2395 news
Sunday, 9 April 2006
The World Heritage Centre highlights the importance of World Heritage sites for mirgratory birds on the occasion of the first World Migratory Bird Day launched by the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) and other partner organizations. UNESCO has a Memorandum of Understanding with CMS, and the World Heritage Centre is also working with CMS in the framework of the coordination of ...
3 min read
Wednesday, 5 April 2006
Representatives from 15 States Parties of the Caribbean region participated in a regional training workshop on marine World Heritage held in Soufriere, St Lucia, in the vicinity of the Pitons Management Area World Heritage site from 27 February to 3 March. The purpose of the workshop was to raise awareness on nominating marine areas from the Caribbean as World Heritage and to provide the ...
2 min read
Tuesday, 4 April 2006
Following the January 2006 meeting on the Convention on Biological Diversity's (CBD) Programme of Work on Protected Areas (PoWPA), six of the largest nature conservation NGOs and other partners have produced a joint statement charting how they are best positioned to support the implementation of the PoWPA in World Heritage sites. The statement includes a list of indicative activities that ...
2 min read
Friday, 24 March 2006
The College of Architecture and Landscape Architecture (CALA) at University of Minnesota, USA, has established a Center for World Heritage Studies to undertake research and service projects in partnership with UNESCO World Heritage Centre (WHC). The objectives of this partnership are embodied in an agreement (MoU) between CALA and WHC signed on December 6, 2004. The CALA Center for World ...
2 min read
Friday, 24 March 2006
The Chairperson of the World Heritage Committee, Ina Marčiulionytė, has sent a letter to the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, concerning the state of conservation of the World Heritage site of Lake Baikal.The World Heritage Committee, the intergovernmental body established by the World Heritage Convention, regularly examines the state of conservation of properties ...
2 min read
Tuesday, 21 March 2006
A two-day expert meeting on World Heritage and Climate Change successfully concluded at UNESCO Headquarters on Friday, bringing together over 50 representatives from the States Parties to the World Heritage Convention, various international organizations, non-governmental organizations, the advisory bodies to the World Heritage Committee, and academic and scientific experts to discuss current ...
1 min read
Monday, 20 March 2006
As part of its commitment to World Heritage in Portuguese-speaking countries, the Portuguese National Commission for UNESCO has generously supported the translation of the Basic Texts. These texts are made available on the UNESCO World Heritage Centre's web-page so that the broad community of lusophone countries can access and draw on this information for heritage safeguarding efforts in ...
Thursday, 16 March 2006
UNESCO's World Heritage Centre has signed a partnership agreement with the French not-for-profit organization, ‘Vocations Patrimoine, l'Héritage du futur', aimed at enhancing the management capacities of professionals currently working, or intending to work in the future, at World Heritage sites. The Association, whose President is the renowned paleo-anthropologist Professor ...
2 min read
Tuesday, 7 March 2006
Patrimonio Mundial en Manos de Jovenes, the second Spanish edition of the World Heritage in Young Hands educational resource kit for teachers has just come off the press.
The 2,000 copies are currently being distributed to ASPnet schools, ASP national coordinators, National Commissions, and UNESCO Field offices in all Spanish-speaking countries in the world.
The WHYH resource kit was ...
1 min read
Monday, 6 March 2006
Within the framework of the World Heritage Convention, the clarity and precision of the information made available to the States Parties are two essential requirements for an appropriate implementation of the principles relating to its functioning and its application at the level of each country. Experience has shown that many of these principles are generally not well assimilated by the ...
1 min read
Wednesday, 1 March 2006
On February 13-16, 2006, the World Heritage Centre organized the Steering Committee of the Central Africa World Heritage Forest Initiative (CAWHFI) in Libreville, Gabon. During this event, conservators and wildlife directors of the Congo, Cameroon, Gabon and the Central African Republic met with representatives of the United Nations Foundation, World Wildlife Fund for Nature, Wildlife ...
1 min read
Thursday, 23 February 2006
The World Heritage Centre, the United Nations Foundation, and Fauna and Flora International have launched a Rapid Response Facility (RRF) for natural sites inscribed on the World Heritage List for biodiversity values.
Up to US$30,000 can be quickly accessed to help overcome sudden and significant threats to these sites. The RRF is designed to make funds available within 3 weeks of having ...
