ABSTRACT
Remember the ‘World Heritage Trust’? The idea of combining conservation of cultural sites with those of nature comes from the United States of America way back in 1965, which called for a ‘World Heritage Trust’ that would stimulate international cooperation to protect ‘the world’s superb natural and scenic areas and historic sites for the present and the future of the entire world citizenry’. The World Heritage Trust recognizes the way in which people interact with nature, and the fundamental need to preserve the balance between the two. Soon after, in 1968, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) developed similar proposals for its members. These proposals were presented to the 1972 UN Conference on Human Environment in Stockholm. Eventually, all parties concerned agreed upon a single text. The General Conference of UNESCO adopted the Convention on the World Cultural and Natural Heritage on 16 November 1971. The rationale for the Convention was to prevent the deterioration or disappearance of any items of cultural and natural heritage, which are increasingly threatened with destruction not only by traditional decay, but also by changing social and economic conditions that aggravate the situation with even more formidable phenomena. In response, the Convention for the Protection of World Cultural and Natural Heritage, composed of 38 Articles, was drafted to protect and safeguard all cultural or natural heritage at the international and national levels, which are of outstanding interest and, therefore, need to be preserved as part of the world heritage of humankind. The Convention further stressed: ‘In a society where living conditions are changing at an accelerated pace, it is essential for man’s equilibrium and development to preserve for him a fitting setting in which to live, where he will remain in contact with nature and the evidences of civilization bequeathed by past generations. To this end, it is appropriate to give the cultural and natural heritage an active function in community life and to integrate into an overall policy the achievements of our time, the values of the past and the beauty of nature.’
