Francesco BandarinDirector of the UNESCO World Heritage Centre

This year, designated International Year of Astronomy 2009 by the International Astronomical Union and UNESCO, marks both the 150th anniversary of the publication of Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species and the 400th anniversary of Galileo

Galilei’s first astronomical use of a telescope. This issue is consequently largely dedicated to the astronomical and scientific aspects of World Heritage and it also carries a tribute to Darwin.

Two important aspects of astronomy connect with the concept of World Heritage. One of these touches upon the preservation of important sites, monuments or landscapes

that attest to the observation of the starry skies by all civilizations worldwide and through the ages. A number of these sites are covered in this issue.

As pointed out in the ‘Astronomy and World Heritage’ article, several World Heritage sites, such as Stonehenge, Newgrange and Xochicalco, attest to early human awareness of the regular movement of the Sun, moon and stars but they did not necessarily serve as observatories.

The observatories at Greenwich or Saint Petersburg, on the other hand, were obviously conceived for this purpose, as was the 14th-century Observatory of Ulugh-Beg in Samarkand (Uzbekistan) or the 18th-century Jantar Mantar Observatories of India, which assemble some of the most unusual astronomical instruments every created in architectural form.

The other connection between astronomy and World Heritage is perhaps more unexpected: it concerns the very possibility of present-day Earth-dwellers actually seeing the stars.

We have admired the spectacle of the night skies, speculated, dreamed and fantasized about them for thousands of years. We have guided ships and caravans by the stars and identified them with our divinities. Yet today, for the first time in human history, even as the first explorers of space sail far above our atmosphere and space probes nudge the planets and their moons, the stars can no longer be seen from our cities.

With this in mind, the Starlight Initiative seeks the creation of Starlight Reserves in various parts of the world and is pushing for the development of ‘intelligent lighting’ in the great cities. And while UNESCO cannot put the whole star-studded universe on the World Heritage List, to be sure, it can and does support initiatives such as these and is ready to associate them with listed sites and landscapes.

Scientific and technological sites testify to humanity’s search for understanding and improving life, and are currently under-represented on the World Heritage List. The importance of recognizing and preserving these sites for the instruction of generations to come is covered in the article on science and technology at World Heritage sites.

We are also pleased to present in this issue the thirteen new sites added to the World Heritage List in June this year. With these eleven new cultural sites (among them the first properties inscribed in Burkina Faso, Cape Verde and Kyrgyzstan), and two natural sites, the World Heritage List now includes 890 properties.

Cover: Persepolis, Iran, one of the ancient knowledge centres on astronomy.

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Contents

Quarterly magazine published jointly in English, French and Spanish, by the United Nations

Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), Paris, France and Pressgroup

Holdings Europe S.A., Valencia, Spain.

Editorial Director Francesco Bandarin

Director, UNESCO World Heritage Centre

Publisher Angus McGovern

Pressgroup Holdings Europe S.A.

Managing Editor Vesna Vujicic-Lugassy

EditorsHelen Aprile, Gina Doubleday, Michael Gibson

Production Coordinator Richard Forster

Production EditorsJason Oliver, Caroline Fort

Copy Editors Caroline Lawrence (English), Brigitte Strauss

(French), Luisa Futoransky (Spanish)

Editorial Board ICCROM: Joseph King, ICOMOS: Regina

Durighello, IUCN: Tim Badman, UNESCO World Heritage Centre: Giovanni Boccardi, Véronique

Dauge, Guy Debonnet, Lazare Eloundou-Assomo, Anne Lemaistre, Kishore Rao, Mechtild Rössler, Nuria Sanz, UNESCO Publishing: Ian Denison

Editorial AssistantBarbara Blanchard

Production TeamIrene Rueda, Jemima Raman

Advertising Peter Warren

Cover Photo: Oshin Zakarian/The World at Night

Design: Recto Verso

Editorial Staff World Heritage Centre, UNESCO 7, Place de Fontenoy, 75007 Paris

Tel. (33.1) 45 68 16 60 – Fax (33.1) 45 68 55 70E-mail: g.doubleday@unesco.org INTERNET: http://whc.unesco.org

Circulation, advertisements, subscriptions and queries

Pressgroup Holdings Europe S.A.San Vicente 16-6-1, 46002 Valencia, Spain

Tel. (34) 96 303 1000 – Fax (34) 96 303 1234 E-mail: whreview@pressgroup.net

The authors are responsible for the choice and the presentation of the facts contained in the articles and for the opinions expressed therein, which are not necessarily those of UNESCO and do not commit the Organization. The designations employed and the presentation of material throughout this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of UNESCO concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.