Thursday, 23 February 2006
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 Biological Diversity's Programme of work on Protected Areas (CBD PoWPA) in natural World Heritage sites. To this end, the World Heritage Centre invited the Convention on Biological Diversity secretariat, representatives of six of the largest ...
2 min read
Tuesday, 21 February 2006
A poster competition for high school students was part of the "Heritage in Young Hands" awareness-raising campaign to promote understanding and appreciation among young Samoans about the meaning of "heritage", the World Heritage Convention, and the value of conserving and protecting cultural and natural heritage sites in Samoa. It was coordinated by the MNREM (Ministry of Natural Resources, ...
1 min read
Thursday, 16 February 2006
The project for the reinstallation of Aksum Obelisk (Stela 2) is completed UNESCO has completed the engineering design for the reinstallation of the Aksum Obelisk (Stela 2). The design was developed by the Italian engineer Prof Giorgio Croci (Director of Studio Croci & Associati) who was also in charge of the dismantling of Stela 2 in Rome and of its air transportation to Aksum in April ...
1 min read
Friday, 20 January 2006
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 National Geographic and Hewlett Packard.
The partnership, signed in 2005 for an initial period of three years, combines National Geographic's famous cartography with Hewlett Packard's quality print technology to beautifully illustrate the ...
1 min read
Thursday, 19 January 2006
The Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, awarded UNESCO's 60th Anniversary Medal to Jane Goodall, the British-born primatologist, on Tuesday 17 January, at the Organization's Headquarters in Paris. The medal was presented in recognition of Ms Goodall's lifelong dedication to the preservation of Africa's endangered apes. "Ms Goodall's untiring work to preserve the great apes of ...
1 min read
Friday, 13 January 2006
On Friday November 25, 2005, the French Global Environmental Fund (FGEF) approved the financing of an ambitious project of the UNESCO World Heritage Centre. This project aims to improve the conservation and sustainable management of wildlife in the forest landscapes surrounding some of the major tropical forest national parks of the Congo Basin. With a € 2.5 million budget, this project will ...
1 min read
Thursday, 22 December 2005
On the occasion of the celebration of the 10th anniversary of Luang Prabang's inscription on the World heritage list, this brochure presents the spirit, the concept, the process, the practice, the partnerships, the implementation and the achievements of this complex multi partner cooperation fostered by the World Heritage Centre and based on a city-to-city partnership between the city of ...
Thursday, 22 December 2005
The World Heritage Centre and the Vanuatu Cultural Centre (with funding from the World Heritage Fund, and the technical contribution of the Department of Conservation of New Zealand) organized a workshop at Port Vila, Vanuatu, from 5-8 September. It was attended by 32 participants representing 12 States Parties from the Pacific Islands, as well as by experts and representatives from ICOMOS, ...
1 min read
Tuesday, 20 December 2005
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 and international experts working on the safeguarding of Bamiyan issued a list of concrete recommendations for further activities to preserve the site. The Expert Working Group was formed in 2002 within the framework of the coordination mandate ...
1 min read
Tuesday, 20 December 2005
Following in the footsteps of Shell International and the International Council on Mining & Metals (an industry association of the largest mining companies in the world), yet in a bold show of leadership within the international financing community, Goldman Sachs, a global investment banking firm, has formally committed itself to "not knowingly finance extractive projects or commercial ...
1 min read
Friday, 9 December 2005
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 have succeeded: A construction project in the buffer zone (“City Arcade Project”), which might have had a negative impact on the World Heritage value and the integrity of the site, was stopped by the city authorities. The Mayor informed the ...
Friday, 9 December 2005
Within the framework for the project on the Development for Cultural and Ecotourism in the Mountainous Regions of Central and South Asia, there is very positive news concerning activities carried out by UNESCO project partners in Ladakh, India - the Snow Leopard Conservancy (SLC), in Murghab, Tajikistan (ACTED), and in the mountainous region surrounding Lake Issy Kul, Kyrgyzstan (NoviNomad). ...
2 min read
Wednesday, 7 December 2005
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 2001. The Expert Working Group was formed in 2002 within the framework of the coordination mandate for all cultural projects in the country entrusted to UNESCO by the Afghan government, and will meet for the fourth time from 7 to 10 December 2005 ...
