Engaging Local Communities in the Stewardship of World Heritage (COMPACT)
The role of local communities in ensuring that World Heritage contributes to sustainable development was chosen by the World Heritage Committee as the central theme for the celebration of the 40th anniversary of the ...
The current state and trend of World Heritage values of the Dja Faunal Reserve are threatened by pressures from development projects (dams, plantations, logging) in the periphery of the Reserve. There is concern ...
Enhancing Our Heritage Toolkit 2.0
The Enhancing Our Heritage Toolkit 2.0 (EoH 2.0) provides a globally tested self-assessment methodology to support World Heritage managers and actors to evaluate management effectiveness in a World Heritage property ...
Enhancing our Heritage- Monitoring and managing for success in World Natural Heritage sites
Enhancing Our Heritage - Monitoring and Managing for Success in World Natural Heritage Sites was a seven-year UNESCO/IUCN project funded by the United Nations Foundation. The project commenced in 2001 and operated ...
Enhancing the implementation capacity of the 1972 Convention at Natural World Heritage sites
Ethiopia is among the African countries, which have nine sites inscribed on the World Heritage List. Eight cultural sites and only one natural property, the Simien National Park inscribed in 1978. The Ethiopian ...
A community engagement programme has provided key data and inputs for the sustainable development of the World Heritage site.
Evaluation Mission of the Air and Ténéré Natural Reserves
Objectives The Air and Ténéré Natural Reserves were inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1991 and on the List of World Heritage in Danger in 1992, in particular because of the impact of armed conflict. This ...
The site’s values are communicated to the public through signage, publications and interpretation at visitor centres. The Maori have been involved in creating displays explaining the cultural and natural ...
Finalisation of the Zakouma National Park nomination file on the World Heritage List
Zakouma National Park is located in southeastern Chad. Inscribed in the Tentalive List in 2005, it covers an area of nearly three hundred and five thousand (305,000) hectares. Created in 1963, Zakouma National Park ...
Five years of Conflict - The State of Cultural Heritage in the Ancient City of Aleppo
The first comprehensive account of the devastation wrought on the World Heritage site of the Ancient City of Aleppo during years of armed conflict in the Syrian Arab Republic has just been published by UNESCO and ...
As a result of the first cycle of the Periodic Reporting exercise and the Action Plan for Europe presented and adopted at the 30th session of the World Heritage Committee in 2006, a series of sub-regional meetings ...
Fortifications and the World Heritage Convention – Valdivia Chile 2004 and Campeche Mexico 2005
Two international experts’ meetings were held in Campeche (Mexico) on 12-15 March 2004, and subsequently in Valdivia (Chile) on 19-21 January 2005, on the subject of Fortifications in the Americas and the World ...
Since its inception in 2001, the Netherlands Funds-in-Trust (NFiT) at the World Heritage Centre has served the international heritage community as well as local communities in practically all regions of the world in ...
From port city to World Heritage site: case study of George Town (Malaysia)
The multi-cultural historic city of George Town developed a strategy to build on its rich and diverse cultural heritage as a resource for local development and livelihoods after its free trade port status was ...
Global Strategy: Support to agro-pastoral cultural landscapes
Pastoralism is defined as a system of livestock farming which depends, for the most part, on the generally non-intensive use of naturally-occurring plant materials for grazing, either on a farm or as part of a ...
Caribbean archaeological heritage has been the subject of enhancement initiatives at the beginning of the years 2000, to valorise underrepresented heritage on the World Heritage List in the region. An international ...
Guidance for Wind Energy Projects in a World Heritage Context
The following text explains the basics of the Convention to better understand its spirit and underlying principles. It further outlines good practices that assist complying with recommended international ...
Guide 1 – Case Study: Historic Town Of Vigan (Philippines)
Vigan is an exceptionally intact and well-preserved example of a European trading town in East and South-East Asia. The architecture of the city reflects its historic roots and rich culture in both materials and ...
