World Heritage Initiative
Department of History
Atlanta, Georgia
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World Heritage Celebrates 50 Years Today!
WH Convention Signed November 16, 1972
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Nations from around the globe signed the World Heritage Convention into international law fifty years ago, making today, Wednesday, November 16, the birthday of World Heritage. The effort to recognize and protect through inscription on the World Heritage List the most significant cultural and natural places on earth has been hailed as one of the greatest successes of humanity’s international collaboration. Since then, 194 States Parties have signed the Convention which, under the auspices of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), oversees the World Heritage Committee that has inscribed 1,154 places on the World Heritage List.
The United States had proposed the World Heritage Convention and advocated for its passage by the nations of the world back in 1972, and it became the first country to sign the international treaty. Since then, the United States has had a spotty record of involvement in World Heritage as domestic politics interfered with this global effort at historic preservation and conservation. As of now in the FY 2023 Federal Budget, the Biden Administration proposes rejoining UNESCO and paying its back dues to the World Heritage Fund.
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At the Berlin “50 Years of World Heritage Convention” Conference, described below, Mr. Lazare Eloundou Assomo (on the left), the Director of the World Heritage Centre, comments as a member of a panel that included (left to right) Mr. Juan Carlos Barrientos Garcia of the Bauhaus University of Weimar, Dr. Mechtild Rossler, the former Director of the World Heritage Centre, Dr. Roland Bernecker of the Brandenburg University of Technology, Dr. Birgitta Ringbeck, the Head of the World Heritage Coordinating Body, Ms. Elisabeth Korinth of Blue Shield, and Mr. Joseph King, Senior Director of the International Center for the Study of Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property.
In recognition of the 50th Anniversary of World Heritage, several institutions have scheduled special events.
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World Heritage Centre
From Paris, the World Heritage Centre has hosted throughout the year a dialogue series called “50 Minds for The Next 50” which showcases experts discussing five challenges faced by the World Heritage program while also offering creative solutions to such vexing issues as climate change, the ongoing pandemic, protecting sites through sustainable tourism, imagining a digital dimension for World Heritage, and the creation of a balanced and representative World Heritage List.
Other events scheduled by the World Heritage Centre include exhibits, conferences, and internet posting called “One Day, One World Heritage Site” which features a new listed property each day. In 2023, the celebration of the 50th Anniversary will conclude with a conference in Florence, Italy, dedicated to the year of programming and reflection around the five priority areas addressed by the experts.
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World Heritage USA
US/ICOMOS, the United States National Committee of the International Council on Monuments and Sites, has rebranded the organization as World Heritage USA. The new name reflects a refinement of the organization’s mission and programs as the primary U.S. organization supporting the World Heritage Convention and its wide spectrum of preservation activity both domestic and abroad.
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With the name change the organization presents itself “as a forward-looking U.S. preservation organization committed to global heritage conservation while continuing our traditional relationship with the International Council on Monuments and Sites.” World Heritage USA will continue its close relationship to ICOMOS and its global mission through advocacy, education, and the exchange of people and ideas.
In recognition of the 50th Anniversary, US/ICOMOS (World Heritage USA) held a two-day virtual conference titled “World Heritage at 50: A Symposium on the Past, Present and Future of the World Heritage Convention.” The organization’s president, Douglas C. Comer, and vice president Destry Jarvis, oversaw interviews with key participants and panel discussions on such topics as “Threats to World Heritage” and “Future Directions.” Among the interviewees were National Park Service Deputy Director Mike Reynolds and Christophe Rivet, the President of ICOMOS Canada.
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Institute of Heritage Studies |
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In Berlin, the Institute of Heritage Studies (IHS) joined by the German Federal Foreign Office hosted an International Conference on the Future of the World Heritage Convention called “50 Years World Heritage Convention: Times of Peace, Conflict, and War.” Convened by Professor Dr. Marie-Theres Albert of the HIS, the conference featured comments by the Current Director of the World Heritage Centre, Mr. Lazare Eloundou Assomo, as well as the Former Director of the World Heritage Centre, Dr. Mechtild Rossler. Panelists on Round Table discussions included Professor Dr. Christina Cameron of Our World Heritage, Mr. Joseph King, of the International Center for the Study of Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM), Mr. Uli Grabener, the Vice Chair of World Heritage Watch, and Professor Dr. Peter Stone, the President of Blue Shield International and the UNESCO Chair in Cultural Property Protection and Peace.
The conference included the presentation of “50 Years World Heritage Convention: Shared Responsibility – Conflict & Reconciliation” a book written by 61 authors coming from 28 countries around the world, covering a wide range of perspectives. It will be available to download for free as Open-Access. It reflects on the past, present and future of the World Heritage Convention.
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This project is funded in part by:
The African American Civil Rights program of the Historic Preservation Fund,
National Park Service, Department of the Interior. Any opinions, findings and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material do not constitute endorsement or necessarily reflect the views of the Department of the Interior or U.S. Government; and
Grants from the African American Fund and the Southern Intervention Fund of the
National Trust for Historic Preservation.
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