Introduction
World Heritage Sites are cultural and/or natural sites of ‘Outstanding Universal Value’, which are important across countries and generations.
These places or buildings are thought to:
- have special importance for everyone
- represent unique, or the most significant or best, examples of the world’s cultural and/or natural heritage
Until 2004, there were six sets of criteria for cultural heritage and four for natural heritage. In 2005, UNESCO modified these and now has one set of ten criteria. Nominated sites must be of "outstanding universal value" and must meet at least one of the ten criteria.
Cultural:
- "To represent a masterpiece of human creative genius"
- "To exhibit an important interchange of human values, over a span of time or within a cultural area of the world, on developments in architecture or technology, monumental arts, town-planning or landscape design"
- "To bear a unique or at least exceptional testimony to a cultural tradition or to a civilization which is living, or which has disappeared"
- "To be an outstanding example of a type of building, architectural or technological ensemble or landscape which illustrates (a) significant stage(s) in human history"
- "To be an outstanding 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 especially when it has become vulnerable under the impact of irreversible change"
- "To be directly or tangibly associated with events or living traditions, with ideas, or with beliefs, with artistic and literary works of outstanding universal significance"
Natural:
- "To contain superlative natural phenomena or areas of exceptional natural beauty and aesthetic importance"
- "To be outstanding examples representing major stages of earth's history, including the record of life, significant on-going geological processes in the development of landforms, or significant geomorphic or physiographic features"
- "To be outstanding examples representing significant on-going ecological and biological processes in the evolution and development of terrestrial, fresh water, coastal and marine ecosystems and communities of plants and animals"
- "To contain the most important and significant natural habitats for in-situ conservation of biological diversity, including those containing threatened species of outstanding universal value from the point of view of science or conservation"
A country must first identify its significant cultural and natural sites in a document known as the Tentative List. Next, it can place sites selected from that list into a Nomination File, which is evaluated. The Committee meets once a year to determine what nominated properties to add to the World Heritage List.
Task
Your task for this webquest is to collect information, use critical thinking skills, and discuss about the process of including a site on UNESCO’s famous heritage site list. The purpose of this webquest is to guide you to discover and analyse the criteria a site has to meet inn order to be considered for the UNESCO World Heritage List.
Process
Activity 1: Watch the video which briefly explains the concept of "world heritage", then answer the three questions:
a. What is the purpose of The World Heritage Convention?
b. Why are some sites protected by UNESCO?
c. How can a site be included in the World Heritage List?
Activity 2: The Value of Heritage
Have you ever thought about the value of your heritage? Whether it is represented by places, objects, customs, values and creative expressions, our heritage defines us. In the video below, seven people from around the world were asked to talk about their country's heritage:
Did you recognise the 7sites/elements the people were talking about? What are they? Why are they important?
Record a short video in which you describe one of the natural/cultural sites from your country or an element from the intangible list of cultural heritage. Try to answer the same questions as the people from the video: Why is it important to you? What memories do you have related to that place/custom? How would you feel if your heritage got damaged? Destroyed? Lost?
Activity 3: Tentative Lists
A Tentative List is an inventory of those properties which each State Party intends to consider for nomination. States Parties are encouraged to submit their Tentative Lists, properties which they consider to be cultural and/or natural heritage of outstanding universal value and therefore suitable for inscription on the World Heritage List.
Read the information about the process of including sites on the tentative list: https://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/
What is the meaning of these numbers you read about?
a. 1 year
b. 10 years
c. 194
d. 185
Activity 4: Submission Process
This is the form that should be filled in for each site considered suitable for inscription on the World Heritage List: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-6CbYUzVJVRKRZkq3LhYTduqGtv0JCmn/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=113457165624038646996&rtpof=true&sd=true
And here: https://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/5942/ you can find an example of a Tentative List submission.
In multinational teams, choose one of the sites from the Tentative List of the country you have been assigned and fill in the first and last criteria from the submission form. Write 1 - 2 paragraphs for each question.
a. Justification of Outstanding Universal Value:
(Preliminary identification of the values of the property which merit inscription on the World Heritage List)
b. Comparison with other similar properties:
(The comparison should outline similarities with other properties on the World Heritage List or not, and the reasons that make the property stand out)
Team 1: Greece - https://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/?action=listtentative&state=gr&order=states
Team 2: Croatia - https://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/?action=listtentative&state=hr&order=states
Team 3: Italy - https://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/?action=listtentative&state=it&order=states
Team 4: Romania - https://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/?action=listtentative&state=ro&order=states
Team 5: Spain - https://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/?action=listtentative&state=es&order=states
Team 6: Turkiye - https://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/?action=listtentative&state=tr&order=states
Present your submission form in front of your colleagues. You can use pictures to support your presentation, but make sure you keep it concise and engaging.
Evaluation
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5. Proof of the universal value and uniqueness of the site
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Conclusion
Outstanding Universal Value is considered to transcend national boundaries and to be of importance for future generations. World Heritage status is a high accolade that brings with it responsibilities and international scrutiny.
The tentative list is extremely important because the World Heritage Committee cannot consider a nomination for inscription on the World Heritage List unless the property has already been included on the state party's tentative list.