1 min read
Friday, 2 December 2005
[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, African Parks Foundation et Fauna and Flora International déterminés à sauver les derniers rhinocéros blancs du Nord du site du patrimoine mondial de la Garamba (République démocratique du Congo) Début septembre 2005, les autorités congolaises ...
Monday, 28 November 2005
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 design. It is illustrated with 67 colour photos of World Heritage sites, each accompanied with a short caption. It also introduces the Convention Concerning the Protection of World Cultural and Natural Heritage; its objectives, the selection ...
Friday, 18 November 2005
United Nations Foundation and Expedia announced the launch of the World Heritage Alliance, an innovative joint initiative to promote sustainable tourism and awareness of World Heritage sites and communities around the world. This partnership believes conscientious travelers can contribute directly to nature conservation, historic preservation, and poverty reduction through sustainable ...
4 min read
Tuesday, 25 October 2005
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 Headquarters on 27 October 2005.
Organized in the context of the recently signed agreement between Laurence Berman-Clément, Director-General of Jet tours and Francesco Bandarin, Director of the World Heritage Centre, the workshops aim to train, ...
1 min read
Monday, 17 October 2005
The 15th ICOMOS General Assembly and the International Scientific Symposium with the theme Monuments and Sites in their Setting: Conserving Cultural Heritage in Changing Townscapes and Landscapes were officially opened on 17 October in Xi’an, China. A special celebration marking ICOMOS’s 40th anniversary and an exhibition on its achievements during its existence are planned during the meeting ...
2 min read
Tuesday, 11 October 2005
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 the 3rd open ballot. The World Heritage Committee is composed of the following States Parties:BeninCanadaChileCubaIndiaIsraelJapanKenyaKuwaitLithuaniaMadagascarMauritiusMoroccoNetherlandsNew ZealandNorwayPeruRepublic of KoreaSpainTunisiaUnited ...
Tuesday, 11 October 2005
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 open ballot.
Monday, 10 October 2005
The 15th session of the General Assembly of States Parties to the World Heritage Convention elected Mauritius to the World Heritage Committee (reserved seat) . Elections will continue in Room VIII.
Monday, 10 October 2005
[in French only] UNESCO Flash Info : A l’heure où la protection du patrimoine mondial occupe une place sans cesse croissante dans les préoccupations de la communauté internationale, se tient à l’UNESCO, la quinzième Assemblée générale des Etats parties à la Convention de 1972 pour la protection du patrimoine mondial, culturel et naturel. L’Assemblée générale, qui se réunit, tous les deux ans, ...
Monday, 10 October 2005
States Parties elected at the 1st Open Ballot:
Canada
Israel
Korea, Republic of
Madagascar
Morocco
Spain
Tunisia
United States of America
State Party elected at the Ballot for the Reserved Seat:
Mauritius
Detailled Results of the 1st Open Ballot
Number of States Parties present and voting:
160
Invalid votes:
2
Number of valid ...
1 min read
Saturday, 8 October 2005
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 Assembly will elect twelve (12) new members to the World Heritage Committee. Delegates attending only the General Assembly can enter the building through the Place de Fontenoy entrance, where they will be given their security badges. The World ...
2 min read
Thursday, 29 September 2005
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 online at the following address:htpp://whc.unesco.org/archive/2005/whc05-29com-22e.pdf
Friday, 23 September 2005
In mid-August 2005 the Government of the Province of Nova Scotia, Canada, finalized the purchase of seventeen properties, including 22 buildings and eight wharfs for $5.5 million Canadian (over $4,678,000 USD) in the waterfront district of Old Town Lunenburg, a World Heritage site since 1995.
The buildings had been for sale since the previous winter by Clearwater Seafoods, a major employer ...
1 min read
Friday, 16 September 2005
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 of the French Culture Year, at the Great Hall of the People Thursday.This is the first time the two cities, both listed as cultural heritages by the United Nations Education, Science and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), signed an agreement to ...
1 min read
Monday, 12 September 2005
BiodiversityLife Insurance for our Changing WorldThis week, in New York, leaders of the world will review progress made towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). These goals embody the international community's aspirations for a better world, where hunger and poverty are eradicated, all people enjoy basic rights, and equity and health prevail in all countries. We call upon ...
