10 Ways to Get Listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site

The UNESCO World Heritage List is possibly the best known list, of anything, anywhere on Earth. One of UNESCO's core projects, it is intended to identify and safeguard the world's natural and cultural treasures. Listing by UNESCO is the ambition of many sites, large and small, around the world because it not only brings prestige and tourist dollars, but it also brings with it the clout of UNESCO and and expertise in the preservation and conservation of sites.  

Jethro Lennox is the publishing manager responsible for UNESCO's new The World's Heritage: A Complete Guide to the Most Extraordinary Places, which features every UNESCO World Heritage Site. Here, he tells us how the World Heritage Site programme came about, and what criteria UNESCO uses when deciding what sites to include on its prestigious and ever-growing list.

In 1959, the government of Egypt decided to build the Aswan High Dam, an event that would flood a valley containing treasures of ancient civilisation such as the Abu Simbel temples. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) then launched an international safeguarding campaign and, as a result, Abu Simbel was moved from the flooding valley to higher ground where it remains one of Egypt’s heritage treasures.

The huge success of this project ultimately led to the creation of the World Heritage Convention and formation of the List of World Heritage sites, which currently has 890 properties on it.

The World Heritage committee meets once a year to decide what sites are to be awarded the status of UNESCO World Heritage site. To achieve this accolade of World Heritage status, sites must meet at least one of the following 10 criteria. Lennox explains each of the ten criteria

1: Human creative genius

These are sites that represent a masterpiece of human creative genius.

Examples of sites currently on the list that meet this criteria include Memphis and its Necropolis, and the Pyramid Fields from Giza to Dahshur in Egypt.

Tthe Great Wall of China, the Pre-Hispanic City of Chichen-Itza on Mexico's Yucatán peninsula, and the Archaeological Area of Agrigento on the southern coast of Sicily, Italy are also all examples of human creative genius.

2: Interchange of values

Many of the world’s most outstanding places have been important in displaying human values. These sites exhibit developments in architecture or technology, monumental arts, town-planning or landscape design.
Examples include the Site of Palmyra in Syria, the Al-Hijr Archaeological Site (Madâin Sâlih) in Saudi Arabia; and the Archaeological Site of Volubilis in Morocco.

3: Testimony to cultural tradition

In this ever technologically connected world, many cultural traditions are being lost.

By preserving unique places capturing that tradition, the culture is being preserved for future generations to experience.

Examples of sites meeting this criteria include the UK's Stonehenge, Avebury and Associated Sites; and Paphos in Cyprus.

4: Significance in human history

A site that is an outstanding example of a type of building, architectural or technological ensemble or landscape illustrating a significant stage in human history. An example currently on the list is Heart of Neolithic Orkney off the north coast of the United Kingdom.

5: Traditional human settlement

An exceptional example of a traditional human settlement, land use, or sea use which is representative of a culture (or cultures), or human interaction with the environment, but one that is now threatened by irreversible change.

Two examples currently on the list are Australia's Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park and Rapa Nui National Park on Easter Island.

6. Heritage Associated with events of universal significance

Sites connected with events or living traditions, with ideas, or with beliefs, with artistic and literary works of outstanding universal significance. Examples currently on the list include the Site of Carthage in Tunisia; Syria's Ancient City of Damascus; and Italy's Archaeological Areas of Pompeii, Herculaneum and Torre Annunziata, which are listed together.

7: Natural phenomena or beauty

Areas with superlative natural phenomena or exceptional natural beauty and aesthetic importance. An example meeting this criteria is the Great Barrier Reef off the Queensland coast in Australia.

8: Major stages of Earth's history

These sites represent major stages of Earth’s history, including the record of life, significant on-going geological processes, landform development, or notable features of the physical landscape.

An example fitting this criteria is the Grand Canyon National Park in the United States. 


9: Significant ecological and biological processes

Sites reflecting important on-going ecological and biological processes in the evolution and development of ecosystems and communities of plants and animals. The Galápagos Islands, some 1,000km off the coast of Ecuador, is a good example of a site meeting this particular criteria.

10: Significant natural habitat for biodiversity

Important and significant natural habitats for conservation of biological diversity, especially those containing threatened species of outstanding value to science and conservation. Two excellent examples meeting this criteria are the Keoladeo National Park in India and the Kakadu National Park in Australia's Northern Territory.

Image credits: All photos courtesy of UNESCO and reproduced from 
The World's Heritage: A Complete Guide to the Most Extraordinary Places.
 

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About The Author

Lynette Eyb

Lynette Eyb is the books editor of Heritage-Key.com. She trained in Australia as a journalist before moving to London, where she wrote for and edited various magazines. She has travelled extensively, exploring the ancient wonders of China, Turkey, Greece, Egypt, the UK and Ireland along the way. Lyn lives in Bordeaux with her partner and their young daughter.

Last three pieces by this author: Did Ryszard Kapuściński Follow Herodotus' Example and Make Things Up?, Top 10 Ancient Sites in Syria, People Power Could Signal the End of Uluru Tourist Climb

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