In New Zealand you can explore three large world heritage sites – Tongariro National Park, Te Wahipounamu and the Subantarctic Islands.

Why it’s a World Heritage Area It contains rocks, plants and animals which take us back 80 million years to a time when New Zealand was part of the ancient super continent Gondwana. It has spectacular ice carved fiords, lakes and valleys – amongst the finest examples of glaciated landforms in the Southern Hemisphere.

Fiordland: A cherished corner of the world. Fiordland National Park is one of New Zealand’s treasured natural icons and is internationally recognised as part of the wider UNESCO World Heritage site, Te Wāhipounamu (Place of the Greenstone).

three World Heritage sites

Milford Sound, New Zealand World heritage sites are places that UNESCO has recognised as having outstanding natural or cultural value for everyone.

1984

Ministry of Culture

Brief History The event that aroused particular international concern was the decision to build the Aswan High Dam in Egypt, which would have flooded the valley containing the Abu Simbel temples , a treasure of ancient Egyptian civilization.

UNESCO protects the cultural heritage by means of:

• standard-setting activities (concerning the preparation and implementation of international legal instruments, and acting as Secretariat in that regard);
• technical and scientific assistance, and support for training and capacity-building;

To ensure that culture takes it rightful place in development strategies and processes, UNESCO has adopted a three-pronged approach: it spearheads worldwide advocacy for culture and development, while engaging with the international community to set clear policies and legal frameworks and working on the ground to …

A cultural heritage is a tradition or landmark that is specific to one group of people. A world heritage is when that tradition or landmark is meant to be recognised by other groups of people as deserving respect and preservation.

The sites are judged to contain “cultural and natural heritage around the world considered to be of outstanding value to humanity”. To be selected, a World Heritage Site must be a somehow unique landmark which is geographically and historically identifiable and has special cultural or physical significance.

Cultural heritage includes tangible culture (such as buildings, monuments, landscapes, books, works of art, and artifacts), intangible culture (such as folklore, traditions, language, and knowledge), and natural heritage (including culturally significant landscapes, and biodiversity).

Designating World Heritage sites There are three types of sites: cultural, natural, and mixed.

Italy and China are tied for having the most UNESCO world heritage sites. In total, there are 1,121 monuments listed in UNESCO sites, across 167 countries.

This year, Unesco has decided on “Complex Pasts: Diverse Futures” as the theme for World Heritage Day celebrations. “The conservation of cultural heritage requires careful examination of the past, and its practice demands provision for the future,” the world body said on its website.

Countries Without UNESCO World Heritage Sites

• Bhutan. Currently, Bhutan does not have any World Heritage Sites.
• Guyana. Guyana is among the countries that do not have World Heritage Sites.
• Liberia. Liberia is an African country without a World Heritage Site.

Top 10 biggest natural World Heritage sites

The 5 UNESCO designated cultural and natural wonders of Newfoundland & Labrador

• The Tablelands – Gros Morne National Park.
• Viking Visitors – L’Anse aux Meadows National Historic Site.
• Whaling Heritage – Red Bay National Historic Site.
• Where Multicellular, Complex Life Began – Mistaken Point Ecological Reserve.

Cordoba

city of Ahmedabad

Also known as the city of temples….Kathmandu.

38 World Heritage Sites

India has 38 world heritage sites, including 30 cultural properties, 7 natural properties and 1 mixed site.

Jaipur was certified as a World Heritage site by UNESCO during an event held at the historic Albert Hall in the Pink City on Wednesday. Azoulay presented the World Heritage City certificate to Minister of Urban Development Shanti Dhariwal.

Maharashtra

The waters of the Ganges are believed to possess supernatural powers….Descent of the Ganges (Mahabalipuram)

For all these reasons this one of the most important Indian heritage sites.

• Humayun’s Tomb, New Delhi.
• Jantar Mantar, Jaipur, Rajasthan.
• Agra Fort, Uttar Pradesh.
• Fatehpur Sikri, Uttar Pradesh.
• Rani Ki Vav, Patan, Gujarat.
• Group of Monuments at Pattadakal, Karnataka.
• Elephanta Caves, Maharashtra.