Dinos Leventis Memorial Lecture in Cyprus
Mr Francesco Bandarin, Director of the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, travelled to Nicosia, Cyprus, from May 8-10, 2007 to deliver the 4th Dinos ...

Thursday, May 3, 2007
“World Heritage Memory Net” is coming soon!
In November 2006, the World Heritage Centre signed a multi-year Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Simmons College, Boston, Massachusetts, USA, to ...

Thursday, April 26, 2007
Director-General urges systematic measures to end poaching and killing of endangered animals in Democratic Republic of Congo World Heritage Sites
The Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, has written to Joseph Kabila, President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and to ...

Friday, April 20, 2007
CAWHFI Steering Committee validates the annual action plan: Sustainable management of ecological landscapes and reinforced collaboration between stakeholders
The annual steering committee of the Central Africa World Heritage Forest Initiative (CAWHFI) took place in Libreville on March 21-22, 2007 under the ...

Thursday, April 19, 2007
UNESCO sends mission to assess the state of conservation of Machu Picchu World Heritage Site
UNESCO will send a mission to the Historic Sanctuary of Machu Picchu, Peru, in view of concerns by the World Heritage Committee for the conservation ...

Monday, April 16, 2007
UNESCO Mission confirms threat to Galápagos Islands
A UNESCO mission has confirmed serious threats to the Galápagos National Park and Marine Reserve and welcomed ambitious measures announced by the ...

Thursday, April 12, 2007
UNESCO-IUCN Mission to Galápagos Islands World Heritage Site
A UNESCO World Heritage Centre/World Conservation Union (IUCN) mission is currently in Ecuador (April 8-12, 2007) at the request of the World Heritage ...

Wednesday, April 11, 2007
Rapid Response Facility for World Heritage Biodiversity Sites Exceeds Target
In its recently released first annual report, the Rapid Response Facility (RRF) Secretariat announced that it has taken an average of less than 6 days ...

Tuesday, April 10, 2007
Climate change threatens UNESCO World Heritage sites
The threats posed by climate change to natural and cultural sites on UNESCO's World Heritage List are outlined in a new UNESCO publication, "Case ...

Tuesday, April 10, 2007
'World Heritage: Challenges for the Millennium' Published in French and English
Now available online. To download the pdf version, please click here. This 200-page publication provides a comprehensive overview and analysis of ...

Wednesday, March 28, 2007
Concern for the State of conservation of the Church of St. Cyril, located near Saint-Sophia Cathedral in Kiev, Ukraine
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre and the UNESCO Office in New York have received a large number of letters from individuals who are concerned about ...

Monday, March 19, 2007
Launch of New Cycle of UNESCO-VOCATIONS PATRIMOINE Co-Sponsored Fellowships for World Heritage Site Managers
World Heritage site managers and people intending to pursue a career in World Heritage site management are being invited to apply for Fellowships ...

Thursday, March 15, 2007
Old City of Jerusalem: Publication of UNESCO’s technical mission Report
"The technical mission that I had sent from 27 February to 2 March 2007 to the Old City of Jerusalem, which is inscribed on UNESCO's World ...

Tuesday, March 13, 2007
Statement from the Chairman of the Executive Board on the activities under-way at the site of the Old City of Jerusalem
The following statement is issued by the Chairman of UNESCO's Executive Board, Mr Zhang Xinsheng. 1. The six Arab members of the Executive Board ...

Tuesday, March 6, 2007
Old City of Jerusalem: return of the technical mission’s experts
The technical mission sent by the Director-General of UNESCO to the Old City of Jerusalem, which is inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List, ...

Monday, March 5, 2007
[in French only] Newsletter n° 5 de la Convention France-UNESCO
[in French only] Actualités sur l'avancement des projets CFU :Le comité mixte de coordination (CMC) de la Convention France-UNESCO a eu lieu le 8 ...

Thursday, March 1, 2007
Royal Palaces of Abomey in Young African Hands
Equipped with shovels, wheelbarrows and water buckets, twelve girls and thirteen boys between the ages of 14 and 17, from eight different countries in ...

Friday, February 23, 2007
UNESCO to send technical mission to assess the situation concerning the work on the access to the al-Haram al-Sharif, Jerusalem
The Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, has decided to send a technical mission to the Old City of Jerusalem, inscribed on UNESCO's ...

Tuesday, February 13, 2007
Huge Settlement Unearthed Near Stonehenge World Heritage Site
Archaeologists at the University of Sheffield have unearthed a huge settlement at Durrington Walls, near Stonehenge, confirming that the Stonehenge ...

Monday, February 12, 2007
Publication on Eco-tourism in Central and South Asia Available
The project on the Development of Cultural and Ecotourism in the Mountainous Regions of Central and South Asia has just produced a publication ...

Friday, February 9, 2007
Director-General offers UNESCO’s assistance to repair fire damage at World Heritage City of Valparaiso
Koïchiro Matsuura, the Director-General of UNESCO today offered the Organization's assistance in repairing damage caused by the fire that ...

Thursday, February 8, 2007
The Director-General of UNESCO voices his alarm over the resumption of tensions in the Old City of Jerusalem
On Tuesday 8 February 2007, the Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, expressed his "deep concern over the work initiated by the Israeli ...

Thursday, February 1, 2007
'Management and Preservation of Historic Cities on World Heritage List' Conference Held in St Petersburg
The conference on "Management and Preservation of Historic Cities inscribed on the World Heritage List" is taking place in St ...

Wednesday, January 24, 2007
Concern for World Heritage site after British Coast Cargo Spill
The World Heritage Centre expresses its deep concern regarding the cargo spill off the British Coast. The MSC Napoli is grounded near Sidmouth's ...

Friday, January 19, 2007
Situation Worsens at Virunga National Park (DRC): Two Male Gorillas Killed
The situation continues to get worse at Virunga National Park (Democratic Republic of the Congo), where 2 male silverbacks have been killed.The ...

