1. Having examined Document WHC-10/34.COM/8A,

2. Recalling Decisions 31 COM 8A.3, 32 COM 8A and 33 COM 14.A2 Paragraph 14 adopted respectively at its 31st (Christchurch, 2007), 32nd (Quebec City, 2008) and 33rd (Seville, 2009) sessions,

3. Takes note of the Tentative Lists presented in Annexes 2 and 3 of this document.

1. Having examined Document WHC-11/35.COM/8A,

2. Stressing the importance of the process of revision and updating of Tentative Lists, in conformity with Article 11 of the World Heritage Convention and in consistency with the established World Heritage List;

3. Takes note of the Tentative Lists presented in Annexes 2 and 3 of this Document.

1.  Having examined Document WHC-12/36.COM/7B.Add,

2.  Recalling Decision 35 COM 7A.13, adopted at its 35th session (UNESCO, 2011),

3.  Commends the State Party for the progress achieved in the operationalization of the Manas Tiger Conservation Foundation (MTCF) and the implementation of an integrated ecosystem-based monitoring system and the Eastern Swamp Deer recovery plan;

4.  Welcomes the respective and joint initiatives of the States Parties of India and Bhutan to consider an extension of the property, including a transboundary extension, and also welcomes the proposal by the State Party of Bhutan to include Royal Manas National Park on its Tentative List;

5.  Requests the State Party to urgently address the slow release of funds to the property, by approving the direct fund flow from Central Government to the MTCF, or through other appropriate measures, to ensure that the current rate of progress can be maintained;

6.  Urges the State Party to include clear guidelines for tourism numbers and activities in the further development of the comprehensive tourism management plan, in order to ensure that the fragile and recovering Outstanding Universal Value of the property is not negatively affected;

7.  Also requests the State Party of Bhutan to submit a copy of the environmental impact assessment (EIA) for the proposed Mangdechhu hydro-electric project, including an assessment of potential impacts on OUV and potential cumulative impacts in relation to the existing Kurichu dam, to the World Heritage Centre for review as soon as it is available and prior to making a decision on whether to approve the project, in line with Paragraph 172 of the Operational Guidelines;

8.  Further requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 February 2014, an updated report on the state of conservation of the property, including a report on the progress achieved in addressing the issue of fund release and the implementation of the other recommendations made by the Committee at its 35th session (UNESCO, 2011), as well as on progress in addressing the issues raised above, for examination by the Committee at its 38th session in 2014.

1.   Having examined Document WHC-12/36.COM/8A,

2.   Stressing the importance of the process of revision and updating of Tentative Lists, as a tool for the regional harmonization of the World Heritage List and of long term planning of its development;

3.   Takes note of the Tentative Lists presented in Annexes 2 and 3 of this document.

1.  Having examined Document WHC-13/37.COM/8A ,

2.  Stressing the importance of the process of revision and updating of Tentative Lists, as a tool for the regional harmonisation of the World Heritage List and of long term planning of its development;

3.  Takes note of the Tentative Lists presented in Annexes 2 and 3 of this document.

1.  Having examined Document WHC-13/37.COM/9,

2.  Recalling Decision 34 COM 13.III adopted at its 34th session (Brasilia, 2010), Decision 35 COM 12C adopted at its 35th session (UNESCO, 2011) and Decision 36 COM 12C adopted at its 36th session (Saint Petersburg, 2012),

3.  Requests the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies to take into account the rich debate held at its 37th session, in particular  on capacity-building, methodology and processes for Tentative Lists and upstream nomination projects, in order to enhance dialogue and communication among all relevant parties including the World Heritage Centre, UNESCO field offices, IUCN regional offices, ICOMOS national committees, international scientific committees and ICCROM capacity-building programmes, as well as UNESCO Category 2 Centres related to world heritage and universities;

4.  Suggests to the States Parties to take into account the assessments of impact on natural and cultural heritage;

5.  Welcomes all the actions undertaken to improve the processes and practices prior to consideration by the World Heritage Committee of a nomination (the ‘upstream processes’) and commends the States Parties, the Advisory Bodies and the World Heritage Centre for the pilot projects in which progress was made;

