2469 news
Friday, 6 June 2008
The "Policy document on the impacts of climate change on World Heritage properties", adopted by the 16th General Assembly of States Parties to the World Heritage Convention, has been published in English and French.The document was prepared with the participation of relevant climate change experts and practitioners of heritage conservation and management, appropriate international ...
1 min read
Tuesday, 3 June 2008
Cultural Landscapes of the Pacific Islands: ICOMOS Thematic Study by Anita Smith and Kevin L. JonesThis is the first regional thematic study on Cultural Landscapes in the Pacific region. Published by ICOMOS (the International Council on Monuments and Sites), it is an overview of cultural landscapes in the Pacific Islands and the defining characteristics that account for their commonalities as ...
1 min read
Friday, 23 May 2008
Works to begin the re-installation of the Aksum Obelisk, also known as Stele 2, in its original location will start June 4th at the World Heritage site in Aksum, Ethiopia. The three pieces of the stele, which stands 24.3 metres high and weighs 152 tons, will be reassembled and mounted before the end of July 2008, a year after the start of this exceptional project.
The inauguration ceremony ...
Thursday, 15 May 2008
A fire tore through the Bluecoat Art Gallery in Liverpool, United Kingdom early Tuesday morning, just two months after extensive renovation works. The building is the oldest in Liverpool and part of the Liverpool - Maritime Mercantile City World Heritage site, inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2004. The extent of the damage must still be assessed but seems to be concentrated in the ...
1 min read
Wednesday, 14 May 2008
This publication marks the end of the Preservation of the Frozen Tombs of the Altai Mountains Project, which was launched in 2005 and carried out by the UNESCO World Heritage Centre with financial support from the UNESCO/Flemish Funds-in-Trust.
The booklet sheds light on the historical, anthropological, archaeological and art-historical aspects of the Altai Mountains, the Russian part of ...
Tuesday, 13 May 2008
A Master Course in "World Heritage at Work" has been created by the Universita degli Studi di Torino (Italy) and the Politecnico di Torino in collaboration with the UNESCO World Heritage Centre. It is intended to contribute to improved management of World Heritage sites through preparing managers and site practitioners to be cultural entrepreneurs, creative agents of their local ...
1 min read
Tuesday, 29 April 2008
Firefighters have been struggling since last weekend to prevent a fire from spreading into Garajonay National Park, situated in the middle of the island of La Gomera in the Canary Islands archipelago. The blaze, which may have been started accidentally by a farmer clearing his land, had already destroyed 700 hectares (1,750 acres) of farmland and woods.
On Monday night the fire had reached ...
1 min read
Friday, 25 April 2008
The sixth episode in the animated series Patrimonito's World Heritage Adventures is now available, and focuses on the plight of mountain gorillas and other threatened species in the Virunga Mountains of Rwanda, Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The mountain gorillas are a flagship species of Virunga National Park, a World Heritage site since 1979. Due to armed conflict and ...
1 min read
Wednesday, 9 April 2008
Training World Heritage site managers is one of the most valuable investments in heritage conservation, particularly as these sites confront the challenges of increasing flows of tourism and diminishing flows of international assistance for conservation and management. This is why UNESCO's World Heritage Centre has joined forces - for the third year running - in an innovative ...
2 min read
Wednesday, 9 April 2008
The Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, today voiced concern about damage caused to the Castello di Moncalieri, in the Italian Province of Turin, inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List in 1997.
A fire broke out on 5 April causing severe damage to the royal apartments and to several floors in one of the watchtowers of the building, a former residence of the House of Savoy.
"I ...
1 min read
Tuesday, 8 April 2008
[in French only] Actualités sur l'avancement des projets CFU :
Le Comité mixte (CMC) de la Convention FRANCE-UNESCO a eu lieu le 28 mars 2008 à l'UNESCO.
Paris, France : L'oeuvre architecturale et urbaine de Le Corbusier. Conférence de presse. 30 janvier 2008.
FOCUS ON « Niger-Loire : Gouvernance et Culture ». Projet européen.
Paris, ...
Monday, 7 April 2008
The Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, today expressed his deep regret at the destruction of Québec’s ancient drill hall, a landmark adjacent to the Historic District of Old Québec, which was inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List in 1985.
“I deeply regret the destruction of this important landmark,” said the Director-General. “It is particularly sad that this proud testimony ...
1 min read
Wednesday, 2 April 2008
On 23 February 2008, 40 representatives of 26 Non Governmental Organizations (NGOs) from Italy, Germany; Ireland, Spain, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands met to launch the CIVILSCAPE network. This network of NGOs has been founded to facilitate and encourage people to connect to their landscape and feel responsibility for it. CIVILSCAPE's objective is to support the Florence ...
1 min read
Wednesday, 26 March 2008
Visitors to Sukhothai, Si Satchanalai and Kamphaeng Phet will now be able to click onto a new website to get information about historic monuments, nearby attractions and visitor facilities at this World Heritage site.
The official launch took place on 27 March 2008 from 9-10 am at the 5th floor conference room of the UNESCO Bangkok office on Sukhumvit Road chaired by the Inspector General ...
2 min read
Thursday, 20 March 2008
As part of the ‘Initiative for World Heritage Forests in Central Africa' , UNESCO's World Heritage Centre organized an expert workshop on March 13-14 in Brazzaville (Congo) to identify the most outstanding protected areas in the Congo Basin and to study their complementarity with sites in the region already inscribed on the World Heritage List.
