scholarly journals The Geography of UNESCO World Heritage Site Descriptions: Does It Promote International Dialog?

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dan Costa Baciu
Keyword(s):  
World Heritage ◽  
Air Travel ◽  
World Heritage Site ◽  
New Method ◽  
Unesco World Heritage ◽  
World Heritage Sites ◽  
Heritage Sites ◽  
Heritage Site ◽  
World Heritage List ◽  
The World

The United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) undertakes to recognize, list, and collectively present those places around the world that are of outstanding value to all mankind and that must be protected from threads such as armed conflict, deliberate destruction, economic pressure, natural disasters, and climate change. Through the listing of such “world heritage sites,” UNESCO intends to document and protect the diversity of cultures and natural phenomena around the globe, and to promote international dialog. The sites may be classified as cultural or natural, or both, although most sites are cultural. As part of its listing, the UNESCO also includes short descriptions of each site. These descriptions are a key element in the public-facing listing of the recognized world heritage sites. The texts reflect the listing in a more nuanced and elaborate form (UNESCO 2021). As a literary genre, the site descriptions may fall somewhere between encyclopedia entries and travel-guide site descriptions, as they are intended both for matters of overview and as information for travelers. The UNESCO world heritage list was met with much success and was welcomed by broad audiences around the globe. Given the importance of the mission to promote international dialog, we have studied the world heritage site descriptions through a new method of geographical mapping (Baciu 2019, 2020, 2021). We were interested in exploring whether, through this new method, we can detect an international dialog, as promoted by UNESCO through the world heritage list and site descriptions. In this present essay, we discuss the results. UNESCO does promote an international dialog that we are able to detect using our method. The geographical connections that we detect are very close to other known global activity. We discuss in particu-lar the similarity between our mapping results obtained from texts published by UNESCO and global movement as decoded from airplane condensation trails (contrails). Both, text and air travel, reveal similar connection pathways across the globe, which suggests that text and air travel have evolved together rather than independently.

The development of legal framework for the management of World Heritage Sites in Oman: a case study on Bahla Oasis

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohamed Ali Mohamed Khalil ◽  
Eman Hanye Mohamed Nasr
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Heritage ◽  
World Heritage ◽  
Heritage Management ◽  
World Heritage Site ◽  
Content Type ◽  
World Heritage Sites ◽  
Heritage Sites ◽  
Heritage Site ◽  
The World ◽  
Heritage Legislation

PurposeThe study aims to analyze the development of Omani heritage legislation against the UNESCO World Heritage Convention (WHC), 1972 and WHC Operational Guidelines (WHC-OGs) to predict the possible effects of the recent developments on the management of the World Heritage Site in Oman.Design/methodology/approachThis study discusses the development of the heritage protection legislation in Sultanate of Oman since 1970; it analyses the Omani Cultural Heritage Law 35/2019 against the recommendations of the UNESCO WHC as well as the requirements of the World Heritage Operational Guidelines. Moreover, the research investigates the possible effects of the recent heritage legislation developments on the management of Bahla Fort and Oasis in Oman, which is the first Omani World Heritage Site and the only site with special management regulations.FindingsThe paper outlines the effects of both the Omani Cultural Heritage Law 35/2019 and the Special Management Regulations 81/2019 on the implementation of the Bahla Management Plan. Additionally, the research establishes how the customization of heritage legislation as a special heritage management regulation facilitates the implementation of national legislation to solve specific local problems.Originality/valueThe study establishes the significance of developing comprehensive legislation to protect and manage the rich Omani cultural heritage and World Heritage Sites in alignment with the WHC and the WHC-OGs.

Forms of government and local community participation in the management of cultural World Heritage sites in Southeast Asia | รูปแบบของรัฐกับการมีส่วนร่วมของชุมชนท้องถิ่นในการจัดการแหล่งมรดกโลกทาง วัฒนธรรม ในเอเชียตะวันออกเฉียงใต้

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vithaya Arporn ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Southeast Asia ◽  
Local Community ◽  
World Heritage ◽  
Local Communities ◽  
World Heritage Site ◽  
World Heritage Sites ◽  
Heritage Sites ◽  
Heritage Site ◽  
The World ◽  
Cultural World