6.  Also commends the State Party of Namibia for having successfully achieved the pilot project concerning the Namib Sand Sea;

7.  Urges the States Parties concerned that have not yet done so, to fully collaborate providing technical and financial support to implement the required actions to make progress with the pilot projects and encourages them to seek assistance from the World Heritage Centre to identify opportunities to secure resources to progress the project, if necessary;

8.  Calls upon the international community to provide technical and financial support to assist the States Parties concerned in the implementation of their pilot projects which were not able to identify adequate resources;

9.  Also requests the Advisory Bodies and the World Heritage Centre to report on the progress in implementing the pilot projects for consideration by the World Heritage Committee at its 38th session in 2014.

1. Having examined Document WHC-14/38.COM/8A,
2. Stressing the importance of the process of revision and updating of Tentative Lists, as a tool for regional harmonisation of the World Heritage List and of long term planning of its development;
3. Takes note of the Tentative Lists presented in Annexes 2 and 3 of this document;
4. Recalls that all States Parties to the Convention shall, in so far as possible, submit tentative lists of those properties situated on their territory which might be considered suitable for inscription on the World Heritage List;
5. Encourages States Parties to the Convention who have not yet submitted any tentative list of those properties situated on their territory which might be considered suitable for inscription on the World Heritage List to request International Assistance in order to help them prepare such a list;
6. Requests the World Heritage Centre to present a proposal for revising the procedure of registration of Tentative Lists in the Operational Guidelines, for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 39th session, in 2015.

1. Having examined Document WHC-14/38.COM/9A,
2. Recalling Decision 34 COM 13.III adopted at its 34th session (Brasilia, 2010), Decision 35 COM 12C at its 35th session (UNESCO, 2011), Decision 36 COM 12C at its 36th session (Saint Petersburg, 2012) and Decision 37 COM 9 at its 37th session (Phnom Penh, 2013);
3. Welcomes all the actions undertaken to improve the processes and practices prior to consideration by the World Heritage Committee of a nomination (the ‘Upstream Processes’) and commends the States Parties, the Advisory Bodies and the World Heritage Centre for the pilot projects in which progress was made;
4. Acknowledges that outside of the referenced pilot projects, in order to be effective, the upstream support should ideally intervene at an early stage, more precisely at the moment of the revision of States Parties Tentative Lists;
5. Also commends the State Party of Namibia for the inscription on the World Heritage List of the Namib Sand Sea at the 37th session (Phnom Penh, 2013), Saudi Arabia for the submission of the nomination on the Rock Drawings in the region of Hail, and Uruguay for the submission of the Cultural and Industrial Landscape of Fray Bentos;
6. Urges the States Parties concerned that have not yet done so, to fully collaborate providing technical and financial support to implement the required actions to make progress with the pilot projects and encourages them to seek assistance from the World Heritage Centre to identify opportunities to secure resources to progress the project, if necessary;
7. Calls upon the international community to provide technical and financial support to assist the States Parties concerned in the implementation of their pilot projects which were not able to identify adequate resources;
8. Requests the Advisory Bodies and the World Heritage Centre to report on the progress in implementing the pilot projects for consideration by the World Heritage Committee at its 39th session in 2015;
9. Also requests the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies to draft a proposal in view of including the Upstream Process in the Operational Guidelines and to specify their implementation modalities, in the light of the outcomes of the Director General’s meeting “World Heritage Convention: Thinking ahead”, for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 39th session, in 2015.

1. Having examined Document WHC-15/39.COM/8A,
2. Stressing the importance of the process of revision and updating of Tentative Lists, as a tool for regional harmonisation of the World Heritage List and of long-term planning of its development;
3. Takes note of the Tentative Lists presented in Annexes 2 and 3 of this document.