The workshop was inaugurated by a speech ...
1 min read
Wednesday, 19 March 2008
The Ecuadorian National Environmental Fund's "Galápagos Invasive Species" account received a major injection of US$2.19 million on March 18 under the framework of the UNESCO-World Heritage Centre/United Nations Foundation project for the management of invasive species at this globally recognized World Heritage site. The Fund, which was established in 2007 with support from the ...
1 min read
Tuesday, 18 March 2008
The World Heritage Centre has concluded this year's map outreach campaign with its mailing of the 2007/2008 World Heritage Wall Map featuring 851 World Heritage sites produced in collaboration with National Geographic and Hewlett Packard. We had an overwhelming response for maps - attaining our target of 9000 requests within just nine weeks - and would like to thank everyone who took time ...
1 min read
Friday, 14 March 2008
[in French only] Les 10 et 11 mars 2008 la troisième session du Comité de pilotage annuel de l'initiative pour le Patrimoine Mondial Forestier d'Afrique Centrale (CAWHFI) s'est tenue à Brazzaville, sous la Présidence de la Commission des Forêts d'Afrique centrale (COMIFAC). Cette initiative vise à renforcer la gestion durable de trois complexes ...
Wednesday, 12 March 2008
WHTour.org, a non profit organization sponsored by the J.M. Kaplan Fund, announces that 80 World Heritage sites shot in the Middle East and East Africa are now available in 360° panographic format at its website.
Currently panographies from Israel are being explored by thousands of visitors daily. In the coming weeks photos in this unique format will be uploaded from Jordan, Syria, ...
1 min read
Monday, 10 March 2008
The international mission of experts sent to review plans to build a bridge in the cultural landscape of the Dresden Elbe Valley (Germany) in early February is recommending that the plan be abandoned in the interest of preserving the outstanding universal value that warranted the inscription of the site on UNESCO's World Heritage list in 2004.For more information please see: UNESCO press ...
Saturday, 8 March 2008
The cyclone Jokwe on 7-8 March 2008 caused considerable damage to the Fortress' coral rock base and defensive walls and there is an urgent need for funding for repairs.
Thursday, 31 January 2008
In November 2007, UNESCO and the Chairperson of the World Heritage Committee regretted the decision of a German court to authorize the construction of a bridge likely to lead to the deletion of the cultural landscape of Dresden Elbe Valley (Germany) from the World Heritage List. The status of the property on UNESCO's World Heritage List will be reviewed by the World Heritage Committee at ...
1 min read
Friday, 18 January 2008
Entries are now being accepted for the 2008 UNESCO Asia-Pacific Heritage Awards for Culture Heritage Conservation. The awards programme, in its ninth year, recognizes the achievement of individuals and organizations within the private sector, and public-private intitiatives, in successfully restoring structures of heritage value in the Asia-Pacific region. The deadline for receipt of ...
2 min read
Friday, 18 January 2008
UNESCO has confirmed the World Heritage Committee's decision of July 2007 to request the authorities of the Russian Federation to halt the planned construction of a tower in the Historic Centre of St. Petersburg as the project threatens the outstanding universal value of this property.During an official visit to Moscow from 6 to 10 December 2007, Francesco Bandarin, Director of ...
1 min read
Wednesday, 16 January 2008
The 2007-2008 World Heritage map, the third to be produced in collaboration with National Geographic and Hewlett Packard, is now available. The goal of the partnership, signed at the end of 2005 for a period of three years, is to raise awareness of the World Heritage Convention, and the map is an essential tool for this purpose. The partnership combines National Geographic's unsurpassed ...
1 min read
Wednesday, 9 January 2008
UNESCO's World Heritage Centre, in cooperation with the Nature Conservancy, one of the world's largest nature conservation organizations, and with Washington State University is pleased to announce the launch of an online course entitled ‘Business Planning - Achieving Sustainable Financing for Protected Areas'.Designed to provide comprehensive and rigorous training for natural ...
1 min read
Friday, 4 January 2008
[in French only] Actualités sur l’avancement des projets :
Alger, Algérie – Zabid, Yemen : appui aux demandes du Centre du patrimoine mondial
« Les villages antiques du nord de la Syrie », Syrie : réunion du 5 octobre à Paris
Hué, Viet Nam : présentation du programme de formation « Africités » lors de ...
Friday, 21 December 2007
A turreted castle in the icescape of Antarctica evokes not just the sublime beauty of nature but also its impermanence. Preserving this fragile balance between nature and human activity is at the heart of the World Heritage Convention and our efforts to reconcile development and long-term sustainability.In 2008, the International Year of Planet Earth, we would like to pay tribute to our ...
Thursday, 20 December 2007
On 20 December 2007, the United Nations 62nd General Assembly proclaimed 2009 the International Year of Astronomy. UNESCO was designated as the lead agency and focal point for the Year.The UNESCO Thematic Initiative “Astronomy and World Heritage” launched in support of this International Year aims to establish a link between science and culture with a view to highlighting the scientific value ...
1 min read
Friday, 7 December 2007
Bangladesh was struck by a powerful cyclone on November 15 which left more than 3,000 people dead and millions without shelter. While a major international relief effort is currently underway to respond Cyclone Sidr's devastating impact on life and property, UNESCO's World Heritage Centre also sent a team to the Sundarbans World Heritage site, which was badly hit by the disaster. Home ...
