In July this year, Unesco held meetings to review the list of World Heritage sites. There are 1154 World Heritage Sites across the world.
Value to humanity
Unesco stands for The United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation, and it protects places that are of ‘outstanding value to humanity’.
The committee decides which places should be added or taken off the list, and provides money to some sites. It also decides on which sites should be protected due to being at risk from being destroyed.
Salonga Park no longer in danger
Salonga National Park in Democratic Republic of Congo in Africa was removed from being on the ‘in danger’ list having been on the list since the late 1990’s.
Iran’s Trans Iranian Railway and Madrid’s Retiro Park were added to the World Heritage list.
UK World Heritage Sites
There are currently 33 recognised World Heritage sites in the UK. Both National Trust and English Heritage look after places at several of them, and in the case of Stonehenge they do so jointly.
Photo: Kvarken Archipelago, Finland.