3 min read
Wednesday, 7 September 2005
Everglades National Park in Florida, USA, has almost entirely reopened to the public following damage from Hurricane Katrina, which passed directly over the Park bringing heavy wind and rain.Most of the park remained closed in the days following the hurricane due to damage to the visitor complex at Flamingo, 40 miles (64 km) southwest of Park Headquarters. Employee housing, the sewer system, ...
1 min read
Monday, 5 September 2005
The historical village of Maymand in southern Iran will be awarded the Melina Mercouri International Prize for the Safeguarding and Management of Cultural Landscapes (UNESCO Greece) in a ceremony at UNESCO Headquarters on September 7.
Friday, 15 July 2005
Durban (South Africa) – The World Heritage Committee, chaired by Themba Wakashe, South Africa’s Deputy Director-General for Heritage and National Archives, today inscribed 17 cultural sites on UNESCO’s World Heritage List. The World Heritage List now numbers 812 sites in total, which includes: 628 cultural; 160 natural and 24 mixed sites in 137 States Parties. With ...
15 min read
Thursday, 14 July 2005
Durban (South Africa), The World Heritage Committee chaired by Themba Wakashe, South Africa’s Deputy Director-General for Heritage and National Archives, today inscribed seven natural sites on UNESCO’s World Heritage List. The Committee also made decisions concerning two natural sites already on the List. The one is extended in size while the inscription of the other under cultural criteria ...
7 min read
Wednesday, 13 July 2005
Improvements in the preservation of three threatened World Heritage sites have led to their withdrawal from the List of World Heritage in Danger. The World Heritage Committee decided to remove the sites of Sangay (Ecuador), Timbuktu (Mali) and Butrint (Albania) during its 29th session currently taking place in Durban, South Africa (July 10 to 17). The Committee is chaired by Themba Wakashe, ...
2 min read
Thursday, 30 June 2005
Forty-two new sites will be proposed for inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage List during the 29th session of the World Heritage Committee scheduled for July 10-17 at the International Convention Centre (ICC) in Durban, South Africa. Extensions will be proposed for nine already inscribed sites. UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura will address the opening session, which is open ...
3 min read
Tuesday, 21 June 2005
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 Espace EDF Electra, 6 rue Récamier, 75007 Paris, on Tuesday July 5 (11 a.m.) during a joint UNESCO/EDF scientific conference. The symposium will bring together Yves Coppens, Professor at the Collège de France, Yves Bamberger, Research and ...
2 min read
Tuesday, 14 June 2005
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 ceremony at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, France. 29 individuals joined UNESCO or the UN in 1975, including Mrs Marielle Richon and Mrs Silvia Simmonds of the World Heritage Centre.62 individuals joined UNESCO or the UN in 1980, including Mrs ...
Monday, 30 May 2005
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 June. It aims to highlight the interrelationship between the natural and cultural diversity of our planet. Bringing culture and nature closer together in a comprehensive approach, the symposium will present case studies on sacred natural sites ...
1 min read
Monday, 9 May 2005
Growing understanding that the outstanding universal value of urban heritage goes well beyond the value of the individual buildings it contains, has created a pressing need for internationally accepted guidelines and criteria for the preservation of historic city centres.
Conservationists, municipalities, architects and developers will address the issue at the Conference on World Heritage ...
3 min read
Monday, 25 April 2005
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 buffering UNESCO Biosphere Reserve next to Durmitor National Park, a World Heritage site inscribed in 1980. The decision comes as the result of meetings that UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura had with the Presidents of Serbia and Montenegro ...
2 min read
Monday, 25 April 2005
Major archaeological vestiges have been discovered at the World Heritage site of Aksum (Ethiopia) by the experts UNESCO sent to Aksum (Ethiopia) to survey the World Heritage Site last week. They were sent to prepare for the elevation of the Aksum Obelisk at its original location. The last segment of the 160-tonne 24.6-metre high stele arrived at the airport of Aksum this morning. It had been ...
3 min read
Wednesday, 20 April 2005
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 since 1937, will be sent to Aksum (a World Heritage site) in the following days.
Following a mission of UNESCO experts who conducted a field evaluation, UNESCO is to draw up the project for the installation of the obelisk and the enhancement ...
1 min read
