This week, anticipation and excitement filled the air at a prestigious conference held in Saudi Arabia as UNESCO, the vanguard of global cultural preservation, proudly expanded its prestigious list of protected world heritage sites by over 40 remarkable additions.
42 new World Heritage Sites were announced this week by The United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization, UNESCO, at a gathering in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Committee members selected sites from a list of nominations submitted throughout 2022 and 2023, and for a site to be included on the list it must represent “outstanding universal value,” meaning it has importance for everyone, and not just for the home nation.
Including the 42 new sites, the UNESCO World heritage list now comprises 1,100 locations across the world. These exemplary UNESCO World Heritage Sites include Machu Picchu in Peru, the ancient Inca mountaintop citadel featuring outstanding architecture; the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, a unique marine ecosystem; and the ancient center of Rome in Italy, preserving several millennia of cultural heritage.
Ethiopia’s Bale Mountains National Park are a new addition to the UNESCO World Heritage List. (Roger de la Harpe /Adobe/Stock)
Protecting Both Cultural and Natural Sites
The 42 new World Heritage Sites comprise 33 archaeological sites, and 9 natural areas of outstanding beauty. The archaeological sites include mystical burial grounds in Korea, Viking-age fortresses in Denmark, and towns and…
