News

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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, ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...