1. Having examined Document WHC/16/40.COM/8A,
2. Stressing the importance of the process of revision and updating of Tentative Lists, as a tool for regional harmonisation of the World Heritage List and of long-term planning of its development;
3. Encourages States Parties to seek as early as possible upstream advice from the Advisory Bodies during the development or revision of their Tentative Lists as appropriate;
4. Takes note of the Tentative Lists presented in Annexes 2 and 3 of this document.

1. Having examined Document WHC/16/40.COM/8A,
2. Stressing the importance of the process of revision and updating of Tentative Lists, as a tool for regional harmonisation of the World Heritage List and of long-term planning of its development;
3. Encourages States Parties to seek as early as possible upstream advice from the Advisory Bodies during the development or revision of their Tentative Lists as appropriate;
4. Takes note of the Tentative Lists presented in Annexes 2 and 3 of this document.

1. Having examined Document WHC/16/40.COM/9A,
2. Recalling Decisions 34 COM 13.III, 35 COM 12C, 36 COM 12C, 37 COM 9 and 39 COM 11, adopted at its 34th (Brasilia, 2010), 35th (UNESCO, 2011), 36th (Saint-Petersburg, 2012), 37th (Phnom Penh, 2013) and 39th (Bonn, 2015) sessions respectively,
3. Also recalling the integration of the Upstream Processes in Paragraphs 71 and 122 of the Operational Guidelines,
4. Welcomes all the actions undertaken to improve the processes and practices prior to the consideration of nominations by the World Heritage Committee, including the creation of a special unit at ICOMOS; commends the States Parties of Saudi Arabia and Uruguay for the successful termination of the pilot projects in 2015 and the inscription on the World Heritage List of the Rock Art in the Hail region and the Fray Bentos Industrial Landscape respectively; and also commends the States Parties, the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies for the pilot projects that registered progress;
5. Recognizes the efforts undertaken by the States Parties involved, the Advisory Bodies and the World Heritage Centre and decides to phase out the pilot project of Gadara (Modern Um Qeis or Qays), Jordan;
6. Recalls that, in order to be effective, the upstream support should ideally take place at an early stage, preferably at the moment of the preparation or revision of the States Parties’ Tentative Lists;
7. Notes the growing number of States Parties that request upstream advice and the lack of budgetary provisions for the appropriate implementation of the Upstream Processes, and also notes that due to the lack of such provision there is a risk of providing greater support only to those States Parties with the means to fund such advice, thus jeopardizing the universal application of the Convention;
8. Recognizes therefore that adequate and equitable financing of the Upstream Processes is needed to provide technical and financial support to States Parties which are not able to identify and secure the resources necessary to request upstream support, and that such financing is needed prior to agreeing further steps to implement any policy on upstream advice, in order to avoid generating further imbalances in the List;
9. Also recalls that upstream support can be requested by eligible States Parties under the preparatory assistance, in the framework of the International Assistance mechanism and under the new budget line approved for Advisory Missions under the World Heritage Fund, within the limits of available resources;
10. In view of ensuring proper follow-up, greater efficiency, transparency and accountability as well as streamlining and improved coordination of the required actions following requests for upstream advice, takes note of the draft Upstream Process request format contained in Annex I to Document WHC/16/40.COM/9A and invites comments from the States Parties on this format and on the wider issues with the implementation of the Upstream Processes;
11. Requests the World Heritage Centre, in collaboration with the Advisory Bodies and the States Parties, to further review the lessons learned in the implementation of the Upstream Processes, and to present harmonized proposals, including those addressing the needs of the African region, least developed countries and Small Island Developing States, to ensure the effective and equitable implementation of the Upstream Processes for consideration by the World Heritage Committee at its 41st session in 2017, together with a report on the upstream activities currently being implemented by the Advisory Bodies and UNESCO.

1. Having examined Document WHC/17/41.COM/8A,
2. Stressing the importance of the process of revision and updating of Tentative Lists, as a tool for regional harmonisation of the World Heritage List and long-term planning of its development,
3. Encourages States Parties to seek as early as possible upstream advice from the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies during the development or revision of their Tentative Lists as appropriate;
4. Takes note of the Tentative Lists presented in Annexes 2 and 3 of this document.

1. Having examined Documents WHC/17/41.COM/11, WHC/17/41.COM/10A and WHC/17/41.COM/12A,
2. Recalling Decisions 39 COM 10B.5, 39 COM 11, 40 COM 10A and 40 COM 11 adopted at its 39th (Bonn, 2015) and 40th (Istanbul/UNESCO, 2016) sessions respectively,
3. Taking into account the deliberations of the Consultative Body established at the beginning of the session under Rule 20 of the Rules of Procedure,
4. Decides to keep the current mechanism of registering Tentative Lists unchanged and to maintain the way Tentative Lists are presented to the Committee, together with their publication on the World Heritage Centre’s website;
5. Further decides to introduce a disclaimer into the Operational Guidelines as an amendment of Paragraph 68, and to the Committee decisions concerning Tentative Lists:
   

   The Tentative Lists of States Parties are published by the World Heritage Centre at its website and/or in working documents in order to ensure transparency, access to information and to facilitate harmonization of Tentative Lists at regional and thematic levels.

   The sole responsibility for the content of each Tentative List lies with the State Party concerned. The publication of the Tentative Lists does not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever of the World Heritage Committee or of the World Heritage Centre or of the Secretariat of UNESCO concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its boundaries.

6. Emphasizes the need to further promote harmonization of Tentative Lists at the regional level and underlines its importance as a tool in enhancing dialogue between States Parties;
7. Highlights the importance of the capacity-building activities and notes the need to connect the upstream processes with the preparation and harmonisation of Tentative Lists more effectively;
8. Invites States Parties to engage in a dialogue with all stakeholders as part of the national process to include a site on the Tentative List;
9. Encourages States Parties to refrain from including on their Tentative Lists sites that may potentially raise issues, before these are solved through a dialogue with concerned States Parties;
10. Also encourages States Parties to address concerns of other States Parties, as much as feasible, through constructive dialogue, before the submission of relevant nominations to the World Heritage List;
11. Adopts the proposed revision of Chapter V and Annex 7 of the Operational Guidelines as presented in the Annex to this Decision;
12. Recalls Decision 39 COM 11 Paragraph 8 with regard to Annex 3 of the Operational Guidelines and decides to provide recommendations for its revision, at the Committee’s 43rd session in 2019.

Annex to Decision 41 COM 11 (WHC/17/41.COM/18, p. 270)

1. Having examined Documents WHC/18/42.COM/7, WHC/18/42.COM/7A, WHC/18/42.COM/7A.Add, WHC/18/42.COM/7A.Add.2, WHC/18/42.COM/7B and WHC/18/42.COM/7B.Add and WHC/18/42.COM/7B.Add.2,
2. Recalling Decisions 40 COM 7 and 41 COM 7, adopted at its 40th (Istanbul/UNESCO, 2016) and 41st (Krakow, 2017) sessions respectively,
3. Thanks the State Party of Bahrain for having organized a World Heritage Site Managers Forum (Manama, 2018), as a capacity-building exercise aiming at increasing the understanding of the World Heritage decision-making process among site managers, in order to achieve a more effective protection of the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV); acknowledges the importance and benefit of this Forum and considers that it should be convened in conjunction with all future sessions of the World Heritage Committee;
4. Takes note of the Statement of Participants to the Forum and encourages States Parties to support the participation of their respective site managers to future fora and other capacity-building opportunities in order to enable them to provide appropriate information with regard to the management of their respective sites;
   
   

   Statutory matters related to Reactive Monitoring
   Reactive Monitoring evaluation

5. Takes note with appreciation that the World Heritage Centre has launched an evaluation of the Reactive Monitoring process and thanks the State Party of Switzerland for its financial support to this activity;

6. Notes with concern that some properties have remained on the List of World Heritage in Danger for more than ten years; this raises questions on whether the OUV has been maintained and requests the World Heritage Centre to establish an inclusive working mechanism for assessing the OUV of these sites, and to present a report during the 44th session;
7. Urges States Parties along with other stakeholders to actively contribute to the evaluation of the Reactive Monitoring process to ensure this mechanism remains a valuable indicator and overview of the state of conservation of heritage;
8. Also takes note that the Secretariat has prepared audio-visual communication and outreach material related to the List of World Heritage in Danger;
9. Encourages all stakeholders of the World Heritage Convention to engage in the promotion of a better understanding of the implications and benefits of properties being inscribed on the List of World Heritage in Danger, and to develop appropriate information material in this regard with a view to overcome the negative perceptions of the List of World Heritage in Danger;
10. Requests that the Reactive Monitoring Evaluation includes options for process improvements for sites on the List of World Heritage in Danger, in particular how actions recommended by Reactive Monitoring missions to assist States Parties meet their Desired state of conservation should be incorporated into the costed Action Plans decided by the World Heritage Committee in its Decision 41 COM 14;
11. Further requests the World Heritage Centre develop a proposal, for sharing in the World Heritage Market Place, for funds to support a workshop to assist States Parties with sites on the List of World Heritage in Danger to develop and implement prioritized, staged and costed actions plans, and notes that these plans can be linked to requests for international assistance and shared in the Market Place;
12. Recognizing the importance of focusing on those properties of greatest concern, recommends that, with effect from the 43rd session of the Committee, the World Heritage Centre considers geographical and thematic distribution of properties as additional criteria when determining which properties to open for discussion under Agenda items 7A and 7B;
    
    Dialogue with civil society
    
13. Welcomes the continued interest of civil society organizations in the Convention, acknowledging the important contribution that can be made to the promotion and conservation of heritage on the ground and to capacity-building;
14. Also welcomes the initiative of the World Heritage Centre to open the consultation processes related to the Convention to a larger number of stakeholders, including civil society;
15. Takes note of the World Heritage Civil Society Workshop organized further to the initiative of World Wildlife Fund (WWF) in March 2018, which discussed how civil society participation in the Convention, and specifically in World Heritage Committee sessions, can be further improved;
16. Encourages again States Parties and civil society organizations to continue to explore possibilities to further civil society engagement in the Convention, both by contributing to enhanced conservation of heritage on the site and national level and by providing relevant input to the heritage related debate at the global level;
    
    Emergency situations resulting from conflicts
    
17. Deplores the loss of human life as well as the degradation of humanitarian conditions resulting from the conflict situations prevailing in several countries, and expresses its utmost concern at the devastating damage sustained and the continuing threats facing cultural and natural heritage in general;
18. Urges all parties associated with conflicts to refrain from any action that would cause further damage to cultural and natural heritage and to fulfill their obligations under international law by taking all possible measures to protect such heritage, in particular the safeguarding of World Heritage properties and the sites included in the Tentative List;
19. Also urges the States Parties to adopt measures against World Heritage properties being used for military purposes and to stop uncontrolled development;
20. Also expresses its utmost concern about the impacts of conflicts causing an escalation of the already severe poaching crisis in central Africa, as armed groups are financing their activities through illegal wildlife trade, which is having a severe impact on wildlife populations, thereby degrading the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of natural World Heritage properties;
21. Appeals to all Member States of UNESCO to cooperate in the fight against the illicit trafficking of cultural objects and illegal wildlife trade, as well as cultural heritage protection in general, including through the implementation of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), and of United Nations Security Council Resolutions 2199 (2015), 2253 (2015) and 2347 (2017) and of the 1970 Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import and Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property;
    
    

    Emergency situations resulting from natural disasters
    

22. Welcomes the efforts undertaken by the World Heritage Centre to implement the Strategy for Reducing Risks from Disasters at World Heritage Properties;
23. Urges States Parties, in coordination with the World Heritage Centre, to give priority within international assistance in implementing emergency measures to mitigate significant damages resulting from natural disasters that are likely to affect the Outstanding Universal Value of World Heritage properties;
24. Encourages States Parties and other stakeholders to further strengthen international cooperation aiming at mitigating impacts of major natural disasters affecting World Heritage properties and reducing vulnerabilities on lives, properties and livelihoods;
    

    
    Other conservation issues
    Reconstruction

25. Thanks the Government of Poland for hosting the International Conference on Reconstruction “The Challenges of World Heritage Recovery” (Warsaw, 6-8 May 2018), providing a forum for review of specific case studies and understanding of the role of reconstruction in recovery, especially in post-conflict and post-disaster situations;
26. Welcomes the Warsaw Recommendation providing clear principles on reconstruction and recovery and requests the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies to broadly disseminate it among States Parties, World Heritage stakeholders and partner organizations;
27. Also requests the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies to continue the reflection and report back to its 43rd session in 2019 on the implementation of the Warsaw Recommendation;
28. Encourages the ongoing cooperation with the World Bank and with United Nations agencies in addressing the challenges of World Heritage recovery and reconstruction;
    
    

    Climate Change

29. Expresses its continued concern about the impacts of climate change on the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of World Heritage properties and reiterates the importance of States Parties undertaking the most ambitious implementation of the Paris Agreement of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), by holding the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2 °C above pre-industrial levels and by pursuing efforts to limit the global average temperature increase to 1.5 °C above pre-industrial levels, recognizing that this would significantly reduce the risks and impacts of climate change;
30. Notes with appreciation the initiatives taken by the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies to advance work on the updating of the Policy Document on the impacts of climate change on World Heritage properties;
31. Requests that the development of the updated Policy Document include consultation with States Parties, the Advisory Bodies and civil society, and be completed for consideration by the Committee at its 43rd session in 2019;
32. Expresses its gratitude to the State Party of Germany for the organization of a workshop on World Heritage and Climate Change (Vilm, October 2017), to the State Party of the Netherlands for its generous support to the updating of the Policy Document and to the State Party of France for its generous support to the first global scientific assessment of climate change impacts on World Heritage-listed coral reefs;
33. Thanks the Secretariat of the UNFCCC for its active participation in the above-mentioned workshop and inputs into the forthcoming broader Policy Document updating process;
    
    

    Absent or unclear boundaries

34. Urges States Parties that still have properties with unclear boundaries and/or buffer zones to undertake the necessary mapping exercises to clarify their boundaries and buffer zones of properties at the time of their inscription, and submit those to the World Heritage Centre for subsequent examination by the World Heritage Committee;
35. Reminds States Parties that any change to existing boundaries and buffer zones must be approved by the World Heritage Committee through the applicable procedures, as outlined in paragraphs 163-167 of the Operational Guidelines;
    

    
    Heritage Impact Assessments/Environmental Impact Assessments (HIAs/EIAs)

36. Welcomes the increasing use of Heritage Impact Assessments (HIAs) to assess the potential impact of proposed development projects on the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of cultural World Heritage properties, and encourages States Parties to use the HIA methodology for all developments within or otherwise affecting cultural World Heritage properties, as part of the accepted decision-making process;
37. Stresses the necessity for HIAs and Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs) to be proportionate to the scope and scale of projects, with simpler assessments being undertaken for smaller projects and Strategic Environmental Assessments (SEAs) for very large projects, and the necessity for assessments to be undertaken in a timely fashion and submitted to the World Heritage Centre for review by the Advisory Bodies, as part of notifications made under Paragraph 172 of the Operational Guidelines;
38. Reiterates that HIAs and EIAs should include a dedicated section examining the potential impact of the project on the OUV of the World Heritage property, in accordance with the existing ICOMOS Guidance and IUCN Advice Note;
39. Notes that HIAs cannot be assessed as stand-alone documents and requests States Parties to ensure that when HIAs are submitted to the World Heritage Centre for review by the Advisory Bodies that they are accompanied by full details of the project to which they refer;
40. Also welcomes the initiative of IUCN and ICCROM to develop further advice on impact assessment for cultural and natural heritage in the framework of the World Heritage Leadership programme with the support of Norway;
    
    Large scale development projects and Strategic Environmental Assessments
    
41. Noting with concern that an increasing number of properties are threatened by large-scale development projects including dams, extractive industries, and transportation infrastructure, located both inside and outside their boundaries,
42. Also noting that Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs) and Heritage Impact Assessments (HIAs) do not always allow for a broad enough assessment of the potential impact of these large-scale developments, nor an assessment of a broad enough range of options at an early enough stage in the planning process,
43. Requests States Parties to ensure that the potential impacts of such large-scale developments on the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of World Heritage properties directly affected or located within their zone of influence are assessed through Strategic Environmental Assessments (SEAs) at an early stage in the development of the overall project, before locations/routes have been fixed and prior to any approvals being given;
44. Recalling Article 6 of the Convention, also requests States Parties to systematically inform the World Heritage Centre, in accordance with Paragraph 172 of the Operational Guidelines, of any planned large-scale development projects in their territories that may impact on the OUV of a property, even if the property concerned is situated on the territory of other States Parties, and to ensure that these impacts are assessed as part of the SEA of the project concerned;
    
    Tourism and Visitor Management
    
45. Acknowledging the contribution of sustainable tourism to the 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development and the positive impact it can have on local communities and the protection of World Heritage properties, nevertheless notes with concern that the number of properties negatively affected by inadequate visitor management and tourism infrastructure development continues to increase;
46. Requests States Parties to develop Visitor Management Plans that assess appropriate carrying capacity of properties for visitors and address the issue of unregulated tourism;
47. Encourages the States Parties to support UNESCO in its effort to develop an overall Visitor Management Strategy for World Heritage, with policy recommendations to assist States Parties in addressing the issues of unregulated and unsustainable tourism use and development, and to provide resources to UNESCO for the implementation of the Strategy;
    
    Impact of sports facilities and activities on World Heritage properties
    
48. Welcomes the continued agreement between IUCN and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) aiming at integrating biodiversity considerations in IOC’s processes, and takes note of the Sport and Biodiversity guide launched by IUCN as the first in a series of reports that will provide guidance to the sports sector regarding its potential impacts on nature, including on World Heritage properties
49. Also welcomes the World Rowing Federation (FISA) commitment to respect and preserve the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of natural and mixed World Heritage properties, and calls on other Sport Federations to consider making similar commitments, including for all types of World Heritage, both natural and cultural;
    
    Dialogue with the extractive industries and the finance sector on the “No-go Commitment”
    
50. Takes note of the continued dialogue between the World Heritage Centre and the extractive industries on extending the “No-go” commitment to other companies;
51. Welcomes the growing interest from the investment sector for the conservation of World Heritage properties and strongly encourages all banks, investment funds, the insurance industry and other relevant private and public sector companies to integrate into their sustainability policies, provisions for ensuring that they are not financing projects that may negatively impact World Heritage properties and that the companies they are investing in subscribe to the “No-go commitment”, and invites them to lodge these policies with the UNESCO World Heritage Centre;
52. Requests the World Heritage Centre, in cooperation with the Advisory Bodies, to continue the fruitful dialogue with extractive industries and the investment sector, including reflections on how to make these commitments and policies publically available online to inspire other companies in these sectors to follow suit;
    
    Earth Observation technologies
    
53. Noting that Earth Observation satellite technologies and spatial analysis tools have tremendously improved over the past decade and that they provide powerful additional means for decision-makers and stakeholders of the Convention to find comprehensive solutions to today’s global challenges for World Heritage properties,
54. Encourages States Parties to make full use of such Earth Observation technologies for the early detection of activities potentially harmful to the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of World Heritage properties, such as deforestation, mining, illegal fisheries, agricultural encroachment, etc. and to better understand trends and respond appropriately;
    
    

    Illegal trade in endangered species and the cooperation with the CITES Convention

55. Reiterates its utmost concern about the growing impacts of the illegal trade in endangered species, which is affecting many natural World Heritage properties;
56. Welcomes the increased attention to this threat and launches an appeal to all Member States of UNESCO to fully implement Resolution 71/326 of United Nations General Assembly on “Tackling illicit trafficking in wildlife”, including through the implementation of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), and with the full engagement of transit and destination countries;
57. Also welcomes the continued fruitful cooperation between the World Heritage Centre, IUCN and the CITES Secretariat and invites the World Heritage Centre and IUCN to further strengthen this cooperation;
    
    Invasive species
58. Notes with concern the important number of properties significantly affected by invasive alien species (IAS);
59. Recalls its encouragement to States Parties to develop adequately-resourced IAS strategies that emphasize prevention and early warning and rapid response in World Heritage properties;
60. Strongly encourages States Parties to incorporate IAS response strategies into climate change mitigation policies for World Heritage properties.

1. Having examined Document WHC/18/42.COM/8A,
2. Stressing the importance of the process of revision and updating of Tentative Lists, as a tool for regional harmonisation of the World Heritage List and long-term planning of its development;
3. Encourages States Parties to seek as early as possible upstream advice from the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies during the development or revision of their Tentative Lists as appropriate;
4. Takes note of the Tentative Lists presented in Annexes 2 and 3 of this document.

1. Having examined Document WHC/19/43.COM/5E,
2. Recalling Decisions 39 COM 5C, 39 COM 13A (Bonn, 2015), 40 COM 5B (Istanbul/UNESCO, 2016), 41 COM 5B, 41 COM 7, 41 COM 11 (Krakow, 2017), 42 COM 5B and 42 COM 9A (Manama, 2018),
3. Also recalling paragraphs 71, 72, and 73 of the Operational Guidelines, encouraging States Parties to seek early advice from the Advisory Bodies for the preparation and update of their Tentative Lists and paragraph 74 highlighting the importance of capacity building for Tentative List preparation,
4. Recognizing that the question of dialogue has long been a matter of reflection between the stakeholders involved in the implementation of the World Heritage Convention, and further recalling in this regard the “Thinking Ahead” initiative (2012-2015) to improve dialogue, communication and transparency among States Parties and Advisory Bodies notably, with the objective of enhancing the credibility of the Convention,
5. Calls upon States Parties preparing to revise their Tentative Lists and undertaking Tentative List harmonization processes to engage in dialogue with the Advisory Bodies at the earliest possible stage of the process;
6. Also calls upon States Parties to comply with Paragraph 172 of the Operational Guidelines, and inform the Committee at the earliest stage possible, and before any irreversible decisions are made, of their intention to undertake or to authorize major restorations or new constructions which may affect the Outstanding Universal Value of a property, to ensure that dialogue may take place at the appropriate time;
7. Requests the Advisory Bodies to prepare specific capacity building modules on the nomination and management planning processes, pending the availability of sufficient funds, and also requests interested States Parties to contribute financial resources towards the creation and implementation of such modules by the Advisory Bodies, the World Heritage Centre and Category 2 Centres;
8. Further requests the World Heritage Centre, the Advisory Bodies and the States Parties to continue to develop innovative ideas to promote and strengthen dialogue which can be implemented on a trial basis to ensure their effectiveness and absence of unintended negative consequences and recommends that these be taken into account in the framework of the Reactive Monitoring process, as well as in the framework of the reform of the nomination process;
9. Invites the Advisory Bodies to engage in effective and constructive dialogue with States Parties in the preparation of Tentative Lists, in the nomination process, including before the publication of recommendations, and post inscription (including monitoring missions), with the aim of achieving more effective credibility, transparency and better implementation of the Convention and Sustainable Development Goals.

1. Having examined Document WHC/19/43.COM/8A.Rev,
2. Stressing the importance of the process of revision and updating of Tentative Lists, as a tool for regional harmonisation of the World Heritage List and long-term planning of its development;
3. Encourages States Parties to seek as early as possible upstream advice from the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies during the development or revision of their Tentative Lists as appropriate;
4. Takes note of the Tentative Lists presented in Annexes 2 and 3 of this document.