2 min read
Friday, 7 December 2007
UNESCO regrets the U.K. government's decision to cancel the A303 Stonehenge Road Improvement scheme on the basis of cost concerns and hopes that another solution will be found to relieve traffic congestion around the World Heritage property of Stonehenge, Avebury and Associated sites. UNESCO's World Heritage Centre, which has been actively involved in finding a solution to this ...
1 min read
Friday, 7 December 2007
Heavy fighting broke out again on December 3, 2007 between the DRC army and rebel forces of general Nkunda north of the city of Goma, in North Kivu. Heavy shelling and gunfire is taking place in the immediate vicinity of the heart of the gorilla sector in the Virunga National Park and World Heritage site. The renewed fighting poses a serious threat to the survival of the mountain gorillas, ...
2 min read
Friday, 7 December 2007
UNESCO and the Federal District Government held a ceremony on 7 December 2007 to celebrate 20 years of Brasilia's inscription as a World Heritage site. ‘We will strive with all our efforts to ensure that Brasilia, which is the only contemporary asset inscribed by UNESCO, preserves its quality of life and its urban, architectonic and human conception,' said the Governor of the Federal ...
1 min read
Monday, 3 December 2007
Over the past two years the World Heritage Centre of UNESCO has defined a strategy that aims to encourage universities worldwide to develop World Heritage studies and curricula. In this framework, UNESCO WHC is associated with a three-year project, called "Sharing Our Heritages" (SOH) involving 80 students from the European Union and Australia and funded by both parties.The last ...
1 min read
Friday, 30 November 2007
On 30 August 2007, the Government of Djibouti officially deposited with the Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, its instrument of ratification, becoming the 185th State Party to adopt the Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage.The World Heritage Convention entered into force for this State Party on 30 November 2007.
Monday, 26 November 2007
The official ceremony to mark the inscription of the Old Town of Regensburg with Stadtamhof on the World Heritage List took place at the historical Reichssaal on 24 November 2007 in the presence of 300 invited guests. Thousands of local residents and tourists took part in celebrations including guided city tours, performances of music, theatre and historical dance illustrating stages in the ...
Thursday, 15 November 2007
UNESCO regrets the decision of a German court to authorize the construction of a bridge likely to lead to the deletion of the cultural landscape of Dresden Elbe Valley (Germany)* from the World Heritage List. The status of the property on the UNESCO's World Heritage List is due to be reviewed by the World Heritage Committee at its next meeting in July 2008.For more information please see: ...
Monday, 5 November 2007
The Anna Amalia Library, part of Germany's Classical Weimar World Heritage site, re-opened to the public on October 24 after extensive restoration work following a devastating fire in 2004. The official opening was hosted by German President Horst Koehler.
The fire destroyed the library on 3 September 2004. After the debris was removed, efforts were focused on securing the structure with the ...
1 min read
Monday, 5 November 2007
The Baroque palace of Venaria Reale, built by the Savoy dynasty outside the city of Turin, has been re-opened to the public after eight years of restoration works. The palace is one of a group of buildings inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1997 as the Residences of the Royal House of Savoy.
Built during the 17th and 18th centuries, the palace had declined in the 19th century when it ...
1 min read
Monday, 5 November 2007
Five young heritage professionals from around the world received UNESCO-Vocations Patrimoine fellowships to pursue post graduate research at University College Dublin (Ireland) and at the Brandenburg Technical University of Cottbus (Germany). The aim of the fellowships is to help prepare site managers to handle the growing threats to which World Heritage sites - 851 sites inscribed around the ...
4 min read
Friday, 26 October 2007
Nine new members have been elected to the 21-member World Heritage Committee in charge of implementing UNESCO's Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage.Australia, Bahrain, Barbados, Brazil, China, Egypt, Jordan, Nigeria and Sweden were elected for four-year terms. The election took place during the General Assembly of the 184 States Parties to the ...
2 min read
Wednesday, 24 October 2007
The 16th General Assembly of States Parties to the World Heritage Convention elected 5 new members to the World Heritage Committee. The following States Parties were elected: Australia, Bahrain, China and Egypt. Barbados was elected to the seat reserved to a State Party with no properties on the World Heritage List. The third round of elections will start thursday October 25 at 10.05am, in ...
Wednesday, 24 October 2007
[in French only] Le Directeur général a ouvert, le 24 octobre 2007, la 16e session de l'Assemblée générale des Etats parties à la Convention de 1972, qui compte désormais 185 Etats Parties.Dans son discours d'ouverture, Koïchiro Matsuura s'est félicité que la Convention de 1972 ait été « unanimement reconnue comme un programme phare de l'UNESCO », au cours des débats de la ...
Wednesday, 17 October 2007
The UNESCO World Heritage Desk Diary 2008 has just been published. Featuring a useful week-at-a-glance design, it is illustrated with 77 colour photos of World Heritage sites, each accompanied with a short caption. It also introduces the Convention Concerning the Protection of World Cultural and Natural Heritage; its objectives, the selection criteria, the institutions which ensure its ...
Thursday, 4 October 2007
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre was informed of two attacks on an ancient rock carving of a seated Buddha located near Janabad in north-west Pakistan, a region known for its ancient Buddhist heritage and archaeological sites. According to numerous reports, suspected pro-Taliban militants carried out two attacks on the rock in early and late September, the second attack leaving the 7-metre ...
