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Friday, 1 October 2021
The Third Cycle of Periodic Reporting (2018 – 2024), a global World Heritage conservation monitoring exercise carried out in six-year cycles, carries on this September with reporting in the Latin America and the Caribbean region.
World Heritage site managers and national focal points of the 147 World Heritage properties (101 cultural, 38 natural and 8 mixed sites) in the Latin America and ...
2 min read
Thursday, 30 September 2021
UNESCO is launching launch a call to constitute a roster of volunteer experts, prioritizing local and regional experts in the field of biodiversity and land restoration, environmental management and environmental law, as well as knowledge holders.
Volunteer experts will provide technical advice, generate data, build partnerships and provide training so that local actors, particularly ...
Monday, 27 September 2021
According to World Heritage in the face of COVID-19 (2021), World Heritage sites experienced a 66% drop in visitation and a 52% decline in ticket sales in 2020 as a result of COVID-19. In collaboration with the Advisory Bodies to the 1972 World Heritage Committee in the framework of the UNESCO Task Force on Culture, Tourism and COVID-19, UNESCO is now working on gathering more in-depth data ...
1 min read
Thursday, 16 September 2021
The International Advisory Committee (IAC) on World Heritage Sites in Uzbekistan was officially opened in Khiva and online on 15 September 2021, within the framework of the International Cultural Forum “Central Asia at the Crossroads of World Civilizations”.
The initiative to establish this committee together with UNESCO was put forward by the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan H.E. Mr. ...
3 min read
Thursday, 16 September 2021
In the framework of the international assistance "Establishment of the Tentative List of the Republic of Equatorial Guinea", the World Heritage Centre, in collaboration with ICOMOS and IUCN, organized this Friday 10 September 2021 an online workshop for the elaboration of the Tentative List of Equatorial Guinea.
This first session brought together a national team of cultural and natural ...
1 min read
Tuesday, 14 September 2021
Recruitment of a Scientific Coordinator.
The increasing impact of disasters in Africa and their growing complexity is a great concern for both heritage professionals and decision makers. It is expected that in the next decade, climate change will lead to more frequent extreme weather events, reaching to broader areas.
Cultural heritage in all of its forms is also increasingly at risk due to ...
1 min read
Thursday, 9 September 2021
This year, July 8 marked not only the 13th anniversary of the inscription of France’s Lagoons of New Caledonia: Reef Diversity and Associated Ecosystems on the UNESCO World Heritage List, but also the Day of the Turtle in New Caledonia. In celebration, the local and traditional communities, government representatives, scientists and youth came together to agree on a sustainable path forward ...
2 min read
Thursday, 9 September 2021
Ms Darwina L Neal, left, with Dr Mechtild Rössler and others at Oakland Plantation during a US/ICOMOS symposium on landscapes held in Natchitoches, Louisiana, USA in March 2004 .© ICOMOS/IFLA Cultural Landscape Scientific Commiittee
Landscape architect and conservationist Ms Darwina L. Neal, one of North America’s most renowned experts in cultural landscape conservation, passed away on 4 ...
1 min read
Monday, 6 September 2021
The new commitment was announced by Eddie Rich, CEO of the International Hydropower Association (IHA) during a workshop on “No-Go in World Heritage and other protected areas: success stories in leveraging the private sector and remaining challenges” at the IUCN World Conservation Congress in Marseille, France.
The commitment stipulates that no new hydropower projects should be developed in ...
2 min read
Thursday, 2 September 2021
TheIUCN World Conservation Congress, taking place in Marseille, France and online from 3 to 11 September 2021, will drive action on nature-based recovery, climate change and biodiversity through events, exhibits and forums.
The IUCN World Conservation Congress comes just months before CBD will be adopting the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework, setting the international biodiversity ...
3 min read
Thursday, 19 August 2021
The new guidelines published by UNESCO and the German Federal Agency for Nature Conservation (BfN) put forward a standard methodology for evaluating the impact of protected areas on the local economy.
