UNESCO experts have recommended that Venice and its lagoon be added to its list of World Heritage in Danger as Italy is not doing enough to protect the city from the impact of climate change and mass tourism.
Key points
- Back in 2021, UNESCO had made a similar suggestion, but Venice had made some concerted efforts to prevent its shores by banning large cruise ships from sailing into the city.
- UNESCO has once again recommended putting Venice on the World Heritage in Danger list ahead of a session of the agency’s World Heritage Committee scheduled in Riyadh in September 2023.
- Venice, known for its canals and cultural sites, has been struggling with mass tourism for years. The inclusion of Venice on UNESCO’s endangered list would raise awareness and draw international attention to the city’s plight.
- The committee will look at over 200 sites in the September session and decide which ones to add to the danger list. For nearly 10 of these sites, the experts recommend that member states put them on the danger list, among which already are the historic centre of Odessa, Ukraine, the town of Timbuktu in Mali and several sites in Syria, Iraq and Libya.
List of World Heritage in Danger
- The List of World Heritage in Danger is designed to inform the international community of conditions which threaten the very characteristics for which a property was inscribed on the World Heritage List, and to encourage corrective action.
Some illustrative cases of sites inscribed on the List of World Heritage in Danger
- Iranian city of Bam; Bamiyan Valley in Afghanistan, Historic Town of Zabid in Yemen; The National Parks of Garamba, Kahuzi-Biega, Salonga, Virunga and the Okapi Wildlife Reserve in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