Published by Pressgroup Holdings Europe S.A., Valencia, Spain. ISSN: 1020-4202. Printed in Spain © UNESCO – Pressgroup Holdings Europe S.A. 2009

Astronomy and World HeritageAstronomical heritage, or cultural heritage

relating to the sky, recognizes the relationships

between humanity and the cosmos.

From the Maya to the Inca and beyond These ancient cultures confronted their

particular vision of the universe.

The heritage of Galileo400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei’s first

astronomical use of a telescope.

Teaching laboratories for positional astronomy: The Jantar Mantar Observatories of IndiaJantar Mantar instruments bring basic

astronomy to life.

Starlight Reserves and World Heritage: Scientific, cultural and environmental valuesEnjoying an unpolluted night sky as an

inalienable right of humankind.

Astronomy and World Heritage Education at Suzhou 40Educational activities were organized in line

with the International Year of Astronomy 2009.

Recognizing science and technology at World Heritage sitesGreat advances in science and technology

are recognized on the World Heritage List,

through such sites as the Mountain Railways

of India and Varberg Radio station.

Charles Darwin and the Galápagos: The evolution of a legacy2009 marks the 200th anniversary of the birth

of Charles Darwin, and the 150th anniversary

of the publication of On the Origin of Species.

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New World Heritage sites 2009A presentation of the 13 new World Heritage

sites inscribed at the 33rd session of the World

Heritage Committee, Seville (Spain) in June

2009.

In Focus

Close-Up

In FocusAstronomy, science andtechnology

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UNESCO Publishing

InterviewInterview with Professor Alec Boksenberg, Chair of the UK National

Commission for UNESCO, eminent astronomer and former Director of the

United Kingdom Royal Observatories (Greenwich and Edinburgh), Professor

of experimental astronomy at the University of Cambridge.

Advisory BodiesAstronomical and archaeoastronomical heritage: A shared thematic study

for improved understanding.

ConventionsFirst meeting of States Parties to Underwater Cultural Heritage Convention;

MAB International Coordinating Council Meets.

Profile Interview with Dr Gabriel López, Executive Director of the Charles Darwin

Foundation.

News

In Print and Online

Subscription Form 111

Next Issue 115

Calendar 109

Forum

In DangerDresden no longer World Heritage; Walled City of Baku removed from

Danger List; Preservation concerns at Mtskheta (Georgia); Addressing

threats at Belize Barrier Reef Reserve; Colombia requests Danger Listing of

Los Katíos National Park.

PreservationThe Committee in Seville; Environment: the sky’s the limit; Towards

improved heritage awareness in Maldives; New financing to conserve

forests in Central Africa; The Arctic affected by climate change; Rapid

Response Facility launched; The Silk Roads make progress; Climate change

changes World Heritage.

OutreachYouth in Seville; First UK UNESCO World Heritage Youth Summit meets

in Lyme Regis; Hanoi hosts international seminar on Historic Urban

Landscapes; Two new episodes of the Patrimonito cartoon series; Learning

site management; Sites of Conscience.

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Starlight Reserves and World Heritage:Scientific, cultural and environmental values

Point 1 of the Declaration in Defence of the Night Sky and the Right to Starlight, adopted in 2007 at La Palma (Canary Islands), states: ‘An unpolluted night sky that allows the enjoyment and contemplation of the firmament should be considered an inalienable right of humankind equivalent to all other environmental, social, and cultural rights …’. This view highlights the fact that a so-far unscathed right is now in serious danger and that its degradation will lead to the irremediable loss or neglect of an extensive associated cultural, scientific, scenic and natural heritage.

Cipriano Marín, Co-ordinator of the Starlight Initiative andFrancisco Sánchez, Director of the Canary Island Institute of Astrophysics (IAC)

Tindaya Mountain, sacred geological landscape. (Fuerteventura, Spain).

