Sacred City of Caral-Supe
Summary provided by State Party
We consider that one of the most successful practices of the management of the Sacred City of Caral has been the training of local inhabitants to ensure appropriate management of the cultural heritage. The local tour guides, who created the Puntapaj (“he who goes in front” in the local Quechua language) Association, should be noted in this context; they transmit knowledge with a high degree of identification and pride. Their effectiveness has been recognized by the visitors, who have left appreciative comments in the site visitors’ book. Some journalists who have visited the Sacred City of Caral have also written words of praise about the local tour guides.
One-off Initiative for the recognition of best practices
The World Heritage Capacity Building Strategy, adopted by the World Heritage Committee in 2011, responds to the identified needs of a diverse and growing audience for capacity building for World Heritage conservation and management activities. Development of resource materials such as best practice case studies and communication tools are among the activities foreseen by the strategy to improve these capacities.
An example of an innovative capacity building initiative is the recently concluded Recognition of Best Practice in World Heritage Management. This initiative, requested by the World Heritage Committee and carried out within the framework of the 40th anniversary of the World Heritage Convention in 2012, solicited applications from World Heritage properties which had demonstrated new and creative ways of managing their sites. Twenty-three submissions were received and evaluated by a 10-member international selection committee which included the representatives of the Convention’s Advisory Bodies, ICCROM, ICOMOS and IUCN. The Historic Town of Vigan in the Philippines was chosen as a best practice achieved with relatively limited resources, a good integration of the local community in many aspects of the sustainable conservation and management of the property and with an interesting multi-faceted approach to the protection of the site.
Management practices recognized as being successful and sustainable can include everything from involving local people in site management, to creating innovative policies and regulating tourism. There are sites that include students from local schools in the management of the site (Slovenia), train local inhabitants as tour guides (Peru), or even put up nylon fences to protect villagers from straying tigers from the Sundarbans National Park (India). Sharing these practices helps other sites find solutions that work.
This initiative provides incentives for States Parties and site managers to reflect on their management practices and explore improvement possibilities.
Consult more best practice examples
- Acropolis, Athens
- Angkor
- Archaeological Ensemble of Mérida
- Boyana Church
- Coffee Cultural Landscape of Colombia
- Cueva de las Manos, Río Pinturas
- Fossil Hominid Sites of South Africa
- Gros Morne National Park
- Historic and Architectural Complex of the Kazan Kremlin
- Historic Areas of Istanbul
- Historic Centre of Oaxaca and Archaeological Site of Monte Albán
- Historic City of Vigan
- Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto (Kyoto, Uji and Otsu Cities)
- Jiuzhaigou Valley Scenic and Historic Interest Area
- Land of Frankincense
- Le Morne Cultural Landscape
- Medieval City of Rhodes
- Mogao Caves
- Old Havana and its Fortification System
- SGang Gwaay
- Sacred City of Caral-Supe
- San Marino Historic Centre and Mount Titano
- Shiretoko
- Škocjan Caves
- Sundarbans National Park
- Teide National Park
- Wet Tropics of Queensland