The guidelines aim to help national stakeholders, protected area managers and researchers count visitation and measure economic impacts consistently through a standardized approach. Developed ...
1 min read
Thursday, 19 August 2021
Amid the rapidly unfolding events, and twenty years after the deliberate destruction of the Bamiyan Buddhas, a World Heritage site, UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay “calls for the preservation of Afghanistan’s cultural heritage in its diversity, in full respect of international law, and for taking all necessary precautions to spare and protect cultural heritage from damage and ...
1 min read
Thursday, 19 August 2021
The W-Arly-Pendjari Complex (WAP) is a transnational property (about 450 km border) shared by the Republic of Niger, Burkina Faso and the Republic of Benin in West Africa. The Niger part of the property was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1996. It will be extended in 2017 to its Benin and Burkina Faso parts. The site is also a transboundary biosphere reserve. In addition to pressures ...
1 min read
Thursday, 19 August 2021
At its 40th session (Istanbul/UNESCO, 2016), the World Heritage Committee highlighted that the List of World Heritage in Danger needed to be better understood and therefore decided that this issue be formally addressed in order to overcome the negative perception of this component of the Reactive Monitoring process (Decision 40 COM 7).
As presented to the World Heritage Committee at its ...
1 min read
Thursday, 12 August 2021
Today is International Youth Day, when we focus on the future guardinas of our irreplaceable UNESCO World Heritage.
If heritage is what we leave behind for future generations, we need to work with young people to protect it. This International Youth Day, we wish to highlight the Young Professionals Forum which took place during the extended 44th session of the World Heritage Committee.
In ...
3 min read
Monday, 9 August 2021
UNESCO and its World Heritage Centre have observed with concern the large number of fires that have struck Greece and other countries in Southern Europeand the Mediterranean in recent weeks.
According to information provided by experts and press reports, firefighters continue to battle major fires in Greece, including one that could impact the World Heritage site “Archaeological Site of ...
2 min read
Monday, 9 August 2021
In the Lakota language of North America, the word “Mitákuye Oyás’iŋ” means “all is related” or “all my relatives” – both human and non-human. In Hawaiian, the phrase “ike loa” means “to see much” and describes a philosophy of lifelong learning to better understand our relationship with the world. And in the nearly extinct Nǀuu language of South Africa, the word “lgqe” refers to the life-force ...
2 min read
Friday, 6 August 2021
UNESCO wishes to express its deep concern about the reports on the expansion of the conflict to the city of Lalibela (Ethiopia), which hosts the Rock-Hewn Churches.
UNESCO calls for the respect of all relevant obligations under international law in ensuring the protection of the Outstanding Universal Value and legacy of this precious site by refraining from any act that may expose it to ...
1 min read
Friday, 6 August 2021
UNESCO Addis Ababa Liaison Office in collaboration with the World Heritage Centre (WHC) and financial support from the People’s Republic of China, organized a Training workshop on “enhancing the implementation capacity of the 1972 World Heritage Convention ” which took place from 3 to 5 August 2021, in Adama Town, Ethiopia. The meeting brought together 43 participants from ministries and ...
3 min read
Tuesday, 3 August 2021
In parallel to the extended 44th session of the World Heritage Committee, the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (WHC), in close collaboration with the African World Heritage Fund (AWHF), organised an online side event, “Looking into the future: Highlights of the Regional Action Plan for Africa (2021 – 2027)” on 30 July. The event reflected upon the objectives and challenges foreseen in the ...
2 min read
Friday, 30 July 2021
Last month, the Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System (Belize) appointed its first Chief Resilience Officer (CRO) as part of the global Resilient Reefs Initiative that aims to empower local communities to adapt to a changing climate.
Following in the footsteps of the CROs at the Ningaloo Coast in Australia and the Lagoons of New Caledonia in France, Ms. Kalene Eck, the newly appointed CRO in ...
