Travel and tourism is one of the largest sources of economic activity in the world.

At the same time, it can be an important force of sustainability by raising living standards in under-developed areas, promoting

preservation and the natural and human environment." World Travel and Tourism Council A Voyage of Discovery of UNESCO's World Heritage Sites The World Heritage Tourism is the ambitious project to promote sustainable tourism and awareness of World Heritage sites and communities around the world. The project team believes conscientious efforts by the travel industry and its customers can contribute directly to nature conservation, historic preservation, and poverty reduction through responsible tourism. Our goal is to engage new partners, especially in the travel industry, to join our initiative as a part of the World Heritage Project and catalyze a collective commitment to supporting World Heritage conservation, sustainable tourism, and local economic development for communities in and around World Heritage sites. The initiative: Inspires Travelers to Explore World Heritage Sites. Encourages Public Awareness and Involvement. Engages the Travel Industry to promote World Heritage sites and communities. About World Heritage Heritage is our legacy from the past, what we live with today, and what we pass on to future generations. Our cultural and natural Heritage is both irreplaceable sources of life and inspiration. Places as unique and diverse as the wilds of East Africas Serengeti, the Pyramids of Egypt, Angkor Wat of Cambodia, the Great Barrier Reef in Australia and the Baroque cathedrals of Latin America make up our worlds heritage and are internationally recognized for their outstanding value to humanity. What makes the concept of World Heritage exceptional is its universal application. World Heritage sites belong to all the peoples of the world, irrespective of the territory on which they are located. There are currently 830 designated World Heritage sites that span 138 countries and offer an extraordinary range of travel experiences. These sites have been internationally recognized for their outstanding value and are protected by the 1972 World Heritage Convention, signed by 180 countries and administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage sites include many of the most iconic travel spots on the planet. Visit Responsibly World Heritage properties attract tourists, and increased tourism always carries the risk of harming the very attributes that led to the properties' inscription on the World Heritage List. Through sustainable tourism, visitors can enjoy discovering World Heritage destinations and learn about their natural, cultural and historical characteristics while respecting the environment and the local culture. In addition to building environmental awareness and conserving local ecosystems, sustainable tourism can also help to generate income and employment for local communities.

The World Heritage List includes 962 properties forming part of the cultural and natural heritage which the World Heritage Committee considers as having outstanding universal value. These include 745 cultural , 188 natural and 29 mixed properties in 157 States Parties. As of March 2012, 189 States Parties have ratified the World Heritage Convention. Frist season of heritage places were published in 1977.

Selection criteria
Until the end of 2004, there were six criteria for cultural heritage and four criteria for natural heritage. In 2005, this was modified so that there is only one set of ten criteria. Nominated sites must be of "outstanding universal [9] value" and meet at least one of the ten criteria. [edit]Cultural

criteria

(i) "represents a masterpiece of human creative genius" (ii) "exhibits an important interchange of human values, over a span of time, or within a cultural area of the world, on developments in architecture or technology, monumental arts, town-planning, or landscape design" (iii) "bears a unique or exceptional testimony to a cultural tradition or to a civilization which is living or which has disappeared" (iv) "is an outstanding example of a type of building, architectural, or technological ensemble or landscape which illustrates a significant stage in human history" (v) "is an outstanding example of a traditional human settlement, land-use, or sea-use which is representative of a culture, or human interaction with the environment especially when it has become vulnerable under the impact of irreversible change" (vi) "is directly or tangibly associated with events or living traditions, with ideas, or with beliefs, with artistic and literary works of outstanding universal significance"

[edit]Natural

criteria

(vii) "contains superlative natural phenomena or areas of exceptional natural beauty and aesthetic importance" (viii) "is an outstanding example representing major stages of Earth's history, including the record of life, significant on-going geological processes in the development of landforms, or significant geomorphic or physiographic features" (ix) "is an outstanding example representing significant on-going ecological and biological processes in the evolution and development of terrestrial, fresh water, coastal and marine ecosystems, and communities of plants and animals" (x) "contains the most important and significant natural habitats for in-situ conservation of biological diversity, including those containing threatened species of outstanding universal value from the point of view of science or conservation"

Zone

Natural

Cultural

Mixed

Total

North America andEurope

68

417

11

496

[13]

Asia-Pacific andOceania

55

148

10

213

[13]

Africa

39

48

91

Arab States

67

74

Latin America and the Caribbean

36

91

130

Sub-Total

203

771

30

1004

less duplicates*

15

26

42

Total

188

745

29

962

2012 (36th session)

26 sites (20 cultural, 5 natural & 1 mixed)

Pearling, testimony of an island economy (Bahrain) (C) Major Mining Sites of Wallonia (Belgium) (C) Rio de Janeiro: Carioca Landscapes between the Mountain and the Sea (Brazil) (C) Landscape of Grand Pr (Canada) (C) Lakes of Ounianga (Chad) (N)(F) Site of Xanadu (China-PRoC) (C) Chengjiang Fossil Site, (China-PRoC) (N) Historic town of Grand-Bassam (Cte d'Ivoire) (C) Sangha Trinational (Cameroon, Central African Republic and Congo) (N)(F) Nord-Pas de Calais Mining Basin (France) (C) Margravial Opera House Bayreuth (Germany) (C) The Western Ghats: This range runs north to south along the western edge of the Deccan Plateau, and separates the plateau from a narrow coastal plain along the Arabian Sea (India) (C) The Cultural Landscape of Bali: the Subak System as a Manifestation of the Tri Hita Karana Philosophy (Indonesia) (C) Gonbad-e Qbus (Iran) (C) Masjed-e Jm of Isfahan (Iran) (C) Site of Human Evolution at Mount Carmel: The Nahal Mearot/Wadi el-Mughara Caves (Israel) (C) Birthplace of Jesus: the Church of the Nativity and the Pilgrimage Route, Bethlehem (Palestine) (C) Archaeological Heritage of the Lenggong Valley (Malaysia) (C) Rabat, modern capital and historic City: a shared heritage (Morocco) (C) Rock Islands Southern Lagoon (Palau) (M)(F) Garrison Border Town of Elvas and its Fortifications, (Portugal) (C) Lena Pillars Nature Park, (Russian Federation) (N) Bassari Country: Bassari, Fula and Bedik Cultural Landscapes (Senegal) (C) Heritage of Mercury. Almadn and Idrija, (Slovenia and Spain) (C) Decorated Farmhouses of Hlsingland (Sweden) (C) atalhyk: Neolithic site in Central Anatolia Region, near Konya (Turkey) (C)