1 min read
Thursday, 4 October 2007
At a ceremony held today at UNESCO Headquarters Mrs Françoise Rivière, Assistant Director-General for Culture, gave the award for the International Melina Mercouri Prize for the Safeguarding and Management of Cultural Landscapes (UNESCO-Greece) to the Borodino Battlefield (Russian Federation).
This prize, named after Melina Mercouri, former Greek Minister of Culture, is financed by the ...
Monday, 1 October 2007
[in French only] Actualités sur l'avancement des projets :Turin, Italie: Réunion technique d'urgence sur le site du patrimoine mondial du Minaret de Djam (Afghanistan), 24 - 25 juillet 2007Paris, France: Atelier de travail pour la mise en place d'une formation pour les collectivités africaines, 3-5 septembre 2007 Luang Pra Bang et Vientiane, RDP Laos: mission du 5 au 11 septembre ...
Friday, 14 September 2007
It's easier than ever to participate in the preservation of World Heritage sites by making an online donation on the UNESCO World Heritage Centre website.
With a few clicks you can make a donation in any amount and 100% of it will be used to help protect the most spectacular sites in the world.
To make a ...
Friday, 7 September 2007
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre sends its condolences to the family, friends and colleagues of Ruzna Amli, a young Tanzanian woman from Songo Mnara, who had worked with the UNESCO restoration project of the Kilwa Kisiwani and Songo Mnara Ruins, a World Heritage Site in Tanzania.
The young mother of three died of the consequences of a tragic accident during the restoration works. We deeply ...
Thursday, 30 August 2007
Living Landscapes and Cultural Landmarks: World Heritage Sites in the Philippines by Augusto F. Villalon, Photographs by Neal M. Oshima, Publisher: ArtPostAsia Pte. Ltd, Manila, the PhilippinesThis attractive book is the first publication to present all five World Heritage properties located in the Philippines in a single volume. Widely acknowledged by the international scientific community ...
1 min read
Thursday, 23 August 2007
A mission of experts led by UNESCO has rallied the support of the authorities of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUC) and of local communities in the preservation of the endangered mountain gorillas of Virunga National Park.The mission, comprising experts from UNESCO and the World Conservation Union (IUCN) and ...
2 min read
Tuesday, 21 August 2007
UNESCO's World Heritage Centre extends its deepest sympathies to those who have been affected by the powerful August 15 earthquake in Peru, which measured 7.9 on the Richter scale and left some 500 people dead and over a thousand victims. Peru has 10 properties inscribed on the World Heritage List, including the Historic Sanctuary of Machu Picchu, the Historic Centre of Lima, and the Chan ...
1 min read
Tuesday, 21 August 2007
Gabon celebrated the inscription of its Lopé-Okanda site on UNESCO's World Heritage List over the weekend of 11-12 August 2007. Spanning four provinces, Lopé-Okanda is Gabon's first World Heritage site and also the first mixed site in the Central African sub-region. The inscription highlights international recognition of the country's outstanding natural and cultural ...
1 min read
Tuesday, 14 August 2007
Heritage advocates often reproach journalists for not being sufficiently interested in their field and for being only able to speak about it in a sensational or superficial way. Journalists for their part, highlight the constraints of editorial offices or express a certain mistrust towards institutions and heritage stakeholders. The international workshop which was held at Laval University, ...
1 min read
Tuesday, 7 August 2007
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre is relieved that the wildfires around the city of Dubrovnik (Croatia) are now under control and would like to pay tribute to the firefighters who fought the blaze. Reports from Dubrovnik indicate that the Old City, designated a World Heritage site in 1979 and then extended in 1994, was untouched by the fire.
The situation was particularly dangerous during ...
1 min read
Tuesday, 7 August 2007
Two new episodes, the fourth and fifth in the series Patrimonito's World Heritage Adventures ,are now available.
4th: Ethiopia (Lalibela) Watch English/French/Spanish Russian/Arabic/Chinese Download FLV format English/French/Spanish Russian/Arabic/Chinese
5th: Russian Federation (Novgorod) Watch English/French/Spanish ...
1 min read
Thursday, 2 August 2007
The winners of the most recent Patrimonito Storyboard Competition have been announced. The winning storyboard will be developed into the next episode of Patrimonito's World Heritage Adventures, a cartoon series for young people on World Heritage preservation.
6th: Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, Uganda (The Virunga Mountains) Watch English/French/Spanish ...
1 min read
Thursday, 2 August 2007
The Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, is concerned over attacks perpetrated against the mountain gorillas of the Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and has called on the national authorities to adopt urgent measures to brings the killings to an end.Declared a threatened species by the World Conservation Union (IUCN), the mountain gorilla is one of ...
2 min read
Friday, 27 July 2007
The death toll continues to rise in Virunga National Park (Democratic Republic of the Congo), where three females and one male silverback gorilla were shot and killed in the southern sector of the Park during the night of 22 July.The females, Safari, Neeza and Mburanumwe and the male Rugendo belonged to a group that was regularly visited by tourists. The death of these gorillas is not only ...
1 min read
Monday, 9 July 2007
In order to avoid any damaging confusion, UNESCO wishes to reaffirm that there is no link whatsoever between UNESCO's World Heritage programme, which aims to protect world heritage, and the current campaign concerning "The New 7 Wonders of the World". This campaign was launched in 2000 as a private initiative by Bernard Weber, the idea being to encourage citizens around the ...
1 min read
Thursday, 5 July 2007
[in French only] Actualités sur l'avancement des projets : Fleuve Niger et patrimoine : projet europeen Formation internationale à la gestion des sites patrimoniaux Vienne, Autriche, Réunion points focaux « rapport périodique » ouest européens : 2 - 4 mai 2007Saint-Louis du senegal : reportage photographique et suivi du projet Riga, Lettonie : missions en avril et juin 2007FOCUS : Actions ...
Friday, 29 June 2007
The World Heritage Committee today finalized this year's additions to UNESCO's World Heritage List with the inscription of three new sites: Gamzigrad-Romuliana, Palace of Galerius (Serbia), Gobustan Rock Art Cultural Landscape (Azerbaijan), and Central University City Campus of the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM), Mexico.The Late Roman fortified palace compound and ...
2 min read
Friday, 29 June 2007
Christchurch, New Zealand, 29 June - The World Heritage Committee inscribed 22 new sites on UNESCO's World Heritage List during its ongoing session in Christchurch. The new inscriptions include 16 cultural, five natural and one mixed, cultural and natural property. In a decision unprecedented in the history of UNESCO's Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and ...
4 min read
Thursday, 28 June 2007
The World Heritage Committee today inscribed two natural sites on UNESCO's World Heritage List: Teide National Park (Spain); Primeval Beech Forests of the Carpathian (Slovakia, Ukraine). The Committee also inscribed the Ecosystem and Relict Cultural Landscape of Lopé-Okanda (Gabon) as a mixed - cultural and natural - site. Four cultural sites were inscribed: the Richtersveld Cultural and ...
6 min read
Thursday, 28 June 2007
The World Heritage Committee on Thursday afternoon inscribed four cultural sites on UNESCO's World Heritage List: Iwami Ginzan Silver Mine and its Cultural Landscape (Japan), Parthian Fortresses of Nisa (Turkmenistan), Sydney Opera House (Australia), and the Red Fort Complex (India). The Iwami Ginzan Silver Mine, south-west of Honshu Island, is a cluster of mountains, rising to 600 metres ...
4 min read
Thursday, 28 June 2007
Christchurch, New Zealand, 28 June - The World Heritage Committee on Thursday evening inscribed another five sites on UNESCO's World Heritage List: Mehmed Paša Sokolović Bridge of Višegrad (Bosnia and Herzegovina), Rideau Canal (Canada), Bordeaux, Port of the Moon (France), and the Old Town of Corfu (Greece), and Lavaux, vineyard terraces (Switzerland).The Mehmed Paša Sokolović Bridge of ...
4 min read
Thursday, 28 June 2007
Christchurch, New Zealand, 28 June - The World Heritage Committee on Thursday took the unprecedented decision of removing a site from UNESCO's World Heritage List. The Arabian Oryx Sanctuary (Oman), home to the rare antelope, today became the first site to be deleted since UNESCO's 1972 Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage entered into ...
1 min read
Thursday, 28 June 2007
Christchurch, New Zealand - The World Heritage Committee has approved Poland's request to change the name of Auschwitz on UNESCO's World Heritage List. After international consultations, the property, listed as "Auschwitz Concentration Camp" in 1979, is to have the title of "Auschwitz Birkenau" and the subtitle of "German Nazi Concentration and Extermination Camp (1940-1945)."
In its ...
2 min read
Wednesday, 27 June 2007
Christchurch, New Zealand - The World Heritage Committee on Tuesday decided to inscribe the three new sites on UNESCO's World Heritage List: the Rainforests of the Atsinanana (Madagascar); South China Karst (China); and Jeju Volcanic Island and Lava Tubes (Republic of Korea). The Rainforests of the Atsinanana comprise six national parks distributed along the eastern part of the island. ...
2 min read
Tuesday, 26 June 2007
Christchurch, New Zealand - The World Heritage Committee today inscribed the Galápagos (Ecuador), and Niokolo-Koba National Park (Senegal) on UNESCO's List of World Heritage in Danger with a view to mobilizing support for their conservation. Situated in the Pacific Ocean some 1,000 km from the South American continent, the 19 islands of the Galápagos and their surrounding marine reserve ...
1 min read
Monday, 25 June 2007
Christchurch, New Zealand - The World Heritage Committee on Monday decided to keep Dresden Elbe Valley (Germany) on the List of World Heritage in Danger. But it asked Germany to provide an alternative solution to traffic management than the bridge currently planned in the site inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List in 2004. The World Heritage Committee, meeting in Christchurch for its ...
1 min read
Monday, 25 June 2007
Christchurch, New Zealand - The World Heritage Committee has removed Royal Palaces of Abomey, Benin, and Kathmandu Valley, Nepal, from the List of World Heritage in Danger, recognizing progress in the two sites' state of preservation.The Palaces of Abomey, inscribed simultaneously on UNESCO's World Heritage List and on the List of World Heritage in Danger in 1985, are a unique ...
1 min read
Sunday, 24 June 2007
The World Heritage Committee has decided that improvements in the preservation of the Everglades National Park (Florida, USA) and Río Plátano Biosphere Reserve (Honduras) were sufficient to remove both UNESCO World Heritage site from the List of World Heritage in Danger.The Committee commended the United States of America for its investment of scientific and financial resources to ...
1 min read
Saturday, 23 June 2007
Christchurch, New Zealand, 23 June - The Pacific region's traditional respect for both natural and cultural preservation was celebrated at the opening of the 31st session of the World Heritage Committee, chaired by Tumu te Heuheu of New Zealand, here Saturday.A traditional Powhiri welcome celebration took place at the Christchurch Town Hall auditorium to open the session in the presence ...
4 min read
Tuesday, 19 June 2007
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre today signed the contract with Lattanzi SRL construction company to begin the re-erection of the Aksum obelisk. Also known as Stela 2, it is the second largest stela on the Aksum World Heritage site in Ethiopia. Transported to Rome by the troops of Mussolini in 1937, it was returned by the Italian Government in April 2005. Weighing 150 tons and 24 meters high, ...
2 min read
Friday, 8 June 2007
The Australian and Tasmanian Governments have today reached an agreement to jointly fund the eradication of rodent pests on Macquarie Island, Australia to protect its World Heritage values. The seabird populations and vegetation of the Island are under serious threat from plagues of rabbits, rats and mice. Following discussions, the Governments have agreed to provide funding of AUS$24.6 ...
1 min read
Friday, 8 June 2007
On Friday June 8, 2007, a female gorilla was shot in the southern sector of Virunga National Park, and her 3-month old baby was found sitting on her dead body. This female belonged to a group of 33 gorillas referred to as "habituated", meaning they are used to contact with humans.
The death of this female gorilla occurred less than six months after that of two males killed in the same ...
1 min read
Monday, 4 June 2007
The World Heritage Centre expresses its deep concern after a torrential landslide of snow, mud, stones, trees and vegetation at the Geyser Valley in the Volcanoes of Kamchatka World Heritage site. Located in the eastern part of the Russian Federation, this is one of the most outstanding volcanic regions in the world, with a high density of active volcanoes, a variety of types, and a wide ...
1 min read
Friday, 1 June 2007
The European Commission (DG EAC) and Europa Nostra, the pan-European Federation for Cultural Heritage, has announced the laureates of the annual European Union Prize for Cultural Heritage/Europa Nostra Awards.The Awards will be presented to the representatives of the awarded achievements at the annual European Heritage Awards Ceremony, which will take place on 8 June 2007 in the Stockholm ...
2 min read
Friday, 1 June 2007
The World Heritage Committee will consider requests for the inscription of 45 new sites on UNESCO's World Heritage List when it meets for its 31st session in Christchurch, New Zealand, from 23 June to 2 July.During the session, the Committee will also examine a strategy to reduce risks from disasters at World Heritage properties; the impact of climate change on World Heritage sites; and ...
3 min read
Thursday, 31 May 2007
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre, in collaboration with the Centro Camuno per i Studi Preistorici (CCSP) and the Ministero per i Beni et le Attività Culturali, organised a workshop from 23-23 May 2007, financed by the Spanish Funds-in-Trust entitled ‘Managing Rock Art World Heritage Sites' with the participation of invited Rock Art experts from around the world to present new developments ...
1 min read
Wednesday, 23 May 2007
The World Heritage Centre expresses its deep concern after the fire on the Cutty Sark tea clipper, part of the Maritime Greenwich World Heritage site located in the United Kingdom.
On 21 May 2007, the British authorities informed the World Heritage Centre that a fire had swept through the Cutty Sark. The fire started around 4.45 am on Monday and the damage has been substantial. However, due ...
1 min read
Tuesday, 22 May 2007
At its first session in Algiers (Algeria), November 2006, the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage accepted the generous offer of China to host an extraordinary session of the Committee (Decision 1.COM 8). During this session, the Intergovernmental Committee will pursue the discussions initiated in Algiers. The main participants of the first ...
1 min read
Wednesday, 16 May 2007
The Government of China will launch a World Heritage Training and Research Institute for Asia and the Pacific Region in China. The inauguration ceremony of this institute will take place at Tongji University, Shanghai with the presence of Mr Francesco Bandarin, Director of UNESCO World Heritage Centre, Mr Mounir Bouchenaki, Director-General of the International Centre for the Study of the ...
1 min read
Tuesday, 15 May 2007
The Prince of Wales received the UNESCO certificate for the Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape during the inscription ceremony on 10 May 2007 at Cotehele House (Cornwall, United Kingdom). Dr Mechtild Rössler, Chief of the Europe and North America Section at the World Heritage Centre, highlighted in her speech the contribution the area had made to the industrial revolution and mining ...
1 min read
Friday, 11 May 2007
Mr Francesco Bandarin, Director of the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, travelled to Nicosia, Cyprus, from May 8-10, 2007 to deliver the 4th Dinos Leventis Memorial Lecture. The lecture series is intended to commemorate the figure of Dinos Leventis, former Ambassador of Cyprus to UNESCO and founder of the internationally renowned Leventis Foundation, deceased in 2002. The lecture, entitled ...
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Thursday, 3 May 2007
In November 2006, the World Heritage Centre signed a multi-year Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Simmons College, Boston, Massachusetts, USA, to establish the first World Heritage Digital Center (WHDC) under the leadership of Dr. Ching-chih Chen, information technology Professor at Simmons Graduate School of Library and Information Science. "The World Heritage Centre considers this ...
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Thursday, 26 April 2007
The Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, has written to Joseph Kabila, President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and to Jean-Marie Guehenno, the United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, asking for measures to stop the poaching and killing of endangered animals in the five World Heritage sites of the DRC.
The Director-General's ...
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Friday, 20 April 2007
The annual steering committee of the Central Africa World Heritage Forest Initiative (CAWHFI) took place in Libreville on March 21-22, 2007 under the aegis of the Central Africa Forest Commission (COMIFAC). This initiative aims to improve sustainable management of three forest landscapes of the Congo Basin: the Gamba-Conkouati complex, the Tri-National Sangha complex (TNS) and the ...
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Thursday, 19 April 2007
UNESCO will send a mission to the Historic Sanctuary of Machu Picchu, Peru, in view of concerns by the World Heritage Committee for the conservation of this outstanding Andean archaeological centre and its natural environment, inscribed as a mixed natural and cultural site on the World Heritage List in 1983.From 23 to 30 April, the UNESCO mission, which will include the participation of ...
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Monday, 16 April 2007
A UNESCO mission has confirmed serious threats to the Galápagos National Park and Marine Reserve and welcomed ambitious measures announced by the Ecuadorian authorities to preserve the site on UNESCO's World Heritage List.The mission confirmed the threat to the outstanding value and physical integrity of this iconic World Heritage site mainly from: the growing encroachment of invasive ...
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Thursday, 12 April 2007
A UNESCO World Heritage Centre/World Conservation Union (IUCN) mission is currently in Ecuador (April 8-12, 2007) at the request of the World Heritage Committee and at the invitation of the government of Ecuador, to assess the state of conservation of the Galápagos National Park and Marine Reserve. The mission will include high-level meetings with senior government officials from the ...
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Wednesday, 11 April 2007
In its recently released first annual report, the Rapid Response Facility (RRF) Secretariat announced that it has taken an average of less than 6 days (below its 8-day target) to process requests for emergency grants, to solicit and receive reviews from at least two independent referees on the pertinence of the request, to decide on whether an application should be approved and to inform the ...
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Tuesday, 10 April 2007
Now available online. To download the pdf version, please click here.
This 200-page publication provides a comprehensive overview and analysis of more than three decades of the implementation of the World Heritage Convention and highlights a number of its successes and challenges. It includes a history of the 1972 Convention and its implementation, an analysis of the natural and cultural ...
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Tuesday, 10 April 2007
The threats posed by climate change to natural and cultural sites on UNESCO's World Heritage List are outlined in a new UNESCO publication, "Case Studies on Climate Change and World Heritage"*. The report features 26 examples - including the Tower of London, Kilimanjaro National Park and the Great Barrier Reef - case studies that are representative of the dangers faced by the 830 sites ...
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Wednesday, 28 March 2007
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre and the UNESCO Office in New York have received a large number of letters from individuals who are concerned about the state of conservation of the Church of St. Cyril - located near Saint-Sophia Cathedral in Kiev, Ukraine- and in particular about planned reconstruction works in its interior.Please note that the Church of St. Cyril is not included in the ...
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Monday, 19 March 2007
World Heritage site managers and people intending to pursue a career in World Heritage site management are being invited to apply for Fellowships offered through the UNESCO-VOCATIONS PATRIMOINE World Heritage Site Managers Programme.
This programme - launched in January 2006 - is made possible as a result of an innovative public-private partnership between the UNESCO World Heritage Centre ...
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Thursday, 15 March 2007
"The technical mission that I had sent from 27 February to 2 March 2007 to the Old City of Jerusalem, which is inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List and on the World Heritage in Danger List, completed its technical assessment on the works conducted on the Mughrabi pathway leading to the Haram el-Sharif. The mission has submitted to me their Report (attached below) accompanied by ...
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Tuesday, 13 March 2007
The following statement is issued by the Chairman of UNESCO's Executive Board, Mr Zhang Xinsheng. 1. The six Arab members of the Executive Board addressed a letter to the Chairman of the Executive Board on 14 February 2007, requesting that a special session of the Board be held on the subject of the activities under way at the site of the Old City of Jerusalem, in accordance with Rule 3 ...
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Tuesday, 6 March 2007
The technical mission sent by the Director-General of UNESCO to the Old City of Jerusalem, which is inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List, completed its technical assessment on the works conducted on the pathway to the Haram el-Sharif.This mission, conducted by Francesco Bandarin, Director of the World Heritage Centre, took place from 27 February to 2 March 2007. It was composed of ...
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Monday, 5 March 2007
[in French only] Actualités sur l'avancement des projets CFU :Le comité mixte de coordination (CMC) de la Convention France-UNESCO a eu lieu le 8 mars 2007 à l’UNESCO.Fleuve Niger et patrimoine : projet européen« Villages oubliés » du nord de la Syrie : suivi du projet de nomination sur la Liste du patrimoine mondialBéjaïa, Algérie : assistance à la création d’un plan de sauvegarde et de ...
Thursday, 1 March 2007
Equipped with shovels, wheelbarrows and water buckets, twelve girls and thirteen boys between the ages of 14 and 17, from eight different countries in West Africa, set about attempting to put their newly learned conservation skills to work at the Royal Palaces of Abomey World Heritage site (Benin) from 19 to 23 February 2007. The young people, participants in the First World Heritage ...
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Friday, 23 February 2007
The Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, has decided to send a technical mission to the Old City of Jerusalem, inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List and on the World Heritage in Danger List, to carry out a technical assessment of the works on the access to the al-Haram al-Sharif. Following extensive consultations with all the parties concerned, the Director-General requested ...
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Tuesday, 13 February 2007
Archaeologists at the University of Sheffield have unearthed a huge settlement at Durrington Walls, near Stonehenge, confirming that the Stonehenge monument was part of a larger ritual centre. The excavations reveal an enormous ancient settlement that once housed hundreds of people. Archaeologists believe the houses were constructed and occupied by the builders of nearby Stonehenge, the ...
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Monday, 12 February 2007
The project on the Development of Cultural and Ecotourism in the Mountainous Regions of Central and South Asia has just produced a publication entitled "Poverty Alleviation and Community-Based Tourism: Experiences from Central and South Asia". This publication reports on pilot activities carried out in eight Central and South Asian countries between 2002 and 2005 in order to develop ...
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Friday, 9 February 2007
Koïchiro Matsuura, the Director-General of UNESCO today offered the Organization's assistance in repairing damage caused by the fire that destroyed part of the historical city centre of Valparaiso, Chile, killing several people, on 3 February.
"Firstly, I wish to extend my sincere condolences to the families and friends of the victims of this tragedy," the Director-General said. He also ...
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Thursday, 8 February 2007
On Tuesday 8 February 2007, the Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, expressed his "deep concern over the work initiated by the Israeli authorities on the site of the Old City of Jerusalem, which is protected by the Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage (1972). By virtue of this Convention, the site is inscribed on the World Heritage ...
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Thursday, 1 February 2007
The conference on "Management and Preservation of Historic Cities inscribed on the World Heritage List" is taking place in St Petersburg from 29 January to 3 February 2007. It is a follow-up to the February 2006 international UNESCO/ICOMOS mission to St Petersburg reviewing a number of conservation and planning issues in this city, including the extension to the Marinsky Theatre. ...
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Wednesday, 24 January 2007
The World Heritage Centre expresses its deep concern regarding the cargo spill off the British Coast. The MSC Napoli is grounded near Sidmouth's coastline, part of the Dorset and East Devon Coast World Heritage site, inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2001. The chemical containers and oil released from the ship may represent a potential environmental disaster. If the information ...
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Friday, 19 January 2007
The situation continues to get worse at Virunga National Park (Democratic Republic of the Congo), where 2 male silverbacks have been killed.The gruesome tally continues: since late December the mountain gorilla, a flagship species that contributes to the recognition of the outstanding universal value of the Park, has suffered serious losses by armed groups. On January 6 and 11, two male ...
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Tuesday, 19 December 2006
On 15 December 2006, Mr Koïchiro Matsuura, Director-General of UNESCO, and Ambassador Tatjana Gjonaj, Permanent Delegate of Albania to UNESCO, signed an agreement establishing a Funds-in-Trust in favour of the restoration of the historical centre of Gjirokastra inscribed on the World Heritage List since 2005.Mrs Blegina Agalli, Secretary-General of the Ministry of Culture, Tourism, Youth and ...
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Friday, 15 December 2006
The Anna Amalia Library, part of the World Heritage site of Classical Weimar which was inscribed on the UNESCO List in 1998, will reopen in October 2007, three years after it was damaged by a fire. According to the architect in charge of the restoration works, Mr Walther Grundwald, the deadline should be respected. "We have chosen the date of 24 October for the re-opening, as it is the ...
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Wednesday, 13 December 2006
"In the face of the attempts to re-write history that are currently at work, I can but recall in the most emphatic manner that it is our moral duty to analyse the past and to pass it on without falsification, alteration or omission. Any attempt to call into question or to deny the reality of the Holocaust or of any other crime against humanity is to be deeply regretted. UNESCO has a ...
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Saturday, 9 December 2006
This conference was held in Rome from December 5-9. The conclusions outlined below were reached thanks to contributions from ICCROM, UNESCO-WHC, UN-WTO, HERITY INTERNATIONALFrom the point of view of culture, no poor Countries exist around the World: every territory has a significant and priceless Heritage Wealth. This Heritage constitutes the collective memory of Humanity. As a non renewable ...
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Friday, 1 December 2006
The 2006-2007 World Heritage map, the second to be produced in collaboration with National Geographic and Hewlett Packard, is now available. The goal of the partnership, signed at the end of 2005 for an initial period of three years, is to raise awareness of the World Heritage Convention, and the map is an essential tool for this purpose. The partnership combines National Geographic's ...
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Friday, 24 November 2006
On 21 November 2006, the Director of the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, Francesco Bandarin, signed a new cooperation agreement with Minister Marc Verwilghen, Belgian Minister for Science Policy. Under the agreement the Belgian Science Policy Office will, during a 5-year period, mobilize Belgian scientific expertise in using space technologies to assist State parties to the World Heritage ...
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Thursday, 23 November 2006
Conservation activities continue in the World Heritage sites of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), with particular attention given to Virunga National Park, where hippopotamuses are being massacred by the Mai Mai rebel group. In response to this massacre, UNESCO and its field partners have taken the following measures to stop the poaching which threatens to eradicate the hippo ...
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Wednesday, 22 November 2006
In an ongoing commitment to sustainable tourism, Jet tours will support two safeguarding projects scheduled for implementation early 2007. The projects are part of a joint endeavour through the World Heritage Centre-Jet Tours partnership to promote preservation and awareness through responsible tourism. On 9 November 2006, the Centre's director, Francesco Bandarin, and the ...
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Thursday, 9 November 2006
Threats to cultural and natural heritage sites from the effects of climate change are further substantiated in a new report presented at the 12th Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change taking place in Nairobi, Kenya. The report, entitled 'The Atlas of Climate Change: Mapping the World's Greatest Challenge' describes impacts such as rising sea ...
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