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Ramsar sites refer to sites listed on the List of Wetlands of International Importance, also known as the Ramsar List. These sites are designated because they meet the Criteria for identifying Wetlands of International Importance. The first criterion refers to Sites containing representative, rare or unique wetland types, and the other eight cover Sites of international ...

A key benefit of ratification, particularly for developing countries, is access to the World Heritage Fund and International Assistance. This is made available to assist States Parties in identifying, preserving and promoting World Heritage sites. Emergency assistance may also be made available for urgent action to repair damage caused by human-made or natural disasters. ...

The World Heritage Committee relies on citizens to play an active role in protecting World Heritage sites. If you have any concern about an existing site, do not hesitate to contact the National Commission of the country in charge of the site. To see the contact details of the National Commission, click on the name of the country in the list of States Parties. You may also ...

A site goes through a nomination process before being considered for inscription by the World Heritage Committee. A site can be proposed for inscription only by the country in which the property is located.

The site is the property of the country on whose territory it is located, but it is considered in the interest of the international community to protect the site for future generations. Its protection and preservation becomes a concern of the international World Heritage community as a whole.

Refers to a decision taken by the World Heritage Committee on whether a site should be inscribed on the World Heritage List. Once a site has been nominated and evaluated, it is up to the intergovernmental World Heritage Committee to make the final decision on its inscription. Once a year, the Committee meets to decide which sites will be inscribed on the World Heritage ...

Values refer to specific manifestations or qualities of a site that can be considered important to a particular stakeholder group. A site can have multiple values, both natural and cultural, for multiple stakeholder groups. Not all values will necessarily be considered relevant to the OUV. Source(s): Climate Change Adaptation for Natural World Heritage sites

Presentation is the explanation of a property and its values to the public (visitors and local people) from established, authoritative information sources; as such it is a largely one-way process of communication. Interpretation, on the other hand, embraces a much wider concept (in fact presentation is just one element of interpretation) which refers to the full range of ...

There are 10 criteria for the nomination of World Heritage Sites. Click here to see them in detail.

A nominated property is independently evaluated by two Advisory Bodies mandated by the World Heritage Convention: the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), which respectively provide the World Heritage Committee with evaluations of cultural and of natural sites nominated. The third Advisory Body ...

The World Heritage Committee meets once a year, and consists of representatives from 21 of the States Parties to the Convention elected for terms up to six years. The Committee is responsible for the implementation of the World Heritage Convention, allocates financial assistance from the World Heritage Fund and has the final say on whether a site is inscribed on the World ...

The World Heritage Convention, adopted in 1972, is a legally binding instrument providing an intergovernmental framework for international cooperation for the identification and conservation of the world's most outstanding natural and cultural properties. The document developed from the merging of two separate movements: the first focusing on the preservation of cultural ...

Countries (or States Parties) submit nomination proposals to the World Heritage Committee. If the Committee determines, based on the recommendations of its Advisory Bodies (ICOMOS and IUCN), that the nomination meets at least one of the necessary criteria, then the property proposed by the State Party is inscribed on the World Heritage List. In general, the Committee adds ...

Every year, thousands of volunteers participate in restoration and research projects at World Heritage sites around the globe. Innumerable opportunities exist for volunteers to focus their efforts on helping environmental watchdogs, nature conservationists or architectural restorers at sites inscribed on the World Heritage List, as well as assisting researchers with ...

The UNESCO World Heritage Centre is not a photobank. The photos that appear on the World Heritage website, in the photo galleries for each World Heritage site, were generously donated by photographers to help raise awareness of the importance of the World Heritage Convention. They are for educational use, but not for commercial distribution. Therefore, these photos are not ...

The World Heritage Convention, adopted in 1972, is a legally binding instrument providing an intergovernmental framework for international cooperation for the identification and conservation of the world's most outstanding natural and cultural properties. The document developed from the merging of two separate movements: the first focusing on the preservation of cultural ...

Values refer to specific manifestations or qualities of a site that can be considered important to a particular stakeholder group. A site can have multiple values, both natural and cultural, for multiple stakeholder groups. Not all values will necessarily be considered relevant to the OUV.

Once a country signs the World Heritage Convention, and has sites inscribed on the World Heritage List, the resulting prestige often helps raise awareness among citizens and governments for heritage preservation. Greater awareness leads to a general rise in the level of the protection and conservation given to heritage properties. A country may also receive financial ...

States Parties are countries which have adhered to the World Heritage Convention. They identify and nominate sites on their national territory to be considered for inscription on the World Heritage List. States Parties have the responsibility to protect the World Heritage values of the sites inscribed and report periodically on their condition.

Interpretation refers to the full range of potential activities intended to heighten public awareness and enhance understanding of cultural heritage site. These can include print and electronic publications, public lectures, on-site and directly related off-site installations, educational programmes, community activities, and ongoing research, training, and evaluation of ...