This paper studied the management of three World Heritage sites in 3 countries of Southeast Asia : Malaysia, Laos, and Thailand. The results of this research show that a decentralized form of government in Southeast Asia provides opportunities for local communities to develop better participation in the World Heritage site management than the centralized forms of government. For local communities to contribute to the World Heritage philosophy, it is necessary to improve both the conceptual and practical aspects of the World Heritage Committee, Advisory organizations, and State Parties. They have to learn lessons and agree to work closely together. บทความนี้เลือกศึกษาการจัดการแหล่งมรดกโลกจำานวน 3 แหล่งในประเทศมาเลเซีย ลาว และไทย โดยใช้วิธีการ สำารวจเอกสาร ผลการศึกษาพบว่า รูปแบบของรัฐในเอเชียตะวันออกเฉียงใต้ที่กระจายอำานาจจะเปิดโอกาสให้ ชุมชนท้องถิ่นสามารถพัฒนาการมีส่วนร่วมในการจัดการแหล่งมรดกโลกได้ดีกว่ารูปแบบรัฐที่รวบอำานาจ การที่จะ ให้ชุมชนท้องถิ่นมีส่วนร่วมตามปรัชญาของมรดกโลกจึงจะต้องปรับปรุงทั้งในส่วนของกรอบคิดและการปฏิบัติทั้งใน ส่วนของคณะกรรมการมรดกโลก องค์กรที่ปรึกษา และรัฐภาคี โดยต้องสรุปบทเรียนและยอมรับร่วมกันอย่างใกล้ ชิด

NATIONAL AND WORLD HERITAGE AS A FACTOR OF DEVELOPMENT OF INTERNATIONAL TOURISM

2018 ◽  
pp. 65-70
Author(s):  
O. Beidyk ◽  
B. Semenko
Keyword(s):  
Development Strategy ◽  
World Heritage ◽  
Tourism Industry ◽  
World Heritage Site ◽  
Monitoring And Control ◽  
Unesco World Heritage ◽  
World Heritage Sites ◽  
Heritage Sites ◽  
Intangible Heritage ◽  
The World

The article analyzes the hierarchy of fundamental world recreational and tourist resources. The qualitative-quantitative characteristics, the spatial distribution of UNESCO objects and the systematized data are presented. The structure of the UNESCO World Heritage sites is analyzed. Created schematic map of the structure and territorial distribution of UNESCO World Heritage sites in Ukraine. The advantages obtained by states when making their objects to the list of UNESCO World Heritage sites are established. It is indicated that it contributes to the organization of monitoring and control of the state of conservation of natural and cultural objects. It is emphasized that UNESCO objects fall into the tourist guides of the world, and hence to the proposed routes of travel agencies. The factors that determine the presence of UNESCO objects in the country were analyzed. The geographic distribution of UNESCO World Heritage sites in the world and Ukraine is analyzed. The geographical distribution of the objects “Seven Wonders of Ukraine”, which were selected during the all-Ukrainian contest, was highlighted. An analysis of UNESCO World Heritage sites in Ukraine was conducted, their preliminary list. The attention is focused on the fact that the entry into the national list of intangible heritage in Ukraine is a necessary step for the objects to obtain the status of the “intangible heritage of UNESCO. The objects, which are included in the national list of intangible heritage in Ukraine, are analyzed. The map “The most significant recreational and tourist resources of Ukraine” was developed. It is noted that four of the seven Ukrainian objects of the UNESCO World Heritage Site are entirely within the territory of Ukraine. The remaining 3 objects are partly in the territory of other states. It was indicated that during the time of cooperation with the Organization Ukraine initiated many international programs and projects. Seven Ukrainian cultural-architectural and natural objects are listed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. It is noted that the large volume of quantitative and qualitative data obtained when selecting UNESCO objects contributes to the formation of informed cultural policies and the integration of culture in the development strategy, thereby contributing to the implementation of the UNESCO Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions. The analysis made it possible to establish that the largest number of UNESCO World Heritage sites is concentrated in the European macroregion, thus Ukrainian entities that are part of the UNESCO World Heritage have to withstand significant competition in attracting international tourist flows. It is stated that the Asian market has the world’s largest tourism industry, and the number of objects of the World Heritage is second only to Europe.

Local community support, attitude and perceived benefits in the UNESCO World Heritage Site

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohd Hafiz Hanafiah ◽  
Mohd Raziff Jamaluddin ◽  
Agus Riyadi
Keyword(s):  
Local Community ◽  
World Heritage ◽  
World Heritage Site ◽  
Unesco World Heritage ◽  
Content Type ◽  
World Heritage Sites ◽  
Heritage Sites ◽  
Heritage Site ◽  
Unesco World Heritage Site ◽  
George Town

PurposeThis study aims to explore the support and attitudes of the local community together with the benefits of living in the vicinity of George Town UNESCO World Heritage Site. George Town is one of the popular UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Malaysia.Design/methodology/approachA total of 319 respondents residing in the gazetted area of George Town World Heritage Sites were interviewed. The covariance-based structural equation modelling (CB-SEM) analysis was conducted to test the study’s hypotheses.FindingsThe community's attitudes and personal benefits were identified to strongly influence community’s support towards the conservation and development of the World Heritage Sites in George Town. While a small number of community members acknowledged the significant opportunities through tourism, majority of them expected economic and non-economic benefits from the development of World Heritage Sites.Practical implicationsThe findings from this study are expected to contribute to the ongoing debate on the perceived effects, benefits and future support of the World Heritage Sites from the local community's perspectives.Social implicationsUnderstanding the behaviour of the local community to create successful tourism planning, especially in delicate heritage destinations.Originality/valueThis study enriches the scarce empirical research study on community’s behaviour living in the vicinity of the UNESCO World Heritage Site, especially in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations’ (ASEAN) region.