Guide 1: Understanding tourism at your destination
This guide will help you understand why tourism matters, some key questions you may need to ask and answer, and some ways to fill evidence gaps, such as utilising other partner's resources. Continue reading below to ...
Guide 10: Monitoring success with sustainable tourism
This guide 10 will tell you why benchmarking matters and suggest some ideas on how you can develop site and destination specific benchmarks.
Guide 2 – Case Study: Angkor and The Tourism Development Strategic Plan 2012–2020
Guide 2 Case Study: Angkor and The Tourism Development Strategic Plan 2012–2020 © Toolkit About the Sustainable Tourism Toolkit How to use this guide? Our Objective Resource ...
Guide 2 – Case Study: Ichkeul National Park (Tunisia)
Ichkeul National Park is characterized by a very specific hydrological functioning system, based on seasonal alternation of water levels and salinity. The lake and surrounding marshes constitute a stopover for ...
Guide 2: Developing a strategy for progressive change
This guide 2 will tell you how to develop a strategy for your destination that complements both the sensitive nature of a heritage site, as well as the task of sustainable and profitable tourism.
Guide 3 – Case Study: Melaka and George Town, Historic Cities of the Straits of Malacca (Malaysia)
George Town and Melaka were jointly inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2008 due to their shared rich multi-cultural trading heritage. However, they have also been subject to criticism and a feeling of ...
Guide 3: Developing effective governance
This guide 3 will tell you why good destination management and governance matters, and how you can start to develop it in your World Heritage destination.
Guide 4 – Case Study: Avebury World Heritage site, Wiltshire (United Kingdom)
Avebury stone circle or ‘henge’ lies at the centre of half the Stonehenge, Avebury, and Associated Sites inscribed as World Heritage. It is the sister-site to the perhaps more widely recognizable monument: ...
Guide 4 – Case study: Great Barrier Reef (Australia)
Coral reefs around the world are threatened both by natural and anthropogenic factors, with tourism having an important role in the latter. Direct impacts in coral reefs are related with badly managed tourism ...
Guide 4 – Case study: Old and New Towns of Edinburgh (United Kingdom)
The World Heritage Status Report showed that 41% of visitors to Edinburgh are aware that it is a World Heritage site, and 17% of all visitors think that Edinburgh’s World Heritage status influenced their choice. ...
Guide 4 – Case study: Røros Mining Town and the Circumference (Norway)
Røros Mining Town and the Circumference is linked to the copper mines, established in the 17th century, which were used for 333 years until 1977. The site includes the Town and its industrial-rural cultural ...
Guide 4: Engaging local communities and businesses
This guide 4 will tell you how to reach out and engage with local businesses and the community in a dialogue explaining the mutual benefit that comes with making tourism more sustainable.
Guide 5 – Case study: Røros Mining Town and the Circumference (Norway)
In was back in 1922 when the Chief Inspectorate of Ancient Monuments and Buildings (Riksantikvaren) first understood the potential value of Røros Mining Town heritage. At that time, a recommendation of protection ...
Guide 5: Communicating with visitors
This guide 5 will tell you why communicating with visitors matters, and how you can do it effectively, in a culturally appropriate manner.
Guide 6 – Case Study: Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape (United Kingdom)
The Cornwall and West Devon mining landscape was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2006 comprised of 10 different mining landscapes across the area. As the largest World Heritage site in the United Kingdom, ...
Guide 6: Managing the development of tourism infrastructure
This guide 6 will tell you why infrastructure is vital to sustainable tourism and how to begin the process of developing appropriate infrastructure.
Guide 7 – Case study: Røros Mining Town and the Circumference (Norway)
Røros Mining Town and the Circumference is a clear case of a cultural landscape sustained by traditional socio-economic systems. In 2009 there were 21 active farms within the property and a number of redundant farms ...
Guide 7: Adding value through products, experiences, and services
This guide 7 will tell you how to think about developing products, services, and experiences as a key way to sustain the OUV of the site, enthuse tourists, and benefit local communities.