© Photograph by Miguel Díaz & Miguel Pizarro - Composition by Luis Mir

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In Focus Starlight Reserves

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I n 1994, the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights for Future Generations (La Laguna Declaration) was imbued with a highly

advanced sensitivity to this right when it recognized that: ‘Persons belonging to future generations have the right to an uncontaminated and undamaged Earth, including pure skies; they are entitled to its enjoyment as the ground of human history, of culture and social bonds that make each generation and individual a member of one human family.’

Starlight ReservesIn this context, and with the idea of

recognizing and identifying the legacy associated with the starlit sky, the proposal to develop a ‘Starlight Reserve’ concept as one of the additional recommendations to the Starlight Declaration has recently emerged with the support of the organizations that promoted the Declaration and the Starlight Scientific Committee, in cooperation with the World Heritage Centre through its thematic initiative, Astronomy and World Heritage.

A Starlight Reserve is a site where a commitment to defend the night sky quality and access to starlight has been established. Its main function will be to preserve the quality of the night sky and its associated values. The concept of Starlight Reserves encompasses many dimensions, which are

the countless windows of the Earth on to the starlit sky. It goes further than mere protection of the astronomical quality of the sites, aiming to recover and identify the existing values relating to the night sky, including those of landscape, nature, opportunities for science and, in general, the associated tangible and intangible cultural heritage.

The power of the cultural dimension is irrefutable. The interest in astronomy, or simple contemplation of starry skies, has always had profound implications for philosophy, science, arts, culture and for the general conception of the universe in every community all over the world. Each place has its own view of starlight handed down through generations: legends, folk tales, sacred landscapes, objects, monuments and traditional festivals.

A world without starsHowever, we find ourselves in the face

of a set of manifestations that are now considered as endangered. Many of the present generation are the first in history who have grown up without any direct contact with the beauty of a starry sky, in an environment where these cultural references are falling into oblivion. As declared by the International Astronomical Union, the International Council for Science

The World Atlas of the Artificial Night Sky Brightness. © P. Cinzano, F. Falchi (University of Padova), C. D. Elvidge (NOAA National Geophysical Data Center, Boulder).

and UNESCO in 1992, an essential element of our civilization and culture is rapidly becoming lost, and this loss will affect all countries on Earth.

The scientific and technological dimension also represents an essential part of heritage legacy relating to the observation of the heavens. One of UNESCO’s initial texts on declaring 2009 as International Year of Astronomy, at its 2005 General Conference, states: ‘The sky, our common and universal heritage, is an integral part of the environment perceived by humanity. Humankind has always observed the sky either to interpret it or to understand the physical laws that govern the universe’. This ability to observe and interpret should be associated with the astronomical sites and observatories that have dotted the planet throughout our history. They are the areas that we could define as our windows on the knowledge of the universe’.

However, unlike ancient monuments and technological tools relating to astronomy, whose heritage value can be clearly defined, current astronomical observation does not enjoy appropriate recognition. Certain

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In Focus Starlight Reserves

A Starlight Reserve is a site where a commitment to defend the

night sky quality and access to starlight has been established.

© Javier Méndez (ING) and Nik Szymanek

Image of M51 Galaxy taken with the William Herschel Telescope at the

Roque de los Muchachos Observatory on La Palma (Canary Islands, Spain).

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Night sky over Kilauea crater, Hawaii Volcanoes National Park World Heritage site.© Wally Pacholka / AstroPics.com

ground-based observatories are windows of excellence for the observation of the universe, and they have provided the vast majority of our knowledge of astronomy. However, present technical requirements restrict suitable areas to very specific and limited locations offering good conditions for the development of advanced astronomy, and of optical and infrared astronomy in particular.

The best astronomical sites are found at high altitudes, with little turbulence. This is the case of the west coasts of continents and oceanic islands. They are also located in areas with less air pollution and low aerosol content. With few exceptions, high mountain areas isolated from the temperature of the ocean and coastal mountains near to cold oceans with stable, subtropical anticyclone conditions are most suitable. We are talking about a few places on the planet with a unique combination of environmental and natural circumstances, well-conserved spaces with very little alteration to natural starlight. These are a limited resource that needs to be recognized and protected.

