UNESCO Courier articles from September 1997

UNESCO Courier archives from September 1997

A text by Andre Malraux. (speech given by Andre Malraux at the launching of the first International Campaign for the Preservation of the Monuments of Nubia on Mar 8, 1960 at the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization headquarters in Paris)(Transcript)
September 1, 1997... While we were preparing this issue we often found ourselves thinking of the words uttered by Andre Malraux on 8 March 1960, at a ceremony held at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris to mark the launching of the first International Campaign for the...

What is the world heritage? (heritage sites worldwide)
September 1, 1997... An international treaty The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) seeks to encourage the identification, protection and preservation of cultural and natural heritage around the world considered to be of...

Vive la difference! (creative diversity among nations and cultures)
September 1, 1997... The creative diversity of people and cultures is at the heart of the world heritage idea Modern societies' strange knack of erasing their own traces makes the preservation of the world heritage a duty owed to memory. At a time when remembrance...

An idea whose time has come. (French model of the national heritage concept)
September 1, 1997... How France became aware of its heritage In the last twenty years or so, the concept of "heritage" has expanded - or rather exploded - to the point where it has become transformed(1). Thus, while older dictionaries define it primarily as that...

Cultural landscapes.
September 1, 1997... A new category of World Heritage sites shaped by a blend of human and natural forces Landscapes are all around us, and it is a daunting task to set workable yardsticks for gauging and protecting them. The task is all the more difficult because...

Past and present: a creative dialogue. (harmony between ancient and modern architecture)
September 1, 1997... A relationship which has its ups and downs as well as some surprising moments of harmony The problem of reconciling the safeguarding of cultural sites of historic interest with the creation of a new, vital architecture is one that is peculiar...

The modern movement. (protecting 20th century art and architecture)
September 1, 1997... 20th-century art and architecture are still without their rightful place in the heritage listings The heritage of the period since the industrial revolution, especially that of the twentieth century, is still barely represented on the World...

Words and deeds. (ambiguities in the World Heritage Convention criteria for choosing cultural sites)
September 1, 1997... The criteria written into the World Heritage Convention contain some ambiguities The implementation of the World Heritage Convention is based on the definition of the cultural and natural heritage enshrined in Article 1 of the Convention. This...

The north-south gap. (differences in perceptions and attitudes towards inclusion in the World Heritage List)
September 1, 1997... The South and the North face different problems and defend different interests when protecting and presenting sites included on the World Heritage List. In the North, a variety of organizations hope that the state will protect listed sites...

A vigilant eye. (requirements for a heritage site's continued inclusion in the World Heritage List)
September 1, 1997... When a site is placed on the World Heritage List, that is not the end of the story. If it is to stay on the List, the characteristics and qualities that justified its inscription must be preserved. This means monitoring not only changes that...

Sacred mountains. (natural heritage sites)
September 1, 1997... Sacred mountains are the World Heritage sites that enshrine the highest physical and spiritual values. For many the sight of a distant peak looming over lowlands, floating above the clouds, reaching towards the stars, awakens the spirit, evoking...

A canal in Southern France.
September 1, 1997... In October 1666 King Louis XIV of France authorized Pierre Paul de Riquet (1604-1680) to start work on what was to become one of the seventeenth century's most ambitious civil engineering projects, the Canal du Midi. Built only a few decades...

Three highland villages in Japan.
September 1, 1997... Three farming villages in a remote valley in the high central mountains of Japan's main island, Honshu, were added to the World Heritage List in 1995. The villages, Ogimachi, Ainokura and Suganuma, are located in a region historically known as...

The heritage, memory of the future. (commentary)
September 1, 1997... The fundamental dilemma facing all the world's countries, to varying degrees, is that of the need to safeguard the past while continuing to build the future, the need to balance the demands of development and culture. The international scope of...

A waste-free farm.
September 1, 1997... Available food resources are increasing at a slower pace than world population, especially in developing countries. To reverse this critical trend, farmers in these regions require simple and effective farming methods. The United Nations...

Youssef Chahine. (Egyptian film director)(Interview)
September 1, 1997... Youssef Chahine is a major Egyptian film director with an international reputation. Earlier this year he was awarded a special prize by the Cannes Film Festival on the occasion of its 50th anniversary, as an accolade for his lifetime's work in...