World Heritage Marine Programme

Toward a balanced, credible and representative
World Heritage List

In 1994, the World Heritage Committee launched a Global Strategy for a representative, balanced and credible World Heritage List. Successful global representation of exceptional marine features on the World Heritage List requires a thorough understanding of what is covered already and where are other areas of Outstanding Universal Value that should be added. Essential questions include "do we have the most outstanding marine areas?", "do we have a representative coverage of marine phenomena?", "where are the major gaps?" . At the heart of these questions lies a fourth: "How can we build a more systematic approach to answering these questions?" In response to the 2011 Global Strategy Audit Recommendations and in consultation with IUCN, new guidance is being developed that will provide a more systematic, science-based approach to identifying gaps on the World Heritage List. 

Major activities include:

• 2013 - IUCN Thematic Study Marine (forthcoming, July 2013)
• 2012 - Marine World Heritage: Toward a more systematic approach for identifying gaps? (PDF File)
• 2012 - Assessing Marine World Heritage from an Ecosystem Perspective: The Western Indian Ocean - Publication (PDF File)
• 2011 - Publication of the World Heritage Paper Series 28: "Navigating the future of Marine World Heritage"
• 2010 - Expert Workshop to scale-up marine World Heritage
• 2009 - Bahrain Action Plan for Marine World Heritage
• 2002 - World Heritage Marine Biodiversity Workshop 

A new initiative is also in preparation that aims at applying the concepts of Outstanding Universal Value. The work is in response to the 2011 Global Strategy Audit Recommendation and will be undertaken in cooperation with IUCN Global Ocean Biodiversity Initiative .

Capacity building and conservation of Marine World Heritage sites

Inscription on the World Heritage List is only one step toward safeguarding these ocean treasures for future generations. Multiple stressors are threatening their conservation. The overall aim is to ensure all marine sites have an effective management system in place that protects the Outstanding Universal Value adequately and uses contemporary management approaches.

Our global priorities

• World Heritage site managers community: The first site managers conference, held in Hawaii, 1-3 December 2010, gave birth to the  marine World Heritage site managers community. It was a first step toward a stronger and well informed marine World Heritage site managers community. Mid June 2012, a new web-based forum is launched that pools together the wealth of expertise available in the network and allows site managers to access management plan of their peers or communicate via a blog. Preparations are underway for the second global site managers conference that is planned for Marseille/Scandola reserve in October 2013 (download the agenda). The mid long-term goal of the site managers network is to serve as drivers for change in ocean conservation globally;
• Guide for ecosystem-based management in marine World Heritage sites: Management of marine World Heritage sites is increasing challenging. Climate change, marine pollution, habitat destruction, overfishing, invasive species all impact effective conservation. Many of these impacts come from outside the World Heritage area. The new guidance aims to facilitate access to contemporary planning and management tools. It will provide a step-by-step approach on how to ensure existing management approaches adequately protect the Outstanding Universal Value for which the site is inscribed on the World Heritage List. While targetted to marine World Heritage site managers, it will relevant to other MPAs. The guide is prepared in close cooperation with site managers and will be available both in an innovative web-based format and print publication. Publication is foreseen for June 2013.

Our regional priorities

• 2012 / 2014 - Pacific region:  Our aim is to scale up marine World Heritage activities in the Pacific region. The work will be co-led with the French MPA Agency. A Memorandum of Understanding is currently being signed with the Agency and will provide a framework for cooperation in the region. A first meeting with regional stakeholders and existing and potential marine World Heritage site managers will be held in New Caledonia in early 2013.

Our local priorities

• Dec 2012 / Feb 2013 - Banc d'Arguin, Mauritania: Preparations are underway to facilitate a stronger cooperation with Wadden Sea for conservation of the fly way migratory birds and study of the possible advantages of a Particularly Sensitive Sea Areas (PSSA) status for the property under International Maritime Organization (IMO) regulation;
• Nov 2012 -Tubbataha, Philippines: Preparations are made to improve capacity building for management of the site, with specific focus on sustainable financing for the site and the establishment of a PSSA for the property under IMO regulation;
• March 2012 - Great Barrier Reef, Australia: Reactive monitoring mission to the property to assess the State of Conservation and assist with the development of a long-term plan for sustainable development of the reef;
• October 2011- El Vizcaino and Gulf of California: Marine spatial planning training session  and preparatory discussion in support of improvement of the management plans for both properties