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Thursday, 2 June 2016
UNESCO Director-General opened the Expert meeting on the safeguarding of syria's heritage, with Maria Böhmer, Minister of State to the Foreign Minister of the Federal Republic of Germany. "Berlin embodies the power of culture to bring people together”, said Irina Bokova. More than 230 Syrian and international experts from all sides are joining forces to develop a common damage assessment ...
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Tuesday, 31 May 2016
From 25 to 27 May, an international conference entitled “Cultural Heritage and Development Initiatives: a Challenge or a Contribution to Sustainability?” was held at the Palazzo Barnerini in Rome.  Organized by the UNESCO Office in Kabul together with the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and the World Bank, in cooperation with the Government of Italy, it focused on the relationship between ...
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Friday, 27 May 2016
“Keeping History Alive” a UNESCO publication on safeguarding cultural heritage in post-conflict Afghanistan was launched in Kabul’s Babur Garden H.E. Chief Executive of Afghanistan Dr. Abdullah Abdullah, and UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova. “Safeguarding heritage and diversity is more than a cultural issue. It is an issue of citizenship, bringing people together around shared values. To ...
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Thursday, 26 May 2016
Climate change is fast becoming one of the most significant risks for World Heritage sites, according to the report “World Heritage and Tourism in a Changing Climate” released today by UNESCO, the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), and the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS). “Globally, we need to better understand, monitor and address climate change threats to World Heritage sites,” ...
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Friday, 20 May 2016
"The 2016 International Day for Biological Diversity is dedicated to the theme of ‘Mainstreaming Biodiversity, Sustaining People and their Livelihoods.’ This echoes powerfully the vision set forth in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Climate Change Agreement. I see this as a single agenda to chart a new course for people, peace and the planet for the next 15 years. ...
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Tuesday, 17 May 2016
Over the last several months, the World Heritage Centre has received numerous messages, through the NGO Platform Save the Tua, from individuals expressing their concern regarding the Foz Tua dam project, located inside the buffer zone, but outside the World Heritage property “Alto Douro Wine Region” limit. Those messages drew attention to the adverse impact it may have on the landscape, ...
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Tuesday, 17 May 2016
The Director-General of UNESCO strongly condemned the severe damage caused by an air-strike to the Church of Saint Simeon, part of the UNESCO World Heritage property of the Ancient Villages of Northern Syria. The byzantine Church was built in the year 490 AD on Mount Simeon and used to be a popular destination for worshippers and tourists alike. The Director-General of UNESCO, Ms Irina ...
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Friday, 13 May 2016
Key UNESCO partners joined with the Organization to approve a new action plan to address emergency and short term interventions for the safeguarding of Libya’s cultural heritage following a three-day international expert meeting in the Tunisian capital this week. Organized with the support of the U.S. Embassy in Libya and in close cooperation with the Department of Antiquities of Libya and ...
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Thursday, 12 May 2016
In preparation for the UNESCO experts’ meeting in Berlin (2-4 June 2016) on the safeguarding of cultural heritage in Syria, UNESCO Director General Irina Bokova and UNESCO teams are pursuing consultations with representatives from Member States and experts across the board to assess the situation and the way forward. These actions are in line with the unanimous decision of the 199th session ...
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Tuesday, 10 May 2016
With the slogan “ … and when the skies fall silent?",  the World Migratory Bird Day 2016  on 10 May aims to highlight the incredible numbers of migratory birds being threatened and lost each year . This is often linked to illicit activities are various and the toll that they are taking is disastrous – millions of birds are being killed each year.  Such numbers are totally unsustainable and ...
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Monday, 9 May 2016
[in French only] Une quarantaine de personnes s'est réunie le 3 mai dernier à Niamey pour le lancement du projet de « Gestion communautaire de la conservation des aires protégées » (COMPACT en anglais) au Parc du W au Niger, bien inscrit sur la Liste du patrimoine mondial depuis 20 ans. Ce projet, qui bénéficie d’un financement du gouvernement espagnol et du Programme de micro financement du ...
Thursday, 5 May 2016
This first African World Heritage Day is very special. This is an opportunity to celebrate the wealth of Africa’s cultural and natural heritage, embodying outstanding universal values. This is a moment for the world to stand with Governments, local communities and societies to support one of the continent’s most precious resources. Africa’s cultural and natural heritage is a force for peace ...
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Friday, 29 April 2016
The first Anglophone African Heritage Regional Youth Forum opened today on Robben Island World Heritage site in South Africa. The forum will take place from 29 April until 4 May. This first-of-its-kind forum is co-organized by the African World Heritage Fund (AWHF), the Robben Island Museum (RIM) and the UNESCO World Heritage Centre with support from the Government of South Africa and the ...
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Friday, 29 April 2016
Building materials company CEMEX has committed to staying out of World Heritage sites and to building awareness of the need to protect them, following a collaboration with UNESCO’s World Heritage Centre and IUCN, International Union for Conservation of Nature. The commitment, confirmed in the firm’s 2015 Sustainable Development Report issued this week, is in line with the globally accepted ...
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Friday, 29 April 2016
The Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, expressed sadness and anger after the latest violent attack of 23rd April at Garamba National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage site. The attack left three dead and two wounded among the guards of the Park. "I condemn this attack and killing of the guards at Garamba National Park. Once again I commend the courage of the guards who risk their lives to ...
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Friday, 29 April 2016
Thanks to a contribution of 4,992 USD from the International Assistance World Heritage Fund, the State Party of Albania organized a training workshop for the development of monitoring indicators for the World Heritage property "Historic Centres of Berat and Gjirokastra”. The workshop took place in Berat, Gjirokastra and Tirana between 27 and 29 April 2016. In 2009, the World Heritage ...
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Wednesday, 27 April 2016
On their return from a technical rapid assessment mission to the Palmyra yesterday, UNESCO’s experts presented their preliminary findings regarding damages to the Syrian Arab Republic World Heritage site. Headed by the Director of UNESCO’s World Heritage Centre, the mission, from 24 to 26 April inspected both Palmyra’s museum and archaeological site. The mission was escorted by United ...
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Tuesday, 26 April 2016
Following years of preparation, the Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park received an “in principle” approval as a Particularly Sensitive Sea Area (PSSA) from the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) last week. The endorsement is a major breakthrough in securing protection from the impacts of international shipping for the World Heritage site and a ...
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Monday, 25 April 2016
UNESCO has sent a Rapid Assessment Mission to the world Heritage site of Palmyra (Arab Syrian Republic), led by the Director of the World Heritage Centre, from 24 to 26 April 2016. The objective of the mission is to assess the overall state of conservation of Palmyra and identify the emergency safeguarding measures, including drafting a damage assessment of the site and the museum. The ...
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Wednesday, 20 April 2016
From Lumbini, the birthplace of Lord Buddha, UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova commended international efforts to combine safeguarding with the balanced development of a spiritual site that represents a universal message of peace, on 19 April 2016. Preceded by Buddhist chanting, Ms Bokova welcomed members of the International Scientific Committee for the Conservation and Management of ...
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