Having reached this point, it is essential to remember that the World Heritage Convention refers to science in Articles 1 and 2. More specifically, in Article 2 it establishes that the following shall be considered as natural heritage: ‘natural sites or precisely delineated natural areas

of outstanding universal value from the point of view of science, conservation or natural beauty’. For this reason, it is hardly surprising that in the development of the thematic study Starlight Reserves and World Heritage the few places that can offer these very special spaces as relevant case studies have been identified, and the possibility has arisen of analysing a serial nomination for them, for example in Hawaii, the Canaries and northern Chile.

Beyond the importance of the scientific and cultural legacy relating to astronomy and star-light, there is a landscape dimension to the beauty and quality of the night sky. It is curious to see that when we talk about natural or cultural landscapes of natural beauty, there are very few references to nightscapes, and even less in the case of landscapes that have been declared World Heritage properties. However, the light of stars and other heavenly bodies has always enriched terrestrial nature’s display as well as human habitat, creating reference landscapes traditionally perceived by people as an integral part of their natural and cultural heritage. Nevertheless, the nocturnal dimension of skyscapes, in spite of their diversity and magnificence, are still the most hidden part of this type of landscape.

The experiences of evaluating nightscapes as a promotion of the starlit scenery at Arches National Park (United States), La Palma (Spain) or Easter Island (Chile), highlight the enormous potential of this new concept and the need to recover this dimension in the strategy of the Starlight Reserves.

Darkness and nature conservation

We can make similar considerations about the nocturnal aspect of nature conservation. The experience accumulated in some dark sky parks such as the Natural Heritage Programme of Torrance Barrens (Canada) or the experience in emblematic places for nature conservation such as Doñana (Spain) or Hortobágy (Hungary), force us to seriously consider the importance of dark skies for conserving nature and the exceptional values that certain spaces have with regard to the night.

Darkness and natural night light are indispensable for the healthy functioning of organisms and ecosystems. We tend to

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In Focus Starlight Reserves

Certain ground-based observatories are windows of excellence for the observation of the universe, and

they have provided the vast majority of our knowledge of astronomy.

Aurora above Lake Tekapo and Mount John (New Zealand).© Fraser Gunn

forget that life goes on 24 hours a day and that ecosystems have adapted themselves to the natural rhythms of the moon and stars in the course of millions of years of evolution. As over half of the creatures living on this planet are nocturnal, any degradation in the quality of sky, by day or by night, is having a profound effect on their behaviour and on the equilibrium of the biosphere. In addition, many diurnal species adjust their life cycle according to the duration of the night.

However, compared with climate change, acid rain, exotic species, habitat destruction and other stresses, natural darkness and artificial light are often overlooked when considering and protecting biodiversity and our appreciation of the natural world.

Light pollution, in particular, has been shown to have a widespread negative impact on many different species. Scientific evidence for this impact on migratory birds, hatchling sea turtles and insects is striking, because of the large-scale mortality that has occurred as a result of artificial night lighting. Light pollution can confound animal navigation (many species use the horizon and stars for orientation), alter competitive interactions, mutualisms and reproductive behaviour, change the natural predator/prey relationship and even affect animal physiology.

Mitigating light pollutionHence the Starlight Reserve concept

connects to the international movement in favour of mitigating the effects of light pollution, which is understood as the introduction by humans, directly or indirectly, of artificial light into the environment. We are currently facing a growing abuse of artificial lighting, whose impacts and consequences have not been sufficiently evaluated. But what is certain is that the common factor of these phenomena is the loss of the capacity to observe the stars and the destruction of nightscapes, together with unnecessary impacts on people’s quality of life, waste of energy, habitat deterioration and negative effects on wildlife.

The Starlight Reserve Concept, written with the participation of over 100 international experts and developed in cooperation with the World Heritage Centre and other organizations such as the International Astronomical Union, the Canary Islands Institute of Astrophysics, the United Nations World Tourism Organization, the International Commission on Illumination

and UNESCO’s MAB Programme, provides two essential tools in relation to World Heritage properties. On the one hand, it defines the functions that certain places on the planet can fulfil for preserving outstanding values relating to starlight. On the other, it provides an efficient guide to what has been called intelligent lighting, that is, lighting that covers the real needs for artificial lighting without degrading the quality of the night sky as an essential part of the environment.

The defence of the right to observe the stars and the preservation of the heritage associated with astronomy can also represent a new form of providing local communities with benefits. A whole new world of expectations for identifying responsible tourist destinations and pro-ducts is opening up before our eyes, in an enormous spectrum that encompasses such diverse possibilities as watching starry skies,

aurorae, eclipses, visits to astronomical observatories, sailing holidays featuring navigation by the stars, some pilgrimage routes, or the innovative experiences offered by desert tourism at night.

The vision given by the Starlight Initiative takes on a special meaning in 2009, a year that celebrates two emblematic events: the 400th anniversary of Galileo building his first telescope and the 150th anniversary of Darwin’s publication of his work On the Origin of Species. It is in this context, in which science, technology, knowledge, nature, and the heritage of the star-studded sky converge, that we try to also enhance the protection of the night skies at existing World Heritage sites, Biosphere Reserves and other protected areas. An example is Lake Tekapo in New Zealand, which offers new opportunities in the diversity of our common heritage.

Science, technology, knowledge, nature and heritage all converge

in efforts to enhance the protection of our night sky.

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Further readingStarlight Reserve Concept, March 2009. w w w . s t a r l i g h t 2 0 0 7 . n e t / p d f /StarlightReserve.pdfWelch, D., Trzyna, T. and Lopoukhine, N. Prologue by IUCN DSAG to the Report of the Expert Meeting ‘Starlight Reserves and World Heritage’, March 2009.

The objective of the Astronomy and World Heritage Initiative is to

acknowledge the intertwined cultural and scientific values of properties

connected with astronomy.

Prof. Alec Boksenberg.

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wInterview with Professor Alec Boksenberg

Interview with Professor Alec Boksenberg, Chair of the UK National Commission for UNESCO, eminent astronomer and former Director of the United Kingdom Royal Observatories (Greenwich and Edinburgh), Professor of experimental astronomy at the University of Cambridge.

World Heritage:Speaking as one of the international experts who participated in setting up the Astronomy and World Heritage Initiative in 2004, how would you characterize the scientific heritage connected with astronomy?

Alec Boksenberg: In the International Year of Astronomy this is certainly a topical question. Astronomy is an ancient and multidisciplinary field. Virtually every culture in the world had already established a relationship with the heavens, hundreds if not thousands of years ago. Astronomy’s broad appeal, whether in terms of its cultural interest (defining our place in the universe), its practical aims (navigation), or the hopeful art of the astrologer, is well recorded in history from ancient to modern times – and sky-awareness, more generally, dates back to prehistory. Astronomy’s perceived role and purpose has continually developed over the ages. In all, astronomy is not to be viewed as a narrow field cultivated in isolation but as one that has contributed comprehensively to the advancement of society.

Today, astronomy is mostly perceived as a scientific endeavour and the foundation of modern science. The need to explain the structure and phenomena they observed in the sky led Newton and Einstein to make their fundamental discoveries, and the universal relevance of these discoveries changed our understanding of science. Our knowledge in science has grown through studies pursued both in earthly laboratories and in the observation of physical phenomena in the sky. Within the frame of cosmic expansion that began with the big bang about 14 billion years ago, it is now possible literally to see that the structural formation of the galaxies of stars has been evolving over most of cosmic time. To gain understanding of the universe in space and time, astronomers need to apply the entire accumulated knowledge of the physical sciences. In turn, new discoveries continually push the borders of scientific knowledge. Alongside this are the engineering and technological challenges of producing ever more versatile and accurate instrumentation and detectors, and building ever larger and more precise telescope structures, both on the ground and orbiting in space, to receive radiation from the furthest and faintest objects in the sky.

So now in direct response to your question, the objective of the Astronomy and World Heritage Initiative is to acknowledge the intertwined cultural and scientific values of properties connected with astronomy. The efforts of civilizations through the ages demonstrating sky awareness and the will to understand or interpret what they see in the sky are often reflected in rock carvings, grand structures,

architecture and other cultural representations. And the more direct scientific activity in astronomy is attested by the many significant observational instruments and observatories that have been built over the centuries and which remain as beacons of humankind’s search for fundamental knowledge about the universe.

But it is also particularly important to recognize the natural dimension inherent to astronomical heritage – the preservation of the quality of the night sky itself through avoidance of overwhelming air pollution and extraneous light. While natural heritage sites are included in the World Heritage List, the upper hemisphere of our common heritage is all but forgotten. Although it is impossible to inscribe the sky itself on the World Heritage List, many sites could benefit from integrating the issue of light pollution into their management considerations. People now growing up in cities rarely get to see the extraordinarily endowed nocturnal ‘skyscape’ still accessible to astronomers at the remote mountain sites where major observatories are now located. Growing pollution in the 1950s caused the Royal Observatory at Greenwich to move its telescopic operations to Herstmonceux Castle under the then clearer sky in Sussex, and again in the 1980s to the Spanish internationalized Observatorio de Roque de los Muchachos on the island of La Palma in the Canaries, which belongs to the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias. While action on this fundamental loss has been widely urged for a long time, an important recent initiative Starlight – a Common Heritage has been launched through an international conference in 2007 on La Palma (itself a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve) as a global campaign to defend the values associated with the night sky. At this ripe time in worldwide awareness of the unsustainable environmental track we all are taking, this is a powerful move to drive home this all-encompassing heritage issue.

Forum Interview

The study of Dorset and East Devon Coast with its important fossil sites and

classic coastal geomorphological features has contributed to the development of Earth sciences for over 300 years.

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(WH): Taking into account the Committee’s Global Strategy for a Balanced, Representative and Credible World Heritage List and the outcome of the Expert Meeting on Science and Technology held in London in 2008, how do you see the selection of outstanding universal heritage sites in this field, in particular from Europe which counts the highest number of World Heritage properties?

AB: The history of the development of science and its application through technology is as important as any other part of our heritage when it comes to understanding the nature of modern human existence. It might even be said that the pursuit of science is the only truly universal culture, universally understood and subject to the same mental and practical engagement everywhere on the globe. Indeed, science is a collective endeavour, a universal partnership, driven by a shared passion for progressive discovery and higher understanding to build a constantly developing legacy of knowledge common to all. Engineering and technology together provide the basis for carrying out practical experiments and observations as well as inventively fashioning the products for material advancement spawned by science.

Technological heritage is often quite easy to recognize. Manifestations of mining, transport, agriculture systems, timekeeping, communication and power generation are just a few examples of this, and many such instances are already listed. There are also natural sites which from the point of view of science are outstanding examples representing major stages of Earth’s history, including the record of life, geological processes in the development of land forms, or other significant natural features. A good case is the inscribed Dorset and East Devon Coast in the UK with its important fossil sites and classic coastal geomorphological features, whose study has contributed to the development of Earth sciences for over 300 years, although no specific trace remains of all this scientific activity.

But in many important areas in science it is often difficult to demonstrate outstanding universal value in adequately tangible form within the World Heritage Convention’s conditions of physical surviving features, authenticity and integrity. Much of science is about ideas and texts rarely linked with places in which relevant surviving features may be found. The natural sciences (physical sciences and chemistry, and biological sciences), are among the areas under-represented on the World Heritage List. An example I often use is specific recognition of Einstein’s pivotal efforts while employed in the Swiss Patent Office. Working in his spare time over just a few months in 1905, he produced a series of extraordinary papers containing theories that revolutionized scientific under-standing and serve as the foundation for modern physics. But no related physical feature survives, and simple association of a property with an important individual is not sufficient grounds for inscription. More generally, too, the existence of laboratories, apparatus or other structures associated with scientific discoveries does not suffice, if such as do survive are of poor quality, have been altered, or are in continuing or evolving use. Astronomy, however, with its ancient artefacts and its historical progression to established observatories, provides a wide range of possibilities in its own field.

If science heritage is to be better promoted, the Advisory Bodies will have to provide States Parties with more specific guidance on how science can be recognized for inscription on the World Heritage List. In Europe, because of the long history of linked and intensive activity across the region, there is potential for additional thematic frameworks and serial and transboundary nominations.

(WH): The UN International Year of Planet Earth 2008 and International Year of Astronomy 2009 are two major events whose aims include awareness-raising about scientific heritage among young people – how can we keep up the momentum initiated by these events?

AB: The International Year of Planet Earth (IYPE) is a joint initiative by UNESCO and the International Union of Geological Sciences and is actually running to December 2009. Its purpose is to raise worldwide public and political awareness of the vast potential of Earth sciences for improving the quality of life and safeguarding the planet for our children and grandchildren. In heritage terms this surely has the highest of credentials. In a societally relevant and multidisciplinary programme it fosters a wide variety of national as well as regional research and outreach activities.

Forum Interview

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With young people in mind, I think the best and most economical way of keeping up this momentum is for UNESCO to encourage and to publicize some of the important legacies of the IYPE. There are many avenues through which this can be done. One is the Young Earth Scientist Congress programme designed by and specifically aimed at young scientists. This was globally launched in 2009 and there is a desire to organize regular congresses for many years to come. Another avenue, closely related to the IYPE, is the UNESCO Global Geoparks Network. This operates in close synergy with the World Heritage Centre and the Biosphere Reserve world network of the UNESCO Man and the Biosphere (MAB) Programme. The essence is to promote national territories around the world which integrate sites of significant geological heritage into a strategy for regional socio-economic development. It provides an international framework to enhance the value of the Earth’s heritage, its landscapes and geological formations, as key elements of the history of life. This global programme also includes a number of active regional groups, such as the European Geoparks. As a nationally supported and park-based educational and recreational network of appeal to the widest possible age range, from young children to their grandparents, it has a tangible and long-term status and is in a good position to carry forward several of the aims of the IYPE.

The International Year of Astronomy (IYA), marking the 400th anniversary of the first use of an astronomical telescope by Galileo Galilei, is a global effort initiated by the International Astronomical Union and UNESCO. It is a celebration of astronomy and its contributions to society and culture, aiming, in participatory

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wways, to stimulate worldwide interest in astronomy and science, especially among young people. Events and activities are designed to promote appreciation of the inspirational aspects of astronomy that can be shared by all nations. There are activities at the local, national, regional and international levels, many of these fostering collaboration between professional and amateur astronomers, science centres and science communicators. Eleven Cornerstone Projects, which are key elements in the success of the IYA, are global programmes of activities centred on specific themes. Among them are the support and promotion of women in astronomy, the preservation of dark-sky sites around the world, educating and explaining the workings of the universe to millions, Astronomy & World Heritage, and the production of relatively cheap but good-quality telescopes that can be distributed globally.

Again, the momentum for young people can be kept up in a natural way by encouraging the continuation of many of the activities thus established. A special project for young people that was initiated earlier and is included as a Cornerstone Project is Universe Awareness, an international outreach activity that exposes very young children in underprivileged environments to the scale and beauty of the universe. Universe Awareness illustrates the multicultural origins of modern astronomy in an effort to broaden children’s minds, awaken their curiosity in science and stimulate global citizenship and tolerance. By using the sky and the natural fascination it holds for children as a common ground, international awareness of their place in the universe and their place on Earth can be fostered.

(WH): 2009 is also the Year of Darwin, marking the 200th anniversary of the birth of Charles Darwin and the 150th anniversary of the publication of his landmark work, On the Origin of Species. The Galápagos Islands, which inspired Darwin’s key research, was among the first sites inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1978. What would you like to see conveyed on this occasion?

AB: Darwin’s On the Origin of Species is widely recognized as one of the most influential books of all time, and its publication in 1859 transformed scientific and wider public thinking about natural life and humanity’s place in the natural world. The change in thinking that the book brought about was a historic stage in the development of the modern understanding of human nature and of life on Earth. Consequently, Darwin’s ideas have outstanding universal value in present-day science.

Darwin’s observations on the Galápagos Islands were only the beginning of his life’s work. Following his round-the-world voyage in HMS Beagle, his work continued from Down House, his home in Downe, UK, where the gardens, grounds and surrounding landscape served as his laboratory and field station for forty years, and where he developed and demonstrated his theories and published his findings. The whole of his work is also an excellent example of the development and application of the system of thinking, experimentation and peer review which are the underpinnings of all modern science.

© Pengannel

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nParty, or by the Director-General between Committee sessions, verifying information and critical issues in relation to the implementation of a decision of the Committee.

RMM continues to be applied to the Old City of Jerusalem and its Walls, four natural heritage properties in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Temple of Preah Vihear (Cambodia) and the Medieval Monuments in Kosovo (Serbia).

This session saw the launch of the Periodic Reporting exercise for Africa. The Committee also called on States Parties, the African World Heritage Fund, the World Heritage Centre and all those involved in the conservation and management of African natural and cultural heritage to develop a fund-raising strategy to boost financial resources.

With the approach of universal ratification of the World Heritage Convention and the 40th anniversary of this international treaty, the Committee devoted time to reflection on its success and how best to meet emerging challenges.

In this light, the Committee decided that it would be useful to develop an overall strategic plan to guide the implementation of the Convention over the next ten years.

Several high-priority short- to medium-term activities which need immediate action were identified. These include the development of an inclusive plan of action to increase community awareness and engagement; the exploration and development of creative approaches, including the use of the Tentative List process, which could reduce the number of properties that experience significant problems; and the development of recommendations to assist States Parties in responding effectively to the range of problems that emerge for inscribed properties.

Recognizing the insufficient funding available for the preservation of World Heritage sites, the Committee called for the exploration of further options to increase voluntary contributions to the World Heritage Fund by States Parties.

The Committee elected João Luiz Silva Ferreira, the Minister of Culture of Brazil, as Chairperson, and Britta Rudolff of Bahrain as Rapporteur.

Australia, Egypt, Kenya and Sweden were elected as Vice-Chairpersons.

The 34th session of the Committee will be held in Brasilia (Brazil) in July 2010.

Environment: The sky’s the limit

How is climate change affecting the night sky? This is just one of the issues that an International Workshop and Expert Meeting on ‘Starlight Reserves and World Heritage – Scientific, Cultural and Environment Values’ addressed from 10 to 11 March 2009 in Fuerteventura (Spain).

Participants from ten countries, representatives of private organizations, companies, the tourism industry, NGOs, scientific bodies and research institutions, as well as international organizations including UNWTO, the International Astronomical Union, the UNESCO MAB Programme and the World Heritage Centre, discussed such issues as how increasing urbanization and industrialization have led to greater use of light sources, and therefore to an upsurge in light pollution. Light pollution, participants said, is not only compromising the intrinsic values of the night, but is increasingly related to the loss of biodiversity and the alarming rate of climate change. The meeting recommended that light pollution be defined as ‘the introduction by humans, directly or indirectly, of artificial light into the environment’. It called for the setting up of a dark sky protection classification system, so that there can be a common understanding of dark sky protection terms, such as ‘park’, ‘reserve’ or ‘preserve’.

In establishing definitions that can be used in different languages and cultures, the meeting concluded that ‘starlight’ also incorporates the concepts of dark skies, natural lightscapes and skyscapes.

The meeting noted that, while starlight as such is not in danger, human ability to see the starlight is, due to light pollution and pollution of the air. It encouraged promoting the adoption and dissemination of the Declaration in Defence of the Night Sky and the Right to Starlight (see page 34) as a reference guide.

States Parties were asked to develop appropriate frameworks for the protection of dark skies and to adopt and implement the requirements and orientations in the Starlight Reserve Concept document as

guidance for World Heritage properties and other protected areas that include astronomical values.

The experts recognized that tourism is an excellent opportunity to promote the Starlight Initiative and recommended that a framework towards starlight certification with voluntary standards be prepared.

The expert meeting also encouraged States Parties to cooperate in formulating potential serial nominations to cover outstanding examples of astronomical heritage and observation sites and called for the Starlight Initiative to be promoted among the public, scholars, decision-makers and the business community, with particular attention to the tourism industry.

Participants recommended using the context of climate change to link the Starlight Initiative to the promotion of energy-efficient and intelligent lighting in urban, rural and remote areas.

Finally the meeting explored collaboration with other international conventions.