Comprehensive Analysis: History and Background of World Heritage Sites

This report provides a comprehensive overview of World Heritage Sites, beginning with their historical context and the impetus for their creation following World War II. It defines World Heritage Sites as cultural or natural monuments of 'Outstanding Universal Value' recognized by UNESCO. The report details the different categories of sites (cultural, natural, and mixed), the process of site selection and nomination, and the criteria used for inclusion on the World Heritage List. It emphasizes the reasons for preserving these sites, including their role in preserving identity and attracting tourism, using examples like the fortified churches in Transylvania and the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Additionally, the report addresses the negative consequences of preserving heritage sites, such as damage from tourism, and suggests solutions to mitigate these impacts. The report concludes with a summary of the key findings, reiterating the importance of preserving these sites while acknowledging the need for sustainable tourism practices.

History and background of World
Heritage Sites

TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION......................................................................................................................3
Discussing history and background of World Heritage Sites................................................3
Explaining reasons for preserving World Heritage Sites.......................................................5
Explaining negative consequences of preserving Heritage Sites...........................................6
CONCLUSION..........................................................................................................................6
REFERENCES...........................................................................................................................7

INTRODUCTION
The concept of World Heritage was initiated after the end of World War II when one
cultural monument which was immense importance, that is, Ramses II temple at Abu Simbel
was destructed during the construction of Aswan dam in Egypt in 1959. These heritage sites
are cultural or natural sites or monuments which are regarded as of ‘Outstanding Universal
Value’ and are listed on World Heritage List by the committee. The World Heritage Sites
provides instant international recognition. The report will discuss history and background of
heritage sites along with its categorization. Report will also present the process, selection and
nomination of sites with example. Further, it will also introduce the importance for
preserving these sites with the help of example. There will be also be explanation about
negative consequences of preserving heritage sites along with solutions to reduce negative
impact.
Discussing history and background of World Heritage Sites
World Heritage Sites are cultural sites or monuments or objects listed under UNESCO
(United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) World Heritage List. It
gives a framework for cooperation on international level in order to preserve and protect the
natural resources and cultural treasures across the world (Hosseini, Stefaniec and Hosseini,
2021). The primary boost of preserving these heritage sites was the construction of Aswan
high dam. On 16th November 1972, UNESCO came in front and adopted a convention to
solve the issue to international community and the end result was the largest archeological
rescue operation. ‘Outstanding Universal Value’ can be defined as the objects of cultural and
natural importance which are exceptional and transcends national boundaries and are of
utmost importance for present and future generations.
Different categories of World Heritage Sites
 Cultural: Cultural sites are those sites that comprises of various historic buildings and
town sites, all archaeological sites, monumental sculptures and painting works. There
are total 1121 monuments across 167 countries listed under UNESCO list. Natural: These natural sites are confined to natural areas which are perfect examples
of Earth’s record of life or for its geological processes, secondly, which are wonderful
example of ecological & biological processes of evolution, thirdly, which contain
natural beauty, rare or unique, and lastly provides habitats of endangered animals or

are sites of exceptional biodiversity (Gursoy, Akova and Atsız, 2022). There are
around 257 natural sites listed on the UNESCO where 218 are natural sites and 39
mixed sites. For example. Christ the Redeemer designed by Romanian sculptor and
French engineer, Machu Pichu located in Peru, Taj Mahal in India, etc. Mixed: Sites which contain elements of both natural & cultural significance are called
Mixed heritage sites (The history of World Heritage List, 2022). The ratio of cultural
to natural sites is around 3:1 on World Heritage List. There are several additions made
to the list every year.
Process of selection and nomination of sites
The countries which have signed the Convention of World Heritage and pledging to
protect natural and cultural heritage are allowed to submit proposals for properties to be
considered as World Heritage Property. The nomination process is as follows:
1. Tentative list: Initially, the country has to make an ‘inventory’ which is the tentative
list of cultural and natural heritages which provides forecast of properties to State
Party.
2. Nomination file: After tentative list, State Party present nomination file where World
Heritage Centre can provide advice and assists State Party in documentation.
Nomination file after the submission to World Heritage Centre sends it to Advisory
Board for evaluation purpose (Ghodya, Azzam and Maarouf, 2021).
3. Advisory Bodies: Nominated property is evaluated by two Advisory Bodies i.e. the
International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) and the International
Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
4. World Heritage Committee: After nomination & evaluation, it is under the World
Heritage Committee to make final decision regarding inscription of property.
5. Criterion: For the inclusion in World Heritage list, site must be ‘Outstanding
Universal Value’ and meet one selection criteria.
Selection Criteria:
 Represent masterpiece
 Exhibit important interchange of human value
 Bear unique testimony
 Outstanding example of architecture or landscape
 Directly associated with living traditions
 Contain natural phenomena (Tost and et.al., 2021)

Explaining reasons for preserving World Heritage Sites
The heritage sites represent history of our nations, it is important to preserve
historical and cultural resources around the world. In order to preserve the past, heritage and
culture, there is a requirement to preserve these heritage sites. The reasons for preserving
these heritage sites are as follows:
 By preserving heritage, there is preservation of identity:
Heritage sites are the physical proofs of city's identity. The architecture and
strategic locations of buildings explains the story about city's inception and
predictions of where it will go in future. These magnificent buildings needed to be
preserved for future generations (Rastegar, Zarezadeh and Gretzel, 2021). Heritage
sites provide a valuable factor to local communities which empower them and gives
them a sense of social and cultural life.
For example, the villages with fortified churches in Transylvania provides a
beautiful picture of cultural landscape in Transylvania, Romania. All the seven
villages describes specific system of land-use, the pattern of settlement and how
family organizes farmstead. It has been preserved since late Middle ages which are
dominated by fortified churches. The styles of building constructions is from 13th to
16th century. The main element here are the churches with various forms of
fortification like small enceinte around the church or a real fortress with multiple
walls centered on church.
 Attracts Tourism:
All the heritage sites attracts tourists from all over the world which further lead to
increase in wealth of nation. It helps in enhancing funding for economy by stimulating
economic growth and prosperity. Pictures clicked at Leaning Tower of Pisa or La
Laure or Taj Mahal and posted on social media excites other person and motivates
them to visit such heritage sites. Therefore, it is important to preserve all World
Heritage Sites which leads to growth of economy.
In fact, the Leaning Tower of Pisa is a medieval structure in Italy, which is
famous for its foundation that leans to 5.5 degrees from perpendicular in 20th century.
Extensive work was done to straighten the tower and ultimately lean was reduced to
4.0 degrees (Jang and Mennis, 2021). It attracts around 1,000,000 tourists each year in
Italy which is the best preserved architecture of Ancient Roman Buildings. After all
most 2000 years of its construction, the Pantheon’s dome is the largest unreinforced
concrete dome of the world. In comparison to this, London is the most popular city to

attract tourists around the globe. The city attracts around 30 million people every year
from different countries.
Explaining negative consequences of preserving Heritage Sites
Heritage tourism causes various damages to natural heritage and cultural architecture.
There is a lot of damage to coral reefs in Bonaire & Caribbean territories. Enormous increase
in snorkelling and diving activities, cruise ship pollution, disruption of reproduction cycle and
growth of corals due to chemical dumping are the physical evidences of negative impact of
tourism on natural heritage (Bhatia and et.al., 2021). Furthermore, heritage parks are seen as
good photography opportunities trample the foliage, is depleting over time the natural
environment. In addition to this, commercialization of heritage tourism which only focuses
on interests of tourists and neglects the narratives of true meaning of heritage sites of objects
displayed. There are also some tourism activities that encourages theft of cultural resources
and properties. If there is no proper heritage management then, such tourism can lead to lack
of appreciation of culture which can reduce protection & conservation of cultural heritage
overtime.
These negative impacts over cultural sites can be reduced with adequate integration of
cultural protection and management laws at national and regional levels. Governing
authorities need to adopt a holistic approach for planning tourism destinations (Spezzano,
2021). Great emphasis should be placed on maintaining a balance between cultural and social
fabric and building local capacity in order to conserve tangible and intangible cultural assets
for coming generations to celebrate and feel proud. Government should make rules regarding
level of visitation as a tool for planning and development tourism.
CONCLUSION
From the report, it can be concluded that World Heritage Sites listed under UNESCO
gives a picture to protect and preserve the heritage sites. Further, it can be said that there are
three types of heritage sites i.e. Cultural, Natural & Mixed. It also summarizes the fact there
is a complete procedure for selection of heritage sites under the list of World Heritage Sites
starting from preparing tentative list to advisory bodies to criterion set for selection. In
addition to this, it can also be articulated that it is very important to preserve these heritage
sites in order to protect the identity and attract tourism. However, there are negative impacts
also such as depletion of natural resources and chemical dumping of wastage in rivers and

seas. In the last, it can be said that government is taking initiatives and measures to protect
the natural heritage.

REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Bhatia, S. and et.al., 2021. Understanding People’s Relationship With Wildlife in Trans-
Himalayan Folklore. Frontiers in Environmental Science. 9. p.595169.
Ghodya, M. K. M., Azzam, Y. A. E. and Maarouf, I. E. S., 2021. Strategy of integrating
Egyptian sites into world heritage property: Rashid city as a case study. Ain Shams
Engineering Journal. 12(3). pp.3381-3387.
Gursoy, D., Akova, O. and Atsız, O., 2022. Understanding the heritage experience: a content
analysis of online reviews of World Heritage Sites in Istanbul. Journal of Tourism
and Cultural Change. 20(3). pp.311-334.
Hosseini, K., Stefaniec, A. and Hosseini, S. P., 2021. World Heritage Sites in developing
countries: Assessing impacts and handling complexities toward sustainable
tourism. Journal of Destination Marketing & Management. 20. p.100616.
Jang, H. and Mennis, J., 2021. The Role of Local Communities and Well-Being in UNESCO
World Heritage Site Conservation: An Analysis of the Operational Guidelines,
1994–2019. Sustainability. 13(13). p.7144.
Rastegar, R., Zarezadeh, Z. and Gretzel, U., 2021. World heritage and social justice: Insights
from the inscription of Yazd, Iran. Journal of Sustainable Tourism. 29(2-3). pp.521-
540.
Spezzano, P., 2021. Mapping the susceptibility of UNESCO World Cultural Heritage sites in
Europe to ambient (outdoor) air pollution. Science of the Total Environment. 754.
p.142345.
Tost, M., and et.al., 2021. Mining and Europe’s World Heritage Cultural
Landscapes. Resources. 10(2). p.18.
Online
The history of World Heritage List. 2022. [Online]. Available through: <
https://www.norgesverdensarv.no/history.137034.en.html>