Friday, December 6, 2013
Nelson Mandela “a giant among men” says Director-General
UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova today paid tribute to former South African President Nelson Mandela, who died on Thursday night, 5 ...

Thursday, December 5, 2013
Download the new World Heritage magazine app – free for a limited time!
Available for iPad, Android and Kindle Fire tablets, this new app allows you to download World Heritage magazine. Lavishly illustrated, and published ...

Monday, December 2, 2013
Mobilizing living heritage for sustainable development
The 24 members of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage will meet in Baku (Azerbaijan) from 2 ...

Monday, December 2, 2013
World Heritage Volunteers 2014 - Action for Sustainability
Are you a youth organization and want to sensitize young people about the value of World Heritage sites?  Or are you an NGO and wish to organize ...

Monday, December 2, 2013
Heritage protection efforts underway after natural disasters in Philippines
A massive earthquake and powerful typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda) successively struck central Philippines in October and early November 2013, causing ...

Friday, November 29, 2013
Cocos Island National Park receives exceptional donation from Jaeger-LeCoultre
On 27 November, Swiss watch manufacturer Jaeger-LeCoultre, a partner of the World Heritage Centre, donated 30,000 Euros for the preservation of Cocos ...

Wednesday, November 20, 2013
Twelve new members elected to World Heritage Committee
On 19 November, representatives of the 190 States Parties to the 1972 World Heritage Convention elected 12 new members to the 21-member ...

Monday, November 18, 2013
40th anniversary: Proceedings of the Closing Event published
Celebrating 40 years of the World Heritage Convention, the proceedings of Closing Event of the Celebration of the 40th Anniversary of the World ...

Saturday, November 16, 2013
'Managing Cultural World Heritage' reference manual published
This manual provides guidance for States Parties and all those involved in the care of World Heritage cultural properties on how to comply with the ...

Saturday, November 16, 2013
New database : State of Conservation of World Heritage properties
The significant number of reports prepared by UNESCO and the Advisory Bodies to the World Heritage Committee represents an exceptional documentation ...

Monday, October 28, 2013
Free app download for one day only: Atlas by Collins, including all World Heritage sites
The Atlas by Collins app can be downloaded for free on Tuesday, October 29th. The app comes with one globe pre-installed and includes 10 other globes ...

Monday, October 21, 2013
UNESCO provides cultural heritage training to UN personnel in Mali
UNESCO on 14 October delivered a first training course in cultural heritage protection to military, police and civilian staff from Benin, Côte ...

Thursday, October 17, 2013
Managing Marine World Heritage: Our Crown Jewels of the Ocean
Managers from 46 marine World Heritage sites will meet in Ajaccio, Corsica, from October 18-20, for the second World Heritage Marine Site ...

Monday, September 30, 2013
UNESCO Director-General deplores suicide attack near Djingareyber Mosque in Timbuktu
The Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, deplored the suicide attack that took place on 28 September, near the Djingareyber Mosque in Timbuktu, ...

Monday, September 30, 2013
Emergency Red List of Syrian Antiquities at Risk is launched in New York
On Wednesday, 25 September, UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova joined the President of the International Council of Museums (ICOM), Dr. Hans-Martin ...

Monday, September 23, 2013
Lumbini, Birthplace of Buddha: new book of photographs
A joint publication of UNESCO and the Paris-based NGO Oriental Cultural Heritage Sites Protection Alliance, Lumbini, Birthplace of Buddha is a ...

Tuesday, September 10, 2013
Conclusions of the 3rd and 4th HERITY International Conferences
The results of the 3rd and 4th HERITY Conferences, held in Rome, Italy in December 2010 and 2012, are now available. The conferences and their ...

Friday, August 30, 2013
“Stop the destruction!” urges UNESCO Director-General
The Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, today called on all parties involved in the conflict in Syria to safeguard the country’s cultural ...

Monday, August 19, 2013
In Memoriam: Professor Walter Santagata
The World Heritage Centre has learnt with deep sadness of the recent passing away of Professor Walter Santagata, a long-time collaborator of UNESCO ...

Monday, August 19, 2013
Cahokia Mounds welcomes 10 millionth visitor since it became a World Heritage site
Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site on Tuesday welcomed its 10 millionth visitor since achieving the rare distinction of being designated a World ...

Sunday, August 18, 2013
Report on the Historic Urban Landscape Workshops and Field Activities on the Swahili coast in East Africa 2011-2012
On 10 November 2011 UNESCO’s General Conference adopted the Recommendation on the Historic Urban Landscape, six years after the General Assembly ...

Wednesday, August 7, 2013
Val de Loire World Heritage (France) information and one day workshop on Economy, Heritage and Landscape
The Val de Loire World Heritage cultural landscape (France) is organizing a one-day workshop on Economy, Heritage and Landscape, to be held 12th ...

Tuesday, August 6, 2013
Report published on the initiative "Engaging Local Communities in the Stewardship of World Heritage" (COMPACT)
New report on lessons learned to engage local communities in the Conservation of World Heritage sites launched during the 37th session of the World ...

Tuesday, August 6, 2013
Africa Nature risk preparedness workshop held in South Africa
The Africa Nature risk preparedness workshop took place from the 20th-25th May 2013 at the Golden Gate Highlands National Park. Organized by African ...