Guide 8 – Case Study: Wadi Al-Hitan (Egypt)
Wadi Al-Hitan – also known as Whale Valley – is located in the Western Desert of Egypt. It is an ‘open-air museum’ of invaluable fossil remains of the earliest, and now extinct, suborder of whales (Archaeoceti), as ...
Guide 8: Adding value through products, experiences, and services
This guide 8 will tell you how to think about developing products, services, and experiences as a key way to sustain the OUV of the site, enthuse tourists, and benefit local communities.
Guide 9 – Case study: Land of Frankincense (Oman)
The Land of Frankincense (LoF) World Heritage site is composed of four archaeological sites related to the antique trade of Frankincense and other luxury items across the Dhofar province of Oman: Shisr (sometimes ...
Guide 9: Securing funding and investment
This guide 9 will tell you some ways that you can secure investment in order to help make the aspirations developed from these guides for your site and the destination as a whole a reality.
Guide to good practices in landscape-residential areas 1950-75, Basque country (Spain)
The “Guide to Good Practices in Landscape-Residential areas 1950-75” aims to help public administrations and technical teams in improving the quality of life in residential areas as built between 1950-75. It ...
Guidebook for urban and architectural regulation of Cidade Velha (Cabo Verde)
The Guidebook aims to make the urban legislation of the city of Cidade Velha more accessible and understandable to the public. This document constitutes an exemplary tool for awareness raising of local communities ...
Handbook on Cultural Heritage and Local Development for African Local Governments
The handbook "Cultural heritage and local development: A Guide for African local governments", co-edited by the France-UNESCO Cooperation Agreement and CRATerre-ENSAG in 2006, was designed as a tool for decision ...
Helping local homestay hosts to be more sustainable businesses in Indonesia
Helping local homestay hosts to be more sustainable in Indonesia © Tourism constitutes one of Indonesia's priority government investment areas to boost national GDP. A programme of tourism ...
Heritage and poverty alleviation (Senegal, Benin, Lao People's Democratic Republic, China, Guyana)
Urban heritage preservation policies, when separated from development strategies, can lead to a marginalization of the poorest populations. Constraints caused by regulations, in the absence of assistance mechanisms, ...
International Co-operation has taken decades to accept texts including notions such as “recognition” or “perception” in relation to processes of cultural determination by communities (local, peasant, of interest, ...
Heritage Education Programme in Puebla (Mexico)
The local government of Puebla has developed a comprehensive Heritage Education Programme to raise awareness about the city’s cultural heritage and aid its conservation. The programme includes educational events, ...
Heritage Impact Assessments at World Heritage Properties: Database and Guidance Tools
Heritage impact assessments (HIAs) and Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs) are increasingly required to analyze possible effects and consequences of development on the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of World ...
Heritage in the post-COVID World
The COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented health crisis that has affected each one of us, and we still cannot predict its long-term effects. Inevitably, our World Heritage sites suffered too: the abrupt halt in ...
Heritage of Science and Technology: World Heritage Potential of Space Technology
The issues of identification and preservation of the heritage of science and technology have been discussed at a number of international meetings organized within the framework of the UNESCO Thematic Initiative ...
Heritage-based city branding in Trogir (Croatia)
A new city branding strategy based on cultural values and community participation aims to enhance Trogir’s attractiveness as a destination for cultural tourism.
Heritage-based urban planning for Sustainable Development in Gwalior and Orchha (India)
A new initiative aims to implement the approach of the 2011 UNESCO Recommendation on the Historic Urban Landscape in the Indian cities of Gwalior and Orchha. The project is born out of a collaboration between the ...
Human Evolution: Adaptations, Dispersals and Social Developments (HEADS)
Human Evolution related properties represent a process of evolutionary accretion that took place over a vast period of time, offering vital insight to scientific, cultural, ethological and historical dimensions of ...
Identification and Promotion of Muslim Heritage in Central Europe
The Muslim heritage of Central Europe is very rich. It is a synthesis of Eastern and European cultural elements, embodied in the values of tangible and intangible culture. This are primarily mosques and mizars ...
Imagining Heritage in the Digital Dimension
The digital aspects of heritage are growing enormously, ranging from creating virtual visits and online exhibitions to cataloguing inventory of heritage objects and creating 3D models of archaeological sites. ...
This publication examines the impacts of tourism in the World heritage site of the Hoi An Ancient Town, an exceptionally well preserved example of a traditional Asian trading port and an outstanding material ...
IMPACT publication: Luang Prabang
The first in a series of studies examining the impact of tourism on culture and the environment in selected sites in the Asia-Pacific region, this IMPACT publication: Tourism and Heritage Site Management in the ...
This publication focuses on the impacts of tourism on the Rice Terraces of the Philippine Cordilleras, an outstanding model of sustainable use of limited land resources, using traditional knowledge-based technology ...
Impacts of Wind Energy Projects and their Assessment
This part of the Guidance provides heritage and impact assessment practitioners, site managers and heritage institutions an overview of the process for assessing the impacts of wind energy projects associated with ...
Improvement of the conservation of Koutammakou, the Land of the Batammariba - Phase 2
Following the collapse of several Sikien during the rain season in 2018, an on-site emergency mission was carried out by UNESCO from 19-24 October 2018 to assess the extent of the damages caused. The mission ...
Improvement of the conservation of Koutammakou, the Land of the Batammariba
Following the collapse of several Takienta during the rainy season in 2018, an on-site emergency mission was carried out by UNESCO from 19-24 October 2018 to assess the extent of the damages caused. The mission ...
An ongoing programme in a remote Algerian town aims to connect the local community with the archaeological site through workshops and activities for young residents.
Improving the Effectiveness of the World Heritage Reactive Monitoring Process
The Reactive Monitoring process established under the World Heritage Convention is one of the most comprehensive systems of monitoring ever developed under an international legal instrument in conservation. However, ...
Through a series of strategic actions, Urbino has sought to improve its environmental sustainability and promote climate change mitigation and adaptation. An update of the management plan is currently under way in ...
Improving visitor infrastructure in Angkor, Cambodia.
Improving visitor infrastructure in Angkor, Cambodia © The Angkor World Heritage site has long attracted visitors to Cambodia, providing a major driver for the country’s economy with a steady ...
The Million wells for Bengaluru campaign is an initiative to build one million shallow wells using traditional well-digging techniques. The initiative for the revival of traditional water systems integrates ...
Initiative on Heritage of Astronomy, Science and Technology
One type of scientific heritage under-represented on the World Heritage List concerns sites connected with natural sciences and the development of their application through engineering and technology.
Initiative on Heritage of Religious Interest
There exist a great variety of religious and sacred sites that are representative of the different cultures and traditions of the world. Approximately 20 percent of the properties inscribed on the World Heritage ...
Integrating cultural and natural heritage values in urban development processes in Lyon (France)
The 2019 urban plan aims to protect cultural and natural heritage values and their attributes through specific planning tools, such as green and blue infrastructure planning and the development of heritage ...
Funded by the Government of Japan through the UNESCO/Japanese Funds-in-Trust, implementation from 2022 to 2024. Four World Heritage sites from Asia, Africa, the Arab region and Latin America and the Caribbean work ...
International Conference in Istanbul (Turkey) on the resistance of historic buildings to earthquakes
The “International Conference on the Seismic Performance of Traditional Buildings” was held in Istanbul, Turkey from 16 to 18 November 2000, under the patronage of UNESCO, ICOMOS and Turkey’s Ministry of Culture. It ...
Inventory of Cultural Heritage in Gabon
Gabon currently has two properties inscribed on the World Heritage List, the Ecosystem and Relict Cultural Landscape Lopé - Okanda and the Ivindo National Park, inscribed in 2021 at the 44th enlarged session of the ...