2384 news
Monday, 4 December 2023
The UNESCO Chairs Workshop on "Protecting Historic Cities and Landscapes - Compatible Design for New Interventions" was held from 28 to 29 September 2023, marked with the 15th anniversary of the inscription of ‘Mantua and Sabbioneta’ on the UNESCO World Heritage List. The event was organised by UNESCO Chair in Architectural Preservation and Planning in World Heritage Cities, with support from ...
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Friday, 1 December 2023
On 14 November 2023, UNESCO and the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science of the Netherlands signed a new four-year (2023-2026) Funds-in-Trust Agreement for the Implementation of the World Heritage Convention, for a total amount of 1.5 million Euros.
The Netherlands Funds-in-Trust (NFiT) at the UNESCO World Heritage Centre started in 2001 and is one of the longest and continued FiT ...
1 min read
Friday, 1 December 2023
In the face of Africa's modernization and socioeconomic transformation lies the intrinsic challenges of nurturing sustainable development that considers the invaluable threads that weave through the continent’s diverse heritage.
Recognizing this pivotal moment, the Strategy for World Heritage in Africa aligned with UNESCO Global Priority Africa, Flagship Programme 3 (Fostering Cultural ...
2 min read
Monday, 27 November 2023
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre is seeking an evaluator to carry out the “External Evaluation of the UNESCO-Greece Melina Mercouri International Prize for the Safeguarding and Management of Cultural Landscapes (2017-2023)” to be carried out from January to February 2024.
The UNESCO-Greece Melina Mercouri International Prize for the Safeguarding and Management of Cultural Landscapes was ...
3 min read
Friday, 24 November 2023
UNESCO has published a report, "Urban Heritage for Resilience", reflecting the results of the third consultation with the Member States on implementing the Recommendation on the Historic Urban Landscape (HUL). The consultation was conducted between June and November 2022, through which Member States informed their implementation efforts at the national (country) and local (cities and ...
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Wednesday, 22 November 2023
The 24th General Assembly of the States Parties to the World Heritage Convention is meeting from 22 to 23 November 2023 at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, France, convening the 195 States Parties to the World Heritage Convention.
During the session, the General Assembly elected nine members to the World Heritage Committee:
Ukraine, Republic of Korea, Viet Nam, Kenya, Senegal, Lebanon, ...
Wednesday, 22 November 2023
On 22 November 2023, the Republic of Kenya and UNESCO signed the Letter of Agreement to establish a partnership for the implementation of the UNESCO Thematic Indicators Culture in the 2030 Agenda (UNESCO Culture|2030 Indicators) in Kenya.
The UNESCO Culture|2030 Indicators is a framework to measure and monitor culture’s contribution to the national and local implementation of the UN 2030 ...
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Tuesday, 21 November 2023
UNESCO and the Advisory Bodies to the World Heritage Committee - ICCROM (International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property), ICOMOS (International Council on Monuments and Sites) and IUCN (International Union for the Conservation of Nature)- have released a newly revised toolkit for assessing the effectiveness of management systems of World Heritage ...
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Thursday, 16 November 2023
The 2023 edition of the UNESCO-Greece Melina Mercouri International Prize for the Safeguarding and Management of Cultural Landscapes was awarded to the Gunditjmara community for its long-standing efforts to safeguard and manage the Budj Bim Cultural Landscape, a property inscribed on the World Heritage List since 2019. The laureate will receive US$30,000 as prize.
The jury recognized the ...
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Wednesday, 15 November 2023
UNESCO is deeply concerned about the allegations in the report of Amnesty International regarding the population relocation programme in Angkor carried out by the Cambodian authorities. UNESCO reiterates that at no point did it request, support, or participate in this programme.
It is important to note that the Angkor site is not only a heritage site, it is also a living site: the presence ...
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Saturday, 11 November 2023
In the framework of UNESCO’s Global Priority Africa (Flagship Programme 3: “Fostering cultural heritage and capacity development” ), the Mentorship Programme for African Heritage Professionals was developed in collaboration with the African World Heritage Fund (AWHF) and the three Advisory Bodies (ICOMOS, ICCROM and IUCN) to expand the roster of Africa experts and create opportunities for ...
1 min read
Friday, 10 November 2023
From 16th November - 2nd December 2023, AlUla will host the annual Ancient Kingdoms Festival, a fortnight of unique immersive experiences across a network of ancient sites in the ancient landscapes of AlUla. This year, the Festival shines an especially bright light on the cities of the Incense Road including Dadan and Hegra. These sites carry a rich legacy of being a historic crossroads ...
2 min read
Wednesday, 8 November 2023
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre and the three Advisory Bodies – ICCROM, ICOMOS and IUCN – are developing their first joint toolkit on climate action for World Heritage. Developed with initial funding from the Australian Government, the toolkit will support States Parties and site managers to integrate climate change in the management strategies of UNESCO World Heritage sites. A call for case ...
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Friday, 3 November 2023
In an important milestone, the Rock Islands Southern Lagoon in Palau launched its first comprehensive resilience strategy that aims at providing a sustainable future for both its people and its natural environment. Implementation of the strategy has already begun with the launch of four projects, valued at USD$620,000, each addressing crucial resilience challenges for the marine World ...
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Friday, 3 November 2023
November 27 - December 08, 2023Fada, Republic of Chad
Context
In 2016, UNESCO inscribed Ennedi Massif: Natural and Cultural Landscape on the World Heritage List as a mixed natural and cultural property. Two years later, the public-private partnership between African Parks Network (APN) and the government of Chad was signed, with the aim of rehabilitating and maintaining the natural ...
4 min read
Thursday, 2 November 2023
Meeting in Kotor (Montenegro), in the heart of one of the first World Heritage properties, Natural and Culturo-Historical Region of Kotor, on 24 and 25 October 2023, the national focal points for the implementation of the World Heritage Convention and the representatives of the national cultural and natural heritage institutions of Southeast Europe took stock of the implementation of 2015 ...
3 min read
Tuesday, 31 October 2023
The 2011 Recommendation on the Historic Urban Landscape (HUL Recommendation) is a perfect herald for the theme of the 2023 World Cities Day, “Financing sustainable urban future for all”. The HUL Recommendation is a crucial instrument for managing urban heritage in and around settlements and cities to recognize, protect and integrate historic built environments into urban planning for ...
4 min read
Monday, 30 October 2023
On October 27, 2023, UNESCO successfully launched an International Expert Workshop Online for the renewal of the UNESCO Culture|2030 Indicators Expert Facility. This kick-off session constituted the first part of a comprehensive training that has been organized in two parts. The second parts will take place from 15 January to 17 January 2024 in three online sessions of three hours each.
The ...
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Tuesday, 24 October 2023
The UNESCO Chair for World Heritage and Sustainable Tourism Management in the Arab Region at the German University of Technology in Oman GUtech, and the Arab Regional Centre for World Heritage (ARC-WH) in Bahrain, are pleased to invite academics, professionals and policymakers to participate in their upcoming international Conference Opportunities for Heritage: Fostering Innovation, ...
1 min read
Tuesday, 24 October 2023
WRC Promoter, the company responsible for the promotion of the International Automobile Federation (FIA) World Rally Championship (WRC) and European Rally Championship (ERC), has announced a commitment to safeguard natural and mixed UNESCO World Heritage sites, making it the first-ever motorsport organization to pledge its support to World Heritage. WRC Promoter will also assess the steps ...
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Tuesday, 17 October 2023
This lush, photo-driven guide introduces 50 of the most magnificently biodiverse places around the world, revealing not only their physical beauty but also celebrating the flora and fauna that make them unique.
Did you know that Kakadu National Park in Australia boasts some of the oldest exposed rock on the planet and is known to have been inhabited continuously for over 40,000 years? That ...
1 min read
Tuesday, 10 October 2023
From 5 to 9 October 2023, managers from the 50 marine sites on UNESCO’s World Heritage List gathered to discuss critical challenges and solutions in protecting ocean biodiversity of outstanding universal value to humanity. The conference’s objective was to accelerate conservation successes by sharing what works and what doesn’t, and to avoid costly mistakes that can be prevented when ...
3 min read
Monday, 9 October 2023
Sub-Saharan Africa only represents less than 10% of the sites inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. This figure highlights our shared responsibility to make more room to the rich heritage of this region. The 45th session of the World Heritage Committee resulted in undeniable progress in addressing this challenge.
The list of World Heritage sites does not yet fully embody its ...
3 min read
Wednesday, 27 September 2023
On 26 September 2023, global marine protected area (MPA) practitioners met online with global experts, who shared firsthand insights about how blue carbon credits work, what incites businesses to invest, what a high-quality blue carbon project looks like, and how to assess viability as a sustainable financing stream in support of marine conservation.
Marine World Heritage sites, and MPAs ...
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Monday, 25 September 2023
The 45th session of the World Heritage Committee concluded on Monday 25 September in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. This year, the Committee inscribed 42 new sites and approved the extension of 5 sites on UNESCO's World Heritage List.
At the end of its fortnight's work, the Committee inscribed 42 new sites, of which 33 are cultural sites and 9 are natural sites. These sites will now benefit from the ...
3 min read
Friday, 15 September 2023
The World Heritage Committee, meeting in Riyadh until 25 September, decided today to inscribe the sites of "The Saint Sophia Cathedral and Related Monastic Buildings and Lavra of Kyiv-Pechersk" and "L’viv – the ensemble of the historic centre" on the List of World Heritage in Danger, due to the threat of destruction the Russian offensive poses.
The UNESCO World Heritage Committee considers ...
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Tuesday, 12 September 2023
Today the World Heritage Committee, which is meeting in Riyadh until 25 September, decided to remove the site of the Tombs of the Buganda Kings in Kasubi (Uganda) from the List of World Heritage in Danger, following the successful restoration work carried out by Uganda with UNESCO’s support.
In 2010, a violent fire devastated the Tombs of the Kings of Buganda at Kasubi which are inscribed on ...
3 min read
Monday, 11 September 2023
The extended 45th session of the World Heritage Committee begins in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, we express our gratitude to our hosts for convening the first in-person Committee since the onset of COVID-19. Surrounded by old friends and young professionals alike, we are reminded that this meeting is more than the sum of important decisions taken. It is a powerful platform where we rekindle ...
2 min read
Monday, 11 September 2023
The extended 45th session of the World Heritage Committee opens this Monday in Riyadh (Kingdom of Saudi Arabia). Fifty sites will be examined for inscription on UNESCO's World Heritage List.
Press conference
On Monday 11 September at 1.30pm (local time UTC+3), UNESCO and the Saudi authorities will hold a press conference to present the work ahead of the Committee. Registration is compulsory ...
1 min read
Friday, 8 September 2023
The latest version of the World Heritage map, produced by the World Heritage Centre and Geo4Map with the generous support of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, can now be ordered from the World Heritage Centre website.
The featured image on the map presents the Ḥimā Cultural Area World Heritage property in Saudi Arabia, country hosting the next session of the World Heritage Committee in September ...
1 min read
Wednesday, 6 September 2023
UNESCO has learned with great sadness and expresses its deep regret at the loss of Jim Thorsell, who passed away in his native country Canada.
Thorsell started his career as a park ranger in Banff National Park, then worked as a researcher, trainer and project manager, first in Canada and then in international conservation projects, including as a lecturer at the African Ranger Training ...
1 min read
Thursday, 31 August 2023
A UNESCO and IUCN assessment of the status of species reveals that UNESCO World Heritage sites harbour over 20% of mapped global species richness within just 1% of the Earth’s surface. Safeguarding these biodiversity hotspots is essential if the Kunming – Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework is to be achieved. UNESCO is appealing to the 195 States Parties to the Convention to scale up ...
4 min read
Wednesday, 16 August 2023
In line with UNESCO's Global Priorities for Africa and Gender Equality, UNESCO developed a Mentorship Programme to train young African experts on World Heritage. In close partnership with the African World Heritage Fund (AWHF) and the Advisory Bodies (ICCROM, ICOMOS and IUCN), 50 women experts will be trained to further support African Members States to implement the World Heritage Convention ...
1 min read
Friday, 11 August 2023
From 26 to 30 July 2023, UNESCO organized an intensive training course for more than 20 cultural heritage professionals from eight regions of Ukraine, including the cities of Odesa, Kyiv and L’viv, threatened by increasingly frequent attacks.
With the support of Japan, the in-person training aimed to strengthen the knowledge and expertise of Ukrainian heritage professionals in disaster risk ...
3 min read
Friday, 4 August 2023
On 24 July 2023, the UNESCO World Heritage Centre in partnership with the African World Heritage Fund (AWHF) and ICCROM, held an online workshop dedicated to “Re-discovering African urban heritage through the lenses of the 2011 Recommendation on the Historic Urban Landscape” (HUL). Thanks to the generous support of the Government of Norway, the workshops recorded the participation of over 100 ...
2 min read
Monday, 31 July 2023
Last July, students joined an environmental DNA (eDNA) sampling campaign in the ocean areas bordering the pebble beaches of the Península Valdés World Heritage site, as part of the global eDNA expeditions that UNESCO is currently piloting across 25 marine World Heritage sites to better understand ocean biodiversity and the effects of climate change.
Water samples were collected from 5 ...
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Friday, 28 July 2023
On 22 June 2023, the UNESCO World Heritage Centre organized a Learning & exchange workshop on ‘Post COVID-19 World Heritage Site Management: Integration of Conservation, Tourism and Local Livelihood Strategies at World Heritage Sites,’ a project funded by the government of Japan through the UNESCO/Japanese Funds-in-Trust.
(c) Dr Ang Ming Chee. Extract from the PowerPoint Presentation ...
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Wednesday, 26 July 2023
Living Heritage: Revitalising Stone Town of Zanzibar Socioeconomic Development
On 25 July 2023, UNESCO organized a launch event for the project, Living Heritage: Revitalising Stone Town of Zanzibar Socioeconomic Development. Honorable Simai Mohammed Said, Minister of Tourism and Heritage in the Revolutionary Government of Zanzibar graced the event. The launch was participated by government ...
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Odesa: UNESCO strongly condemns repeated attacks against cultural heritage, including World Heritage
Sunday, 23 July 2023
UNESCO is deeply dismayed and condemns in the strongest terms the brazen attack carried out by the Russian forces, which hit several cultural sites in the city center of Odesa, home to the World Heritage property ‘The Historic Centre of Odesa’.
The attack took the lives of at least two people, according to preliminary reports, and damaged a number of significant cultural sites, including the ...
1 min read
Monday, 17 July 2023
The 4th Huangshan Dialogue on UNESCO-designated sites and Sustainable Development held on 29-30 June in Huangshan, China by the International Centre on Space Technologies for Natural and Cultural Heritage (HIST) under the auspices of UNESCO, adopted the Huangshan Vision calling for tech-enhanced heritage protection cooperation.
The Huangshan Vision emphasizes the potential role of space, ...
1 min read
Monday, 17 July 2023
In 2023 many natural World Heritage sites in Africa have faced serious challenges related to civil unrest and conflicts threatening biodiversity. The Rapid Response Facility (RRF), a UNESCO World Heritage Centre and Fauna and Flora International joint initiative, has quickly mobilized resources to partners on the ground to tackle these emergency situations.
© Wild Africa ...
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