2 min read
Friday, 30 July 2021
The World Heritage Committee today inscribed the transnational property of the Frontiers of the Roman Empire – The Danube Limes (Western Segment) on UNESCO’s World Heritage List.
Frontiers of the Roman Empire – The Danube Limes (Western Segment) features components in Austria, Germany, and SlovakiaIt covers almost 600km of the whole Roman Empire’s Danube frontier. The property formed part ...
3 min read
Wednesday, 28 July 2021
The World Heritage Committee today added four sites to UNESCO’s World Heritage List and one extension to an existing transnational natural site in Europe.
The new cultural sites are located in Italy, Slovenia, the Russian Federation and the United Kingdom. The natural site inscribed today is Ivindo National Park in Gabon. The World Heritage Committee also approved an extension to the ...
6 min read
Tuesday, 27 July 2021
The World Heritage Committee today added 13 cultural sites to UNESCO’s World Heritage List and one extension to an existing cultural site in Mexico. Roșia Montană Mining Landscape (Romania), was simultaneously inscribed on the List of World Heritage in Danger pending the removal of threats to its integrity posed by possible extractive activities.
These additions were made during the ...
13 min read
Monday, 26 July 2021
The World Heritage Committee today added seven sites to UNESCO’s World Heritage List. Four of the sites have been inscribed for the natural attributed: Amami-Oshima Island, Tokunoshima Island, northern part of Okinawa Island, and Iriomote Island (Japan), Getbol, Korean Tidal Flats (Republic of Korea), Kaeng Krachan Forest Complex (Thailand) and Colchic Rainforests and Wetlands (Georgia). ...
7 min read
Sunday, 25 July 2021
The World Heritage Committee today inscribed Quanzhou: Emporium of the World in Song-Yuan China (China), Kakatiya Rudreshwara (Ramappa) Temple, Telangana (India), Trans-Iranian Railway (Iran), and Paseo del Prado and Buen Retiro, a landscape of Arts and Sciences (Spain), on UNESCO’s World Heritage List during its 44th session held online and chaired from Fuzhou (China).
China, Quanzhou: ...
4 min read
Saturday, 24 July 2021
The World Heritage Committee today inscribed five cultural sites, including one transnational property, in Saudi Arabia, Austria, Belgium, Czechia, France, Germany, Italy, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland on UNESCO’s World Heritage List during its 44th session held online and chaired from Fuzhou (China).
The following sites were inscribed today:
Saudi Arabia, Ḥimā ...
5 min read
Thursday, 22 July 2021
The World Heritage Committee, during its Extended 44th session, has officially taken note of the 10th Anniversary of the adoption of the World Heritage Capacity-Building Strategy (2011 - 2021).
To mark this celebration, the World Heritage Centre is pleased to announce that a dedicated capacity building webpage has been made available to centralize all on-going and future capacity building ...
Wednesday, 21 July 2021
The World Heritage Committee, holding its 44th session in Fuzhou and online, decided to delete the property “Liverpool – Maritime Mercantile City” (UK) from the World Heritage List, due to the irreversible loss of attributes conveying the outstanding universal value of the property.
Liverpool – Maritime Mercantile City was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2004 and on the List of World ...
1 min read
Monday, 19 July 2021
The World Heritage Committee, meeting online since 16th of July, today decided to remove Salonga National Park (Democratic Republic of the Congo) from the List of World Heritage in Danger due to improvements in its state of conservation.
The Committee welcomed the clarification provided by the national authorities that the oil concessions overlapping with the property are nul and void and ...
1 min read
Sunday, 18 July 2021
The master's programme in World Heritage Studies (WHS) at BTU Cottbus-Senftenberg, Germany now opens its doors towards a full online study experience.
The World Heritage Studies programme began in 1999 and its graduates from more than two decades have established a strong alumni network of professionals in the World Heritage field. Starting from October 2021, the programme offers a new study ...
3 min read
Friday, 16 July 2021
The World Heritage Committee’s 44th session opened today in Fuzhou (China) at the Fuzhou Strait Culture and Art Center, and continues online until 31 July. During the session, the 21-member Committee will notably examine the state of conservation of 255 sites already inscribed on the World Heritage List, 53 of which also figure on the List of World Heritage in Danger.
In her opening ...
2 min read
Saturday, 10 July 2021
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre is receiving a high number of e-mails expressing great concern for the possible extinction, in the near future, of the vaquita, a critically endangered porpoise endemic to the Islands and Protected Areas of the Gulf of California (Mexico).
Inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List in 2005, the property of the Islands and Protected Areas of the Gulf of ...
2 min read
Thursday, 8 July 2021
In the framework of the implementation of the World Heritage Convention, the Rwandan National Commission for UNESCO organized in Huyé from 9 to 11 June 2021, with the technical and financial support of the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, a national technical consultation to raise awareness on the importance of this Convention and to elaborate a roadmap for the preparation of the nomination file ...
2 min read
Thursday, 8 July 2021
This year’s Forum is being held online with nearly 100 World Heritage Site Managers from around the world from 7 to 13 July, together with the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, Advisory Bodies (ICCROM, IUCN and ICOMOS), heritage experts and representatives of various Chinese heritage institutions.
H.E. Mr. Tian Xuejun, Chairperson of the extended 44th session of the World Heritage Committee ...
2 min read
Wednesday, 7 July 2021
A technical workshop was organized to strengthen capacities of stakeholders in identifying and evaluating the impact that new projects may pose on the Outstanding Universal Value of World Heritage sites, in addition to the elaboration of the necessary mitigation measures.
The online workshop was held in collaboration with the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities of Egypt, and brought together ...
1 min read
Monday, 5 July 2021
Vaquita are one of the world’s most threatened mammals, with less than ten individuals thought to remain. These all exist in a small area of the Islands and Protected Areas of the Gulf of California UNESCO World Heritage site in Mexico, where entanglement in illegal fishing nets threatens their survival. The site was for this reason inscribed on the List of World Heritage in Danger in 2019. ...
1 min read
Thursday, 1 July 2021
The 10th Anniversary of the 2011 UNESCO Recommendation on the Historic Urban Landscape (HUL Recommendation) took place online through a launch event for the UNESCO HUL Call for Action and a global conference on the application of the HUL Recommendation to World Heritage cities.
The online events, consisting of several meetings and workshops, took place between 16 and 24 June 2021, marking ...
2 min read
Monday, 28 June 2021
On 21 June 2021, the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (WHC), the International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM), the African World Heritage Fund (AWHF) and the École du Patrimoine Africain (EPA) brought together Ambassadors, site managers, and African heritage experts for the online launching of the project for the Capacity-building in risk ...
2 min read
Friday, 25 June 2021
Following the first meeting held on 1 April 2021, the UNESCO World Heritage Centre organized an online technical meeting on 11 June to support the process of drafting the Desired state of conservation for removal (DSCOR) of Leptis Magna from the List of World Heritage in Danger, and the needed corrective measures.
The online meeting brought together representatives of Libyan authorities, ...
1 min read
Wednesday, 23 June 2021
On 8 June 2021, UNESCO, the Ghana Museums and Monuments Boards (GMMB), and the Netherlands represented by the Dutch Ambassador, H.E. Mr. Ron Strikker, inaugurated the Ussher Fort Slave Museum and Documentary Centre in Accra, after two years of rehabilitation work.
Ussher Fort, formerly called Fort Crèvecœur, is one of 28 components of the serial World Heritage property Forts and Castles, ...
3 min read
Friday, 18 June 2021
The World Heritage Committee’s 44th session will be chaired from Fuzhou (China) and take place online from 16 to 31 July, combining current work and issues left outstanding since last year, when the annual meeting was postponed due to COVID-19. The extended session will be chaired by Tian Xuejun, China’s Vice Minister for Education and Director of China’s National Commission for ...
4 min read
Friday, 18 June 2021
COVID-19 has impacted all sectors and all regions, and the world’s over 1,000 UNESCO World Heritage properties are no exception.
To understand the impact of COVID-19 on World Heritage one year after the start of the pandemic, UNESCO launched a far-reaching survey of site managers and national authorities and have published the results in the report ‘World Heritage in the face of ...
2 min read
Wednesday, 16 June 2021
Following the launch of the first regional competition for Eastern Africa entitled: “Mobilizing Youth Engagement in the Celebration of African World Heritage Day - 5th May 2021,” six (6) proposals from Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and Rwanda were selected as finalists and will receive 5000 USD grants to raise awareness and engagement of youth for the protection and promotion of ...
2 min read
Wednesday, 16 June 2021
On 20 May 2021, invasive species experts and local management teams from the 50 UNESCO marine World Heritage sites met online to share lessons learned in the prevention and eradication of invasive species.
According to the 2020 IUCN World Heritage Outlook, 75 percent of the 50 UNESCO marine World Heritage sites are threatened by invasive species. When species are introduced to marine ...
2 min read
Tuesday, 15 June 2021
Following the official launch of the project “ Supporting capacity-building of World Heritage sites in East Africa (Comoros, Kenya, Madagascar, Somalia, United Republic of Tanzania)” supported by the Sultanate of Oman, the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (WHC) organized the first consultation meetings with concerned national institutions and partners of the five beneficiary countries, from 27 ...
1 min read
Tuesday, 8 June 2021
World Oceans Day
How Marine World Heritage builds resilience for people and nature
Spread across 37 nations from the tropics to the poles, the 50 UNESCO marine World Heritage sites are among the ocean’s most productive waters. Their abundance of marine life is vital to sustain the livelihoods of indigenous communities, local businesses and artists alike.
This year’s United ...
2 min read
Friday, 4 June 2021
This year’s World Environment Day will launch and focus on the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration. The UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration is a global rallying cry to heal our planet.
Ecosystems support all life on Earth. The healthier our ecosystems are, the healthier the planet - and its people. The UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration aims to prevent, halt and reverse the degradation of ...
1 min read
Wednesday, 2 June 2021
The German Commission for UNESCO herewith invites UNESCO World Heritage sites and UNESCO Biosphere Reserves in Africa to submit proposals for projects that help them to overcome an existing impairment caused by the COVID 19 pandemic. Up to 20,000 Euro financial support will be provided to selected projects.
By providing financial and technical support to UNESCO World Heritage sites and ...
7 min read
Wednesday, 2 June 2021
The UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS) has released the first set of data for Indicator 11.4.1 related to culture for the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Agenda 2030. The results and analysis are available in a new report, Tracking Investment to Safeguard the World’s Cultural and Natural Heritage.
Indicator 11.4.1 is defined as “total per capita expenditure on the preservation, ...
3 min read
Monday, 31 May 2021
UNESCO is now compensating for all greenhouse gas emissions caused by in-house and outsourced printing services at Headquarters (HQ). To make our print publications ‘carbon neutral’, UNESCO has chosen to support the development of a small scale hydropower project near Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo, a UNESCO World Heritage site.
While UNESCO is striving to reduce ...
3 min read
Friday, 21 May 2021
International Day for Biological Diversity 2021 is being celebrated under the slogan: "We're part of the solution #ForNature".
This theme was chosen to be a continuation of the momentum generated last year under the over-arching theme, “Our solutions are in nature”, which served as a reminder that biodiversity remains the answer to several sustainable development challenges. From ...
2 min read
Friday, 21 May 2021
This unique fund brings together public and private donors for a common goal: better protection of nature in order to safeguard some of the most important areas on earth, including natural World Heritage sites.
The Legacy Landscapes Fund (LLF) aims to address one of the main bottlenecks for the conservation of globally significant protected areas located in the developing world: the lack of ...
2 min read
