The role of ICOMOS in the World Heritage Convention

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The role of ICOMOS in the World Heritage
Convention

• Sheridan Burke
• President ICOMOS Twentieth Century Heritage ISC

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• The World Heritage Convention, 1972
• The International Council on Monuments and Sites
• Key concepts OUV, authenticity, integrity,
  cultural landscapes, tentative lists,
  transboundary nominations
• Key issues gaps and balance, policisation,
  modern heritage

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World Heritage Convention

• Adopted by UNESCO 1972, Commenced 1975
• 187 States Parties
• World Heritage Centre, Paris
• World Heritage Committee - 21 members
• 3 Advisory Bodies ICOMOS IUCN ICCROM
• World Heritage Fund
• World Heritage List 936 properties 2011

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WH Convention Article 5

• adopt a general policy which aims to give the
  cultural and natural heritage a function in the
  life of the community
• set up services for the protection, conservation
  and presentation of the cultural and natural
  heritage
• make the State capable of counteracting the
  dangers that threaten its cultural or natural
  heritage

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OUTSTANDING UNIVERSAL VALUE

• World Heritage is the designation for places on
  Earth that are of outstanding universal value to
  humanity and as such, have been inscribed on the
  World Heritage List to be protected for future
  generations to appreciate and enjoy.

• Pyramids of Egypt,
• Great Barrier Reef
• Galápagos Islands
• Taj Mahal
• Grand Canyon
• Acropolis
• Sydney Opera House

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International Council on Monuments Sites

• International NGO for conservation of worlds
  historic monuments sites
• Established 1965 through the adoption of the
  Venice Charter
• 9000 members in 120 national committees and 28
  International Scientific Committees
• Provides independent expert advice to UNESCO and
  the World Heritage Committee
• A global network of heritage practitioners
• ICOMOS World Heritage Documentation Centre
• Develops international standards or charters on
  aspects of heritage conservation

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The World Heritage role of ICOMOS

• Independent expert advice WHC
• Evaluation of WH nominations
• Monitoring and State of Conservation Reports
• Global Strategy for a Representative, Balanced
  and Credible List
• Training
• Responses to emerging global issues in heritage
  conservation

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ICOMOS World Heritage Policy

• er

• Makes public existing ICOMOS procedures
• Avoids preceptions of conflicts of interest
• Sets out how ICOMOS approaches its World Heritage
  role in a fair, open and credible manner

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Documents that guide ICOMOS work

• Operational Guidelines for the Implementation of
  the World Heritage Convention (2008)
• Global Strategy for a Representative, Balanced
  and Credible World Heritage List (1994)
• Nara Document on Authenticity (1994)
• Gap Analyses ICOMOS/IUCN (2004)

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Outstanding universal value (OUV)

• cultural and/or natural significance which is so
  exceptional as to transcend national boundaries
  and to be of common importance for present and
  future generations of humanity

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World Heritage List 2011

Regions Cultural Natural Mixed Total States Parties with inscribed properties
Africa 45 33 4 82 9 30
Arab States 64 4 2 70 7 16
Asia and the Pacific 143 53 9 205 22 31
Europe and North America 384 58 10 452 48 50
Latin America and the Caribbean 89 35 3 127 14 26
Total 725 183 28 936 100 153
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WORLD HERITAGE LIST by REGION 2002
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World Heritage in Danger 2011
Regions  ? Cultural    Natural    Mixed    Total       
Africa 2 12 0 14 40
Arab States 5 0 0 5 14
Asia and the Pacific 5 1 0 6 17
Europe and North America 3 1 0 4 11
Latin America and the Caribbean 3 3 0 6 17
Total 18 17 0 35 100
List of World Heritage in Danger by Region
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WORLD HERITAGE LIST BY SITE CATEGORY 2002
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WH Listings site type 2011
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Cultural Heritage Gap Analysis 2004

• Over-represented
• Europe
• Historic towns
• Properties associated with Christianity (compared
  to other religions)
• Historical periods
• Architectural heritage

• Under-represented
• pre-history
• 20th century
• Places strongly associated with living cultures
• Arab States, Africa Pacific

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HERITAGE RESOURCES
Heritage of outstanding universal value
REPRESENTING RECOGNISED CULTURAL HERITAGE AS A
WHOLE
Heritