News

The World Heritage Centre and the Vanuatu Cultural Centre (with funding from the World Heritage Fund, and the technical contribution of the Department of Conservation of New Zealand) organized a workshop at Port Vila, Vanuatu, from 5-8 September. It was attended by 32 participants representing 12 States Parties from the Pacific Islands, as well as by experts and representatives from ICOMOS, ...

On the occasion of the celebration of the 10th anniversary of Luang Prabang's inscription on the World heritage list, this brochure presents the spirit, the concept, the process, the practice, the partnerships, the implementation and the achievements of this complex multi partner cooperation fostered by the World Heritage Centre and based on a city-to-city partnership between the city of ...

The Fourth Expert Working Group on the Preservation of the Bamiyan Site was successfully held in Kabul/ Aghanistan from 7 to 10 December 2005. Afghan and international experts working on the safeguarding of Bamiyan issued a list of concrete recommendations for further activities to preserve the site. The Expert Working Group was formed in 2002 within the framework of the coordination mandate ...

Following in the footsteps of Shell International and the International Council on Mining & Metals (an industry association of the largest mining companies in the world), yet in a bold show of leadership within the international financing community, Goldman Sachs, a global investment banking firm, has formally committed itself to "not knowingly finance extractive projects or commercial ...

Within the framework for the project on the Development for Cultural and Ecotourism in the Mountainous Regions of Central and South Asia, there is very positive news concerning activities carried out by UNESCO project partners in Ladakh, India - the Snow Leopard Conservancy (SLC), in Murghab, Tajikistan (ACTED), and in the mountainous region surrounding Lake Issy Kul, Kyrgyzstan (NoviNomad). ...

Ongoing efforts by the Office of the Mayor of Bamberg (Germany) to preserve the Town of Bamberg, inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1993 have succeeded:  A construction project in the buffer zone (“City Arcade Project”), which might have had a negative impact on the World Heritage value and the integrity of the site, was stopped by the city authorities. The Mayor informed the ...

Bamiyan remains one of the most important examples of Gandharan art in the world, despite the Taleban’s destruction of its two monumental Buddhas in 2001. The Expert Working Group was formed in 2002 within the framework of the coordination mandate for all cultural projects in the country entrusted to UNESCO by the Afghan government, and will meet for the fourth time from 7 to 10 December 2005 ...

[in French only] Le Centre du Patrimoine mondial de l’UNESCO, l’Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature, l’Union mondiale pour la nature, African Parks Foundation et Fauna and Flora International déterminés à sauver les derniers rhinocéros blancs du Nord du site du patrimoine mondial de la Garamba (République démocratique du Congo) Début septembre 2005, les autorités congolaises ...

The perfect planner for all those with a passion for World Heritage! The UNESCO World Heritage Desk Diary 2006 features a helpful week-at-a-glance design. It is illustrated with 67 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 ...

United Nations Foundation and Expedia announced the launch of the World Heritage Alliance, an innovative joint initiative to promote sustainable tourism and awareness of World Heritage sites and communities around the world.  This partnership believes conscientious travelers can contribute directly to nature conservation, historic preservation, and poverty reduction through sustainable ...

After a successful first workshop held on 29 September, the second of a series of training workshops for Jet tours guides is to be held at UNESCO Headquarters on 27 October 2005. Organized in the context of the recently signed agreement between Laurence Berman-Clément, Director-General of Jet tours and Francesco Bandarin, Director of the World Heritage Centre, the workshops aim to train, ...

The 15th ICOMOS General Assembly and the International Scientific Symposium with the theme Monuments and Sites in their Setting: Conserving Cultural Heritage in Changing Townscapes and Landscapes were officially opened on 17 October in Xi’an, China. A special celebration marking ICOMOS’s 40th anniversary and an exhibition on its achievements during its existence are planned during the meeting ...

The 15th session of the General Assembly of States Parties to the World Heritage Convention elected Kenya and Peru to the World Heritage Committee at the 3rd open ballot. The World Heritage Committee is composed of the following States Parties:BeninCanadaChileCubaIndiaIsraelJapanKenyaKuwaitLithuaniaMadagascarMauritiusMoroccoNetherlandsNew ZealandNorwayPeruRepublic of KoreaSpainTunisiaUnited ...

The 15th session of the General Assembly of States Parties to the World Heritage Convention elected Cuba to the World Heritage Committee at the 2nd open ballot.

The 15th session of the General Assembly of States Parties to the World Heritage Convention elected Mauritius to the World Heritage Committee (reserved seat) . Elections will continue in Room VIII.

States Parties elected at the 1st Open Ballot: Canada Israel Korea, Republic of Madagascar Morocco Spain Tunisia United States of America State Party elected at the Ballot for the Reserved Seat: Mauritius Detailled Results of the 1st Open Ballot Number of States Parties present and voting: 160 Invalid votes: 2 Number of valid ...

[in French only] UNESCO Flash Info : A l’heure où la protection du patrimoine mondial occupe une place sans cesse croissante dans les préoccupations de la communauté internationale, se tient à l’UNESCO, la quinzième Assemblée générale des Etats parties à la Convention de 1972 pour la protection du patrimoine mondial, culturel et naturel. L’Assemblée générale, qui se réunit, tous les deux ans, ...

The 15th General Assembly of States Parties to the World Heritage Convention will be held in Room IV on 10-11 October. During the meeting, the General Assembly will elect twelve (12) new members to the World Heritage Committee. Delegates attending only the General Assembly can enter the building through the Place de Fontenoy entrance, where they will be given their security badges. The World ...

The Decisions adopted at the 29th session of the World Heritage Committee, held in Durban, South Africa from 10 to 17 July 2005, are now available online at the following address:htpp://whc.unesco.org/archive/2005/whc05-29com-22e.pdf

In mid-August 2005 the Government of the Province of Nova Scotia, Canada, finalized the purchase of seventeen properties, including 22 buildings and eight wharfs for $5.5 million Canadian (over $4,678,000 USD) in the waterfront district of Old Town Lunenburg, a World Heritage site since 1995. The buildings had been for sale since the previous winter by Clearwater Seafoods, a major employer ...