PROTECTION OF THE RURAL DESTINATIONS AS THE WORLD CULTURAL HERITAGE SITES: INTERNATIONAL PRACTICES

2016 ◽  
Vol 10 (7) ◽  
pp. 18-33 ◽  
Author(s):  
Олег Афанасьев ◽  
Oleg Afanasiev
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Heritage ◽  
World Heritage ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Resource Base ◽  
Unesco World Heritage ◽  
World Heritage Sites ◽  
Heritage Sites ◽  
World Heritage List ◽  
The World ◽  
Agricultural Tourism

The article discusses the concept of “agrоcultural (agricultural) heritage” and composing it objects in rural (agricultural) tourism, for which they are the most important destinations. This research object is interdisciplinary, affecting a variety of spheres, particularly, agroourism, sightseeing, services and so forth, and economy in general. Agricultural heritage includes tangible objects of agricultural and technical culture, created for the production. Such objects are saved for better and complete study and understanding of their nature, not for contemplation; they are not works of art. This heritage is anthropogenic and technological. From the scientific and methodological point of view the very understanding of the term of "agricultural heritage" is still quite uncertain. The article presents a comprehensive understanding of it based on the nature-use concept as a binary object system "Man - Nature". The available experience of classification of agricultural heritage objects is considered. Starting 2002, at the initiative of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) the criteria are developed and an inventory of objects of the world agro- cultural heritage, Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (GIAHS), is conducted. One of the GIAHS goals is identifying objects of agricultural heritage that are most corresponding to the status of "global agricultural heritage" and their promotion for including to the UNESCO World Heritage List. The article presents for the first time ever full GIAHS list in Russian as of October, 2016. We have separated in special list 114 objects from 58 countries, corresponding in our view to the concept of "agricultural heritage" from the UNESCO World Heritage List current at the end of 2016. The article presets the attempt to classify them by 12 categories. The rating of countries in the world by the number of Agricultural UNESCO World Heritage Sites is submitted. The author notes that exactly this category of objects forms a primary resource base for the agricultural (rural) tourism development as the most important attractive destinations, especially in Europe. As the conclusions the reasons are formulated, under which agricultural tourism is a promising form of tourism organization both for individual agricultural enterprises on the basis of objects of agricultural heritage, and for the regions in which these objects are presented.

scholarly journals Potential of the Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage for resolution of environmental problems of the world heritage site “Lake Baikal”

2020 ◽  
pp. 11-24
Author(s):  
Yaroslava Borisovna Ditsevich ◽  
Roman Yur'evich Kolobov
Keyword(s):  
Lake Baikal ◽  
World Heritage ◽  
World Heritage Site ◽  
World Heritage Sites ◽  
Natural Heritage ◽  
Heritage Sites ◽  
Heritage Site ◽  
The World ◽  
Legal Regimes ◽  
The Impact

This article reflects certain results of the research conducted within the framework of implementation of the scientific project No.0-011-00168, supported by the Russian Foundation for Basic Research, dedicated to comprehensive analysis of the international legal regimes for the protection of Lake Baikal. Emphasis is placed on the protection regime of the world heritage, realized on the basis of the cognominal convention. Recognition of the role played by the mechanisms for protection of the World Heritage in conservation of the unique ecosystem of Lake Baikal, the authors note that within the framework of Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage there are promising mechanisms that are currently did not receive due reflection with regards to protection of the lake. Such instruments include the list of world heritage sites that are under a threat; development of the plan for maintaining the world heritage site; strategic environmental assessment of planned activity that may negatively impact the site. The conclusion is made on the need for implementation of the following international legal mechanisms with regards to protection of Lake Baikal: inclusion of Lake Baikal into the list of world heritage sites that are under the threat, upon the initiative of the Russian Federation in case of construction of hydroengineering structures by Mongolia on the Selenga River without taking into account the priorities for preservation of the lake ecosystem; elaboration of the plan for protection of Lake Baikal as the world heritage site. The author also underlines the need to develop the plan that would become the means for harmonization of various legal regimes that ensure protection of the Lake Baikal. Attention given to the approaches towards assessing the impact upon the environment existing within the system of protection of world heritage. It is suggested to consider the recommendations of the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources to conduct such assessment on World Heritage sites.

scholarly journals Russian estate as a promising UNESCO World Heritage Site: on the example of Leo Tolstoy’s "Yasnaya Polyana"

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 109-127
Author(s):  
M. Kuleshova
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Landscape ◽  
World Heritage ◽  
World Heritage Site ◽  
Unesco World Heritage ◽  
Russian Culture ◽  
Cultural Phenomenon ◽  
Heritage Site ◽  
Unesco World Heritage Site ◽  
World Heritage List ◽  
The World

The Russian estate is a characteristic phenomenon of Russian culture, which had a significant impact on the images of Russia and the formation of its cultural landscape. At the same time, this cultural phenomenon is not yet represented in the World Heritage List for Russia. The article reveals the main values of Leo Tolstoy’s estate Yasnaya Polyana, which are of universal importance; presents interconnectedness and interdependence of its natural and cultural characteristics. It is stated, that the territorial complex of Leo Tolstoy’s estate Yasnaya Polyana fully complies with the UNESCO criteria for assigning objects to the of World Heritage.

The Attractiveness of Quebec's Heritage Sites in The Era of Covid-19

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 151-165
Author(s):  
Sebastián Alberto Longhi Heredia ◽  
Pascale Marcotte
Keyword(s):  
World Heritage ◽  
World Heritage Site ◽  
International Mobility ◽  
Unesco World Heritage ◽  
World Heritage Sites ◽  
Heritage Sites ◽  
Heritage Site ◽  
Unesco World Heritage Site ◽  
International Visitors ◽  
First Time

UNESCO World Heritage site designation is an opportunity to achieve international status. Studies have demonstrated that many of these sites are major attractions to international visitors and first-time visitors. While Covid-19 has limited international mobility during 2020, this study aims to understand how those responsible for tourism and World Heritage sites have communicated the heritage of the Historic District of Old Quebec (Canada) to local and national visitors. To measure tourist attractiveness, the study analyzed publications posted on Instagram during the summer of 2020. Strategies for diffusion revealed an approach to enhance natural sites more than cultural heritage.

scholarly journals Towards an Integrative Understanding of ‘Authenticity’ of Cultural Heritage: An Analysis of World Heritage Site Designations in the Asian Context

2016 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 148-159 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julie Williams Lawless ◽  
Kapila D. Silva
Keyword(s):  
World Heritage ◽  
World Heritage Site ◽  
World Heritage Sites ◽  
Heritage Sites ◽  
Cultural Organization ◽  
Heritage Site ◽  
Holistic Understanding ◽  
The World ◽  
Outstanding Universal Value ◽  
Asian Context

In the World Heritage Sites (WHS) designation, it is required to define the conditions that ‘authenticate’ the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of heritage sites. Initially, the notion of authenticity had been understood as an objective and measurable attribute inherent in the material fabric of sites. This perspective overlooked the fact that authenticity of a place is also culturally constructed, contextually variable and observer dependent. In 1994, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) introduced a set of attributes that facilitate a holistic understanding of authenticity of heritage sites which considers both tangible and intangible aspects of heritage together. To find out the extent to which this holistic understanding of authenticity is currently applied in the WHS designations, we analyzed nomination dossiers of 31 sites from the Asian context that were designated as World Heritage between 2005 and 2014. The findings point towards the continuing need to apply systematic, holistic and integrative perspectives of authenticity standards to heritage sites.

scholarly journals Critical Analysis of a World Heritage Site in Terms of Conservation and Tourism Promotion: The Case of “Ibiza, Biodiversity and Culture” (Ibiza, Spain)

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (23) ◽  
pp. 13250
Author(s):  
José Ramón-Cardona ◽  
David Daniel Peña-Miranda ◽  
María Dolores Sánchez-Fernández
Keyword(s):  
World Heritage ◽  
World Heritage Site ◽  
Unesco World Heritage ◽  
World Heritage Sites ◽  
Heritage Sites ◽  
Cultural Organization ◽  
Tourism Promotion ◽  
Heritage Site ◽  
Beach Tourism ◽  
High Season

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage Sites (WHS) have great prestige. Each year, candidatures are presented by advocates seeking to raise awareness of the importance of certain cultural and natural sites, to achieve better protection and to make them known, which can promote tourism to benefit the surrounding regions. One of these cases is Ibiza, which, after a first rejection in 1986, obtained the inscription of “Ibiza, Biodiversity and Culture” in 1999. This WHS is made up of various cultural and natural elements of the island, although the best known is the fortified Upper Town of Ibiza (Dalt Vila). Since then, important restoration and musealization actions have been carried out in the old town, and some tourism promotion events have been held, but there have been failures in its conversion into a tourist product: Both residents and tourists see this as complementary to the traditional offer (sun and beach tourism); confusion has been generated in communication, focusing on the old town and forgetting the other elements; tourist visits to the registered elements have not taken off and are concentrated in the summer months (the traditional high season); some decisions have been politicized, among other problems. Finally, different lines of tourism development are proposed.

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