Tuesday, July 30, 2013
Wildlife crime is robbing the future of Africa - Jeune Afrique
Given the current rate of poaching, children from West or Central Africa will one day speak of elephants and rhinoceros as we speak of mammoths: as ...

Friday, July 26, 2013
Best practice management at the Lagoons of New Caledonia: Reef Diversity and Associated Ecosystems
For the first time, the Lagoons of New Caledonia: Reef Diversity and Associated Ecosystems brought together all the local communities actively ...

Thursday, July 18, 2013
UNESCO, Turkey and Japan launch project to safeguard the World Heritage site of Cappadocia (Turkey)
H.E. Gürcan Balik, Ambassador and Permanent Delegate of Turkey to UNESCO, and Kishore Rao, Director of UNESCO’s World Heritage Centre, on ...

Tuesday, July 16, 2013
UNESCO Director-General deplores the escalation of violence and the damage to World Heritage in Syria
The Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, has expressed deep shock at news of further destruction to cultural heritage in Syria, and particularly ...

Monday, July 15, 2013
Workshop on management and valorization of paleo-metallurgical sites
The French Grand Sites Network and its International Training and Exchange Centre for Francophone Heritage Sites Managers organized recently an ...

Monday, July 15, 2013
"Rivers and heritage" UNESCO Chair created
On 6th May 2013, the creation of a “Rivers and heritage” UNESCO Chair was approved by UNESCO. This project stems from a partnership ...

Sunday, July 7, 2013
Earliest Buddhist shrines in South Asia discovered in Lumbini, Buddha’s birthplace in Nepal
New excavations within the Maya Devi Temple of Buddha’s birthplace in Lumbini, Nepal, have revealed evidence of a series of shrines extending ...

Friday, June 28, 2013
Closing ceremony of World Heritage Committee brings to life the ancient culture of Angkor
Some 500 of the 1400 participants of the 37th session of the World Heritage Committee made the journey from Phnom Penh to Siam Reap and visited the ...

Sunday, June 23, 2013
Sites in Germany and Italy bring to 19 the number of sites inscribed on the World Heritage List this year
Two new sites and one extension to a Polish site were inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List on Sunday afternoon, bringing to 19 the total ...

Sunday, June 23, 2013
My Son, Viet Nam: Director-General Celebrates Restoration of World Heritage Champa Kingdom Monuments
After 16 years of excavation and restoration work, a group of tower temples and monuments belonging to the My Son Sanctuary, once the religious and ...

Sunday, June 23, 2013
Sites in Ukraine, the Iran and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List
The World Heritage Committee inscribed the following three sites on Sunday morning: Ancient City of Tauric Chersonese and its Chora (Ukraine). The ...

Saturday, June 22, 2013
Honghe Hani Rice Terraces inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage alongside an extension to the uKhahlamba Drakensberg Park
The World Heritage Committee has inscribed a site of rice terraces in Yunnan (China) and an extension to the uKhahlamba Drakensberg Park which is now ...

Saturday, June 22, 2013
Qatar and Fiji get their first World Heritage sites as World Heritage Committee makes six additions to UNESCO List
Qatar and Fiji had their first World Heritage sites inscribed during the afternoon session of the World Heritage Committee on Saturday, as the ...

Friday, June 21, 2013
World Heritage Committee inscribes two new natural sites from China and Namibia on UNESCO World Heritage List
China’s Xinjiang Tianshan and Namib Sand Sea (Namibia) were inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List on Friday. Mount Kenya-Lewa Wildlife ...

Friday, June 21, 2013
Mount Etna and the Mountains of Pamir inscribed on World Heritage List alongside El Pinacate and Gran Desierto de Altar
The World Heritage Committee has inscribed natural sites from Tajikistan, Italy, and Mexico on the World Heritage List. Tajikistan National Park ...

Friday, June 21, 2013
Hill Forts of Rajastan and Wooden Churches of the Carpathian region inscribed on World Heritage List
The World Heritage Committee today inscribed two new cultural World Heritage sites, one in India and the other astride the border of Poland and ...

Thursday, June 20, 2013
Syria’s Six World Heritage sites placed on List of World Heritage in Danger
The World Heritage Committee has decided to place the six World Heritage sites of the Syrian Arab Republic on the List of World Heritage in Danger so ...

Thursday, June 20, 2013
Youths practice hands-on site conservation at 2013 World Heritage Youth Forum at Angkor, Cambodia
The World Heritage Youth Forum, Cambodia 2013 was held at the site of Angkor, Siem Reap and Phnom Penh, Cambodia from 8 to 16 June 2013, in ...

Wednesday, June 19, 2013
New opportunity for training in risk management at World Heritage sites
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre, in partnership with the African World Heritage Fund (AWHF) and in collaboration with the Centre for Heritage ...

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
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
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 ...

Monday, June 3, 2013
Protecting Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park from Shipping Threats
The Tubbataha Reef sprawls across 100,000 hectares and supports over 350 species of coral and almost 500 species of fish.  Earlier ...

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 ...

Friday, March 22, 2013
UNESCO launches project to develop a flood risk mitigation plan for Ayutthaya World Heritage site
UNESCO is launching a project to develop a flood risk mitigation plan for the World Heritage Site of Ayutthaya.  The launch event at UNESCO ...

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 ...