Tuesday, December 19, 2006
The Director-General signs a funds-in-trust agreement for the restoration of the historical centre of Gjirokastra in Albania
On 15 December 2006, Mr Koïchiro Matsuura, Director-General of UNESCO, and Ambassador Tatjana Gjonaj, Permanent Delegate of Albania to UNESCO, signed ...

Friday, December 15, 2006
Re-opening of the Anna Amalia Library (World Heritage site of Classical Weimar) planned in October 2007 after the fire of 2004
The Anna Amalia Library, part of the World Heritage site of Classical Weimar which was inscribed on the UNESCO List in 1998, will reopen in October ...

Wednesday, December 13, 2006
Statement of the Director-General of UNESCO: Transmitting the past without alteration or omission
"In the face of the attempts to re-write history that are currently at work, I can but recall in the most emphatic manner that it is our moral ...

Saturday, December 9, 2006
Conclusions of the First HERITY International Conference
This conference was held in Rome from December 5-9. The conclusions outlined below were reached thanks to contributions from ICCROM, UNESCO-WHC, ...

Friday, December 1, 2006
2006-2007 World Heritage Map Available
The 2006-2007 World Heritage map, the second to be produced in collaboration with National Geographic and Hewlett Packard, is now available. The goal ...

Friday, November 24, 2006
New cooperation agreement signed between Belgian Science Policy Office and World Heritage Centre
On 21 November 2006, the Director of the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, Francesco Bandarin, signed a new cooperation agreement with Minister Marc ...

Thursday, November 23, 2006
Hippo Massacre in Virunga National Park (DRC): UNESCO Reacts
Conservation activities continue in the World Heritage sites of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), with particular attention given to Virunga ...

Wednesday, November 22, 2006
Jet Tours and World Heritage Centre Implement Safeguarding Projects
In an ongoing commitment to sustainable tourism, Jet tours will support two safeguarding projects scheduled for implementation early 2007. The ...

Thursday, November 9, 2006
New Report on World Heritage and Climate Change
Threats to cultural and natural heritage sites from the effects of climate change are further substantiated in a new report presented at the 12th ...

Monday, November 6, 2006
Preserving Congolese Heritage in Armed Conflict
On the occasion of the United Nations' International Day for Preventing the Exploitation of the Environment in War and Armed Conflict, the World ...

Tuesday, October 31, 2006
UNESCO World Heritage Desk Diary 2007 Now Available
The UNESCO World Heritage Desk Diary 2007 has just been published. Featuring a useful week-at-a-glance design, it is illustrated with 77 colour photos ...

Saturday, October 7, 2006
UNESCO and Partners Demonstrate Space Technologies for Monitoring World Heritage
At the 57th International Astronautical Federation (IAF) Congress held in Valencia, Spain from 2-6 October 2006, UNESCO and the European Space ...

Friday, September 29, 2006
Handbook on Cultural Heritage and Local Development for African Local Governments Published
The handbook "Cultural heritage and local development: A Guide for African local governments" was created in response to the request ...

Monday, September 25, 2006
No Survivors of WWF Helicopter Crash in Nepal
WWF Nepal has confirmed there are no survivors from Saturday's helicopter crash which occurred while transporting 24 delegates to attend the ...

Thursday, September 21, 2006
Sao Tome and Principe ratifies the World Heritage Convention
On 25 July 2006, the Government of Sao Tome and Principe officially deposited with the Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, its instrument ...

Wednesday, September 20, 2006
Melina Mercouri International Prize for the Safeguarding and Management of Cultural Landscapes (UNESCO-Greece), Deadline approaches
Nominations for the prize have to be at UNESCO by 1 November 2006!The purpose of the Melina Mercouri International Prize (UNESCO-Greece) is to reward ...

Tuesday, September 19, 2006
UNESCO Mission reports on war damage to cultural heritage in Lebanon
Experts* sent to Lebanon by UNESCO to assess the state of the country's cultural heritage sites have called for urgent measures to clean up the ...

Tuesday, September 19, 2006
A 7000 Euro Grant for the Realization of a Cultural Project Concerning the Mediterranean World
Born after 31 December 1977 you will be under 30 years of age in 2007. You are a native of a Mediterranean country. You wish to develop a project ...

Wednesday, September 13, 2006
A Virtual Tour of World Heritage Sites
On the occasion of Journées Européennes du Patrimoine (European Heritage Days), and as part of the UNESCO-Vocations Patrimoine Fellowships programme ...

Tuesday, September 12, 2006
TourismAfrica 2006 Promotes African World Heritage
With the support of UNESCO's World Heritage Centre, TourismAfrica 2006 (10-15 September, Geneva, Switzerland) is actively raising awareness of ...

Friday, September 8, 2006
UNESCO sends experts to carry out technical assessment of the effects of the war on Lebanon’s cultural heritage
The Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, today announced that the Organization will send a mission of experts, from September 10 to 16, ...

Friday, August 25, 2006
Decisions adopted at the 30th session of the World Heritage Committee now available online
The Decisions adopted at the 30th session of the World Heritage Committee, held in Vilnius, Lithuania, from 8 to 16 July 2006, are now available ...

Friday, August 11, 2006
UNESCO Director-General launches “heritage alert” for the Middle East
The Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, today launched an alert to protect heritage in the Middle East. The full text of the declaration ...

Thursday, August 3, 2006
2006 International Youth Camp Held for Restoration of Khami Ruins National Monument
The 2006 International Youth Volunteer Camp on the Restoration of Khami Ruins National Monument took place from 15 June to 8 July. The goal of the ...

Wednesday, August 2, 2006
Worldwide photography project launched in support of World Heritage
A new partnership to promote UNESCO World Heritage sites has been launched with the signing on 19 July of a Memorandum of Understanding between UNESCO ...

Friday, July 21, 2006
Dresden City Council Votes Against Bridge Construction at World Heritage Site
The World Heritage Committee at its 30th session in Vilnius decided to place the cultural landscape of Dresden Elbe Valley on the List of World ...

Friday, July 21, 2006
New Sites Added to the World Heritage List 2006
During the 30th session of the World Heritage Committee held in Vilnius, Lithuania from 8-16 July, 18 new sites were inscribed on the World Heritage ...

Thursday, July 20, 2006
UNESCO Courier, Virtual visit to five new World Heritage Sites
Five sites newly inscribed into UNESCO's World Heritage List are highlighted in the July-August issue of the UNESCO Courier.Bisotun (Islamic ...

Tuesday, July 18, 2006
UNESCO, EVERGREEN Digital Contents and NTT DoCoMo Work Together to Promote World Heritage Education in Japan
UNESCO and its long standing media partner EVERGREEN Digital Contents have launched a new partnership through a project aiming to promote World ...

Sunday, July 16, 2006
Enhancing our Heritage: Monitoring and managing for success in natural World Heritage sites
The 30th meeting of the World Heritage Committee in Vilnius, Lithuania has been discussing the state of conservation of natural and cultural World ...

Thursday, July 13, 2006
World Heritage Committee puts Medieval Monuments in Kosovo on Danger List and extends site in Andorra, ending this year’s inscriptions
The World Heritage Committee Thursday decided to extend the site inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List in 2004 as Dečani Monastery (Serbia) ...

Thursday, July 13, 2006
Ancient irrigation system (Oman) and Palaces of Genoa (Italy) among ten new sites on World Heritage List
The World Heritage Committee Thursday inscribed ten new sites on UNESCO's World Heritage List. A number of outstanding proposals for inscription ...

Wednesday, July 12, 2006
Giant panda sanctuaries and Tequila-producing area of Mexico among the eight new sites added to World Heritage List
The World Heritage Committee Wednesday added eight new sites and one extension to UNESCO's World Heritage List and removed the archaeological site ...

Tuesday, July 11, 2006
World Heritage Committee threatens to remove Dresden Elbe Valley (Germany) from World Heritage List
The World Heritage Committee decided Tuesday to place the cultural landscape of Dresden Elbe Valley on the List of World Heritage in Dangerwith a view ...

Monday, July 10, 2006
World Heritage Committee adopts strategy on heritage and climate change
The World Heritage Committee on Monday adopted the recommendations on ways to respond to the threat of climate change to many World Heritage sites ...

Monday, July 10, 2006
30th session of World Heritage Committee opens in Vilnius
The 30th session of the World Heritage Committee, chaired by Ina Marčiulionytė, the Ambassador and Permanent Delegate of Lithuania to UNESCO, started ...

Monday, July 10, 2006
Cologne Cathedral (Germany), Djoudj Bird Sanctuary (Senegal), Ichkeul National Park (Tunisia), and Hampi (India) removed from List of World Heritage in Danger
Improved conservation allowed the World Heritage Committee to remove Cologne Cathedral (Germany), Djoudj National Bird Sanctuary (Senegal), the Group ...

Tuesday, July 4, 2006
World Heritage Committee to inscribe new sites on UNESCO’s World Heritage List
Thirty-seven new sites will be proposed for inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage List during the 30th session of the World Heritage Committee ...

Thursday, June 8, 2006
Economy Minister Confirms French Commitment to Protect Congo Forests
On April 13, 2006, Mr. Breton, French Minister of the Economy, Finance and Industry met with Mr. Doumba, Minister of Forest Economy, Water, Fisheries ...

Monday, May 22, 2006
Celebrating World Biodiversity Day May 22: How the World Heritage Convention Contributes to Global Biodiversity Conservation Agenda
Having been identified as a cross-cutting theme for global biodiversity conservation initiatives at the Fifth World Parks Congress in Durban, South ...

Wednesday, May 17, 2006
World Heritage in Young Hands Kit Available in Hungarian
Világörökség ifjú kezekben, the Hungarian version of the World Heritage in Young Hands educational resource kit for teachers, has just been published ...

Thursday, May 11, 2006
Guinea-Bissau ratifies the World Heritage Convention
On 28 January 2006, the Government of Guinea-Bissau officially deposited with the Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, its instrument of ...

Wednesday, May 3, 2006
Launch of African World Heritage Fund
A fund to help the States of sub-Saharan Africa improve the preservation of their cultural and natural heritage will be launched in South Africa on 5 ...

Friday, April 28, 2006
Director-General and World Heritage Committee Chair welcome decision to alter course of pipeline near Lake Baikal
The Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, and the Chairperson of the World Heritage Committee, Ina Marčiulionytė, today welcomed the decision ...

Tuesday, April 18, 2006
"Promoting and Preserving Congolese Heritage" Publication Now Available
The proceedings of the International Donors' Conference "Promoting and Preserving Congolese Heritage: Linking Biological and Cultural ...

Friday, April 14, 2006
Swaziland ratifies the World Heritage Convention
On 30 November 2005, the Government of Swaziland officially deposited with the Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, its instrument of ...

Wednesday, April 12, 2006
Cities Named '2010 European Capital of Culture' include World Heritage sites
The selection panel for the 2010 European Capital of Culture have recommended that the German town Essen and the Hungarian city of Pécs should share ...

Monday, April 10, 2006
Mali Launches Development of Timbuktu Management and Conservation Plan
Since January 2006, the Malian authorities have been developing a management and conservation plan for Timbuktu, a World Heritage site since ...

Sunday, April 9, 2006
World Heritage Centre Recognizes First World Migratory Bird Day
The World Heritage Centre highlights the importance of World Heritage sites for mirgratory birds on the occasion of the first World Migratory Bird Day ...

Wednesday, April 5, 2006
Opportunities for Small Islands States to Nominate Marine World Heritage Sites in the Caribbean
Representatives from 15 States Parties of the Caribbean region participated in a regional training workshop on marine World Heritage held in ...

Tuesday, April 4, 2006
Nature Conservation NGOs Pledge to Support World Heritage and Biodiversity Conventions
Following the January 2006 meeting on the Convention on Biological Diversity's (CBD) Programme of Work on Protected Areas (PoWPA), six of the ...

Friday, March 24, 2006
New Centre for World Heritage Studies at University of Minnesota, USA
The College of Architecture and Landscape Architecture (CALA) at University of Minnesota, USA, has established a Center for World Heritage Studies to ...

Friday, March 24, 2006
World Heritage Committee Chairperson Sends Letter to President of Russian Federation concerning Lake Baikal
The Chairperson of the World Heritage Committee, Ina Marčiulionytė, has sent a letter to the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir ...

Tuesday, March 21, 2006
Experts discuss World Heritage and Climate Change; results to be submitted to World Heritage Committee in July
A two-day expert meeting on World Heritage and Climate Change successfully concluded at UNESCO Headquarters on Friday, bringing together over 50 ...

Monday, March 20, 2006
The Basic Texts of the World Heritage Convention Available in Portuguese
As part of its commitment to World Heritage in Portuguese-speaking countries, the Portuguese National Commission for UNESCO has generously supported ...

Thursday, March 16, 2006
Co-sponsored Fellowships for World Heritage Site Managers
UNESCO's World Heritage Centre has signed a partnership agreement with the French not-for-profit organization, ‘Vocations Patrimoine, ...

Tuesday, March 7, 2006
Second Spanish Edition of World Heritage in Young Hands Kit
Patrimonio Mundial en Manos de Jovenes, the second Spanish edition of the World Heritage in Young Hands educational resource kit for teachers has just ...

Monday, March 6, 2006
Information Related to the World Heritage Convention Available in Arabic
Within the framework of the World Heritage Convention, the clarity and precision of the information made available to the States Parties are two ...

Wednesday, March 1, 2006
First Steering Committee of the Central Africa World Heritage Forest Initiative
On February 13-16, 2006, the World Heritage Centre organized the Steering Committee of the Central Africa World Heritage Forest Initiative (CAWHFI) in ...

Thursday, February 23, 2006
Meeting Held to Support Implementation of Biological Diversity Convention Programme
From January 30 to February 1st, 2006, a meeting was held in Paris to consider actions in support of the implementation of the Convention on ...

Thursday, February 23, 2006
Rapid Response Facility Launched for Natural World Heritage Sites
The World Heritage Centre, the United Nations Foundation, and Fauna and Flora International have launched a Rapid Response Facility (RRF) for natural ...

Tuesday, February 21, 2006
Poster Competition Raises Awareness of Samoan Heritage
A poster competition for high school students was part of the "Heritage in Young Hands" awareness-raising campaign to promote understanding and ...

Thursday, February 16, 2006
UNESCO Presents Design for Reinstallation of Aksum Obelisk
The project for the reinstallation of Aksum Obelisk (Stela 2) is completed UNESCO has completed the engineering design for the reinstallation of the ...

Friday, January 20, 2006
2006 World Heritage Map: New UNESCO World Heritage Centre, National Geographic and Hewlett Packard Partnership
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre is pleased to announce the publication of the 2006 World Heritage map, the first to be produced in collaboration with ...

Thursday, January 19, 2006
Jane Goodall receives UNESCO’s 60th anniversary medal
The Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, awarded UNESCO's 60th Anniversary Medal to Jane Goodall, the British-born primatologist, on Tuesday ...

Friday, January 13, 2006
Conservation and Sustainable Management of Wildlife surrounding National Parks of the Congo Basin
On Friday November 25, 2005, the French Global Environmental Fund (FGEF) approved the financing of an ambitious project of the UNESCO World Heritage ...

Thursday, December 22, 2005
Ten years of decentralised cooperation between the cities of Chinon and Luang Prabang sponsored by UNESCO
On the occasion of the celebration of the 10th anniversary of Luang Prabang's inscription on the World heritage list, this brochure presents the ...

Thursday, December 22, 2005
Workshop Held for Identification of Cultural World Heritage in the Pacific Region
The World Heritage Centre and the Vanuatu Cultural Centre (with funding from the World Heritage Fund, and the technical contribution of the Department ...

Tuesday, December 20, 2005
Fourth Expert Working Group on the Preservation of the Bamiyan Site issued recommendations for Safeguarding Bamiyan
The Fourth Expert Working Group on the Preservation of the Bamiyan Site was successfully held in Kabul/ Aghanistan from 7 to 10 December 2005. Afghan ...

Tuesday, December 20, 2005
Goldman Sachs declares World Heritage sites “off limits”
Following in the footsteps of Shell International and the International Council on Mining & Metals (an industry association of the largest mining ...

Friday, December 9, 2005
Town of Bamberg Spared Construction Project Potentially Harmful to World Heritage Values
Ongoing efforts by the Office of the Mayor of Bamberg (Germany) to preserve the Town of Bamberg, inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1993 ...

Friday, December 9, 2005
Cultural and Ecotourism Developments in Central Asia
Within the framework for the project on the Development for Cultural and Ecotourism in the Mountainous Regions of Central and South Asia, there is ...

Wednesday, December 7, 2005
Fourth Expert Working Group on the preservation of the Bamiyan World Heritage site
Bamiyan remains one of the most important examples of Gandharan art in the world, despite the Taleban’s destruction of its two monumental Buddhas in ...

Friday, December 2, 2005
[in French only] Sauver les derniers rhinocéros blancs du Nord du Parc national de la Garamba (RDC)
[in French only] Le Centre du Patrimoine mondial de l’UNESCO, l’Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature, l’Union mondiale pour la nature, ...

Monday, November 28, 2005
UNESCO World Heritage Desk Diary 2006
The perfect planner for all those with a passion for World Heritage! The UNESCO World Heritage Desk Diary 2006 features a helpful week-at-a-glance ...

Friday, November 18, 2005
World Heritage Alliance launched
United Nations Foundation and Expedia announced the launch of the World Heritage Alliance, an innovative joint initiative to promote sustainable ...

Tuesday, October 25, 2005
Second training workshop for Jet tours guides held at UNESCO HQ
After a successful first workshop held on 29 September, the second of a series of training workshops for Jet tours guides is to be held at UNESCO ...

Monday, October 17, 2005
Monuments and Sites in their Setting: Conserving Cultural Heritage in Changing Townscapes and Landscapes
The 15th ICOMOS General Assembly and the International Scientific Symposium with the theme Monuments and Sites in their Setting: Conserving Cultural ...

Tuesday, October 11, 2005
Final Result of the election to the World Heritage Committee
The 15th session of the General Assembly of States Parties to the World Heritage Convention elected Kenya and Peru to the World Heritage Committee at ...

Tuesday, October 11, 2005
Results of the election to the World Heritage Committee
The 15th session of the General Assembly of States Parties to the World Heritage Convention elected Cuba to the World Heritage Committee at the 2nd ...

Monday, October 10, 2005
Election to the World Heritage Committee
The 15th session of the General Assembly of States Parties to the World Heritage Convention elected Mauritius to the World Heritage Committee ...

Monday, October 10, 2005
[in French only] 15e Assemblée générale des Etats parties à la Convention de 1972 sur la protection du patrimoine mondial, culturel et naturel
[in French only] UNESCO Flash Info : A l’heure où la protection du patrimoine mondial occupe une place sans cesse croissante dans les préoccupations ...

Monday, October 10, 2005
Results of the election to the World Heritage Committee
States Parties elected at the 1st Open Ballot: Canada Israel Korea, Republic of Madagascar Morocco Spain Tunisia United States of ...

Saturday, October 8, 2005
15th session of the General Assembly of States Parties to the World Heritage Convention
The 15th General Assembly of States Parties to the World Heritage Convention will be held in Room IV on 10-11 October. During the meeting, the General ...

Thursday, September 29, 2005
Final Decisions of the 29th Session of the World Heritage Committee now available
The Decisions adopted at the 29th session of the World Heritage Committee, held in Durban, South Africa from 10 to 17 July 2005, are now available ...

Friday, September 23, 2005
Nova Scotia Provincial Government buys 17 waterfront properties in the Town of Lunenburg, Canada
In mid-August 2005 the Government of the Province of Nova Scotia, Canada, finalized the purchase of seventeen properties, including 22 buildings and ...

Friday, September 16, 2005
China's Pingyao forms yoke of friendship with Provins of France
Pingyao city of north China's Shanxi Province signed an accord of friendship ties with Provins of France, as part of the on-going concluding ceremony ...

Monday, September 12, 2005
Biodiversity-Related Conventions Speak on Millennium Development Goals
BiodiversityLife Insurance for our Changing WorldThis week, in New York, leaders of the world will review progress made towards achieving the ...

Wednesday, September 7, 2005
Hurricane Katrina Causes Damage to Everglades National Park
Everglades National Park in Florida, USA, has almost entirely reopened to the public following damage from Hurricane Katrina, which passed directly ...

Monday, September 5, 2005
Melina Mercouri Prize for the Safeguarding and Management of Cultural Landscapes goes to the Iranian village of Maymand
The historical village of Maymand in southern Iran will be awarded the Melina Mercouri International Prize for the Safeguarding and Management of ...

Friday, July 15, 2005
Mostar, Macao and Biblical vestiges in Israel are among the 17 cultural sites inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List
Durban (South Africa) – The World Heritage Committee, chaired by Themba Wakashe, South Africa’s Deputy Director-General for Heritage and ...

Thursday, July 14, 2005
Norwegian Fjords and Japan’s Shiretoko peninsula are among the seven natural sites added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List
Durban (South Africa), The World Heritage Committee chaired by Themba Wakashe, South Africa’s Deputy Director-General for Heritage and National ...

Wednesday, July 13, 2005
Three sites withdrawn from UNESCO’s List of World Heritage in Danger
Improvements in the preservation of three threatened World Heritage sites have led to their withdrawal from the List of World Heritage in Danger. The ...

Thursday, June 30, 2005
New Sites to be Inscribed on UNESCO World Heritage List
Forty-two new sites will be proposed for inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage List during the 29th session of the World Heritage Committee ...

Tuesday, June 21, 2005
New findings from Peking Man site
The results of the latest geological and geophysical surveys conducted at the site of the Peking Man in Zhoukoudian (China) will be presented at the ...

Tuesday, June 14, 2005
Colleagues Honoured for 25 and 30 years at UNESCO
Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura awarded diplomas and medals to colleagues who had completed 25 and 30 years of service to UNESCO at a June 14 ...

Monday, May 30, 2005
Opening of UNESCO Intl. Symposium on “Conserving Cultural and Biological Diversity”
The Symposium, an activity of the World EXPO 2005 in Aïchi, Japan has opened today at the United Nations University, Tokyo, and will continue until 2 ...

Monday, May 9, 2005
World Heritage and contemporary architecture: Towards new conservation standards
Growing understanding that the outstanding universal value of urban heritage goes well beyond the value of the individual buildings it contains, has ...

Monday, April 25, 2005
Durmitor World Heritage site is no longer threatened
The government of Montenegro, Serbia and Montenegro, has cancelled a project to build a dam that would flood part of the Tara River Canyon in the ...

Monday, April 25, 2005
Major archaeological discoveries in Aksum
Major archaeological vestiges have been discovered at the World Heritage site of Aksum (Ethiopia) by the experts UNESCO sent to Aksum (Ethiopia) to ...

Wednesday, April 20, 2005
Aksum obelisk arrives in Ethiopia
The first of three parts of the Aksum obelisk arrived in Ethiopia by airplane on April 19. The two other pieces of the obelisk, which has been in Rome ...

Friday, April 15, 2005
Space branch of Chinese Science Academy joins UNESCO’s World Heritage Preservation
China has signed an agreement to join UNESCO in the Open Initiative on the Use of Space Technology in Support of the World Heritage Convention. The ...

Thursday, April 7, 2005
World Heritage Cities in Mauritania celebrated at UNESCO April 11 to 14
The President of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, Maaouya Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya, the Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura and the World ...

Wednesday, April 6, 2005
Space technology to protect mountain gorillas
Accurate and detailed maps of inaccessible zones in Central Africa that will allow authorities to monitor the habitat of the region's threatened ...

Monday, April 4, 2005
Paper Series N°12 "The State of World Heritage in the Asia-Pacific Region (2003)"
The State of World Heritage in the Asia-Pacific Region (2003) is now available as publication number 12 in the World Heritage Paper Series. This ...

Monday, April 4, 2005
Trinidad and Tobago ratifies the World Heritage Convention
On 16 February 2005, the Government of Trinidad and Tobago officially deposited with the Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, its instrument ...

Thursday, March 17, 2005
Aksum obelisk returns to Ethiopia: UNESCO to handle its reintegration into the World Heritage site
At the request of the Ethiopian and Italian governments, UNESCO will send an evaluation team to Aksum, in northern Ethiopia, to prepare the return of ...

Wednesday, March 2, 2005
Sierra Leone ratifies the World Heritage Convention
On 7 January 2005, the Government of Sierra Leone officially deposited with the Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, its instrument of ...

Tuesday, March 1, 2005
Agreement between UNESCO and NASA will strenghten conservation of World Heritage
Koïchiro Matsuura, Director-General of UNESCO, and Frederick D. Gregory, Deputy Administrator of the United States National Aeronautics and Space ...

Friday, February 18, 2005
UNESCO Director-General attends World Heritage inscription ceremony in Saint Lucia
The Director-General, Mr Koïchiro Matsuura, paid his first official visit to St Lucia from 13 to 15 February 2005. It was the first official visit of ...

Monday, February 7, 2005
WHC participates in the UN World Conference on Disaster Reduction
The World Heritage Centre participated in the United Nations World Conference on Disaster Reduction, held in Kobe, Japan, from the 18th to the 22nd of ...

Wednesday, February 2, 2005
Operational Guidelines for the implementation of the World Heritage Convention
The World Heritage Centre is pleased to inform you that the Revised Operational Guidelines for the implementation of the World Heritage Convention are ...

Tuesday, February 1, 2005
The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia sentences a former Yugoslav General, among other things, for the destruction of and damage to the World Heritage site of the Old Town of Dubrovnik
On 31 January 2005, the Trial Chamber of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia sentenced retired General Pavle Strugar of the ...

Tuesday, February 1, 2005
Agreement between Lithuania and the Russian Federation keeps Curonian Spit off List of World Heritage in Danger
The Curonian Spit, an elongated sand-dune peninsula straddling the border of Lithuania and the Russian Federation, will not be inscribed on UNESCO’s ...

Wednesday, January 26, 2005
First meeting of experts on the cultural heritage of the Old City of Jerusalem
UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura today opened the first meeting of a Committee of Experts on the Cultural Heritage of the Old City of ...

Sunday, January 23, 2005
The decisions taken by the World Heritage Committee during its 7th Extraordinary Session can now be consulted online
The decisions taken by the World Heritage Committee during its 7th Extraordinary Session, held in Paris from 6 to 11 December 2004, can now be ...

Tuesday, January 11, 2005
Further information about damage to two World Heritage sites in Indonesia
The conservation community mourns the loss of several staff members of the Gunung Leuser National Park, one of the three national parks within the ...

Wednesday, January 5, 2005
World Heritage sites in regions hit by the recent earthquake and tsunami
The Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, has offered UNESCO’s support to the countries devastated by the earthquake off the ...

Tuesday, January 4, 2005
Countess Setsuko Klossowska de Rola named UNESCO Artist for Peace
The Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, will name the internationally renowned painter, Countess Setsuko Klossowska de Rola, UNESCO Artist ...

Thursday, December 30, 2004
UNESCO offers tsunami assistance to countries in South Asia
The Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, has offered UNESCO’s support to the countries devastated by the earthquake off the coast of Sumatra ...

Thursday, December 23, 2004
Protected Areas and World Heritage
Six case studies, looking at manager experience of how World Heritage may help to build support for protected areas are now available ...

Thursday, December 23, 2004
First anniversary of the earthquake at World Heritage city of Bam (Iran)
The inscription of Bam and its Cultural Landscape, the ancient Silk Road landmark, on UNESCO’s World Heritage List and on the World Heritage List in ...

Tuesday, December 14, 2004
UNESCO World Heritage Desk Diary 2005
The 2005 UNESCO World Heritage Desk Diary is now available. Discover 54 natural and cultural sites with beautiful colour photographs and informative ...

Monday, December 13, 2004
UNESCO and Japanese Broadcasting Corporation NHK Launch Partnership for heritage images archives initiative
On Friday, 27 August 2004, UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura and Nippon Hoso Kyokai (NHK) President Katsuji Ebisawa held a public signing ...

Tuesday, December 7, 2004
International Donors’ Conference in support of the World Heritage in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), UNESCO, Paris, 13 - 17 September 2004
The opening and closure speeches as well as the PowerPoint presentations are now available on: http://whc.unesco.org/en/events/95 ...

Monday, December 6, 2004
Opening of the 7th Extraordinary Session of the World Heritage Committee
The 7th Extraordinary Session of the World Heritage Committee opened on 6 December 2004 at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, under the chairmanship of Mr ...

Thursday, November 18, 2004
Professor Chamaeleo, Ambassador at Large for Diversity
You can now access a film featuring Professor Chamaeleo, Ambassador at Large for Diversity, in which he urges everyone to unite and act for the ...

Friday, October 22, 2004
Workshop Discusses World Heritage Nomination of Central Pacific Islands And Atolls from Kiribati
Within the framework of the World Heritage Central Pacific Project, a workshop was held over the previous seven days on Kiritimati (Christmas) Island, ...

Friday, October 22, 2004
Three new publications in the World Heritage Papers Series
There are three new publications in the World Heritage Papers Series: No.9: Partnerships for World Heritage Cities - Culture as a Vector for ...

Wednesday, October 20, 2004
Safeguarding of Tangible and Intangible Cultural Heritage: Toward an Integrated Approach
The Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, participated today in Nara (Japan) at the opening ceremony of the international symposium “ ...

Friday, October 15, 2004
NHK - World Heritage on the screen
A new partnership between UNESCO and the Japanese Television channel NHK will see the co-production and broadcast of some 200 short television ...

Thursday, October 14, 2004
Michel Batisse (1923-2004)
The World Heritage Centre deeply regrets to announce the passing away, in Paris on Monday 27 September, of Michel Batisse (1923-2004), UNESCO ...

Thursday, October 14, 2004
Launch of the book Les 200 plus beaux sites du monde
A new book Les 200 plus beaux sites du monde (The 200 most beautiful sites in the World), published by Hachette-Tourism to commemorate 10 years of ...

Monday, October 11, 2004
New weekly radio chronicle on World Heritage sites
Every Sunday, listeners of the French radio station France Info can learn more about UNESCO's World Heritage sites, by listening to a new chronicle ...

Thursday, October 7, 2004
A 7000 Euro Grant For The Realization Of A Cultural Project Concerning The Mediterranean World
B orn after 31 December 1975 you will be under 30 years of age in 2005. You are a native of a Mediterranean country. You wish to develop a ...

Thursday, October 7, 2004
The Director-General opens exhibition on "World Heritage Sites in Croatia" and appoints Mr Relja Bašić as UNESCO Artist for Peace
On 6 October, the Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, opened an exhibition on "World Heritage Sites in Croatia" in the presence of Mr ...

Friday, September 10, 2004
"Congo - Nature and Culture in the Democratic Republic of Congo"
On Thursday 9 September, the Director-General of UNESCO together with H.R.H. Prince Philippe of Belgium, Mr Z’Ahidi Ngoma, Vice-President of the ...

Wednesday, September 8, 2004
Congo - Heritage in Danger
UNESCO is organizing, with the United Nations Foundation (UNF) the government of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and several conservation ...

Friday, August 27, 2004
UNESCO and Japanese Broadcasting Corporation NHK Launch Partnership for heritage images archives initiative
On Friday, 27 August 2004, UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura and Nippon Hoso Kyokai (NHK) President Katsuji Ebisawa held a public signing ...

Wednesday, July 28, 2004
The 28th Session of the Committee
The 28th session of the World Heritage Committee was held in Sushou, China, under the chairmanship of Zhang Xinsheng, Vice Minister of Education of ...

Monday, July 26, 2004
Periodic Report and Regional Programme: Arab States 2000-2003
This document was prepared by the Arab States Unit of the World Heritage Centre, following the request of the World Heritage Committee that an ...

Friday, July 16, 2004
New Chinese edition of UNESCO World Heritage Review
A new Chinese edition of UNESCO’s World Heritage Review is being launched by the publishing house World Affairs Press of the People’s Republic of ...

Wednesday, July 7, 2004
Ruins of Kilwa Kisiwani and Ruins of Songo Mnara in Tanzania inscribed on World Heritage in Danger List
The ruins of the great sea-ports of Kilwa Kisiwani and of Songo Mnara situated off the coast of the United Republic of Tanzania were inscribed ...

Tuesday, July 6, 2004
World Heritage Committee sounds the alarm for Cologne Cathedral
One of Europe’s masterpieces of Gothic architecture, was inscribed today on the List of World Heritage in Danger by the 21-member World Heritage ...

Sunday, July 4, 2004
Angkor Among the three Properties Removed from Unesco’s List of World Heritage in Danger
Cambodia’s celebrated temples and palaces at Angkor were removed from UNESCO's List of World Heritage in Danger today, as were the Bahla Fort ...

Saturday, July 3, 2004
Iran's Ancient City of Bam among the 34 new sites inscribed on World Heritage List
The rich archaeological remains of the Iranian city of Bam, where 26,000 lost their lives in the earthquake of December 26, 2003, was inscribed on ...

Friday, July 2, 2004
13 more properties added to World Heritage List at 2004 Committee session
The Democratic People's Republic of Korea had its first site inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List today with the addition of a complex of ...

Thursday, July 1, 2004
First wave of new properties added to World Heritage List for 2004
A glacier-fjord in Greenland, the Ilulissat Icefjord, is among the five new natural sites inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List, while the ...

Tuesday, June 22, 2004
New properties to be added to World Heritage List
Forty-eight sites will be considered for inscription on UNESCO’s World Heritage List of outstanding cultural and natural sites during the 28th session ...

Friday, June 11, 2004
World heritage to the fore in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe
The Fifth International Volunteer Khami Restoration Camp (3-26 June) near Bulawayo is now in progress, to be followed by a “1972 World Heritage ...

Friday, June 11, 2004
IUCN News
The web site for one of the World Heritage Advisory Bodies, the World Conservation Union (IUCN), regularly updates news on IUCN's work on protected ...

Friday, June 4, 2004
Jebel Ouenat Technical Report
Tripoli-Kufra-Jebel Ouenat, 27 March - 5 April 2004Jebel Ouenat (in Arabic "Mountain of the springs") is a natural and cultural heritage site located ...

Sunday, May 30, 2004
Preparations for 28th Session of World Heritage Committee going smoothly

Wednesday, May 26, 2004
Workshop on Conservation of the Kathmandu Valley (3-7 May 2004, Kathmandu, Nepal)
The workshop focused on the redefinition of the boundaries, the preparation of an Action Plan addressing conservation challenges and the discussion of ...

Wednesday, May 19, 2004
Promoting and Preserving Congolese Heritage
UNESCO Conference 16-17 September at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris to evaluate the current status and future needs of the World Heritage Centre / UNF ...

Tuesday, May 18, 2004
Second workshop on the use of Information Technology for World Heritage Sites in the Arab Region
The 2nd workshop obtained excellent feedback from the fifteen Arab trainees nominated by their governments. Experts were again brought in from leading ...

Monday, May 3, 2004
ITB Features First Ever Unesco World Heritage Stand
Presentations will be made everyday at 10am, 1pm and 3pm on issues such as World Heritage destinations, sustainable tourism at World Heritage sites, ...

Monday, May 3, 2004
Training Workshop: Information Technology for Natural Heritage Sites in the Arab Region, Tunis 2004
2nd training workshop to be organized in the Arab region for the application of Information Management for World Heritage Sites, fucusing on ...

Wednesday, April 28, 2004
Announcing the 28th Session of the World Heritage Committee
The World Heritage Committee consists of representatives from 21 of the States Parties to the Convention for the Protection of the World Cultural and ...

Wednesday, March 31, 2004
Deadline for submissions of entries for UNESCO Heritage Awards
The United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) is still accepting entries for the 2004 UNESCO Asia-Pacific Heritage ...

Tuesday, November 11, 2003
UNESCO signs agreement with NHK Television to digitalise cultural heritage for future generations
The Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Atsunori Kawarmura, Executive Producer of ...

Monday, June 16, 2003
Letter from the Chairperson of the World Heritage Committee concerning Yellowstone
The letter follows the receipt of numerous individual letters and e-mails sent to the UNESCO World Heritage Centre. ...

Wednesday, March 26, 2003
Web Site of the 27th Session of the World Heritage Committee
Paris - The Web site of the 27th session of the World Heritage Committee, which will take place in Suzhou (China), from the 29th of June to the 5th of ...

Monday, February 17, 2003
Hatra
A large fortified city under the influence of the Parthian Empire and capital of the first Arab Kingdom, Hatra withstood invasions by the Romans in ...

Wednesday, February 5, 2003
Fire Destroys Yuzhengong Palace in Hubei Province of China
On 20 January 2003, a fire broke out in the Ancient Building Complex in the Wudang Mountains in Hubei Province, China.Two-and-a-half hours later, the ...

Wednesday, February 5, 2003
Letter From the Chairperson Concerning the "Historic Centre of Sighisoara" (Romania)
Following decision from the President of Romania to halt the proposed development of the themepark "Draculaland" at the World Heritage site ...

Tuesday, November 26, 2002
Belgium Signs Joint Cooperation Agreement with UNESCO for World Heritage Conservation
Brussels - The Belgian Government and UNESCO signed an Agreement of Cooperation today, wishing to enhance their cooperation, especially between the ...

Saturday, November 16, 2002
30th Anniversary of the World Heritage Convention
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Thursday, September 12, 2002
1972-2002: 30th Anniversary of the World Heritage Convention
Special events and activitiesRecord of Decisions of the 26th session of the World Heritage Committee Budapest, Hungary, 24-29 June 2002 Budapest ...

Tuesday, August 20, 2002
Message on the Occasion of the Floods Affecting a Number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites
From Mr Francesco Bandarin, Director of the World Heritage Centre We have noted with great concern, the news of massive floods sweeping across Europe ...

Monday, July 15, 2002
World Heritage Committee Concludes 26th Session in Budapest, Hungary
The World Heritage Committee concluded its 26th session (24 to 29 June 2002) by adopting the Budapest Declaration on World Heritage, marking the 30th ...

Monday, July 15, 2002
Tipasa (Algeria) Added to List of World Heritage in Danger
Inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1982, Tipasa on the shores of the Mediterranean, comprises Phoenician, Roman, palaeochristian and Byzantine ...

Monday, July 1, 2002
World Heritage Sites, June 2002 inscriptions
This map was produced by the Cartographic Section of the World Heritage Centre. The boundaries, colors, denominations and any other information shown ...

Wednesday, June 26, 2002
World Heritage Committee Inscribes 9 New Sites on the World Heritage List
Budapest, Hungary. The World Heritage Committee, meeting in Budapest since June 24, has inscribed today 9 new sites on the World Heritage List. The ...

Monday, June 24, 2002
26th Session of the World Heritage Committee opens in Budapest, Hungary; Elects New Bureau
Budapest, Hungary - 24 June 2002. The World Heritage Committee opened its 26th annual session in Budapest, Hungary, on Monday, 24 June. The opening ...

Wednesday, June 5, 2002
Three States Join the World Heritage Convention
Three States have recently signed the World Heritage Convention. This will bring the total of States Parties to the Convention to 170. The three ...

Tuesday, April 9, 2002
New World Heritage Web Address
Important announcement for the visitors of the World Heritage Centre portal The UNESCO World Heritage Centre has established a new simpler web ...

Wednesday, January 9, 2002
Report of the 25th Session of the World Heritage Committee
The annual report of the du World Heritage Committee (Helsinki, Finland, 11 - 16 décember 2001) has been ...

Thursday, December 13, 2001
World Heritage Committee Inscribes 31 New Sites on the World Heritage List
Helsinki, Finland - 14 December 2001. The World Heritage Committee, meeting in Helsinki since December 11, has inscribed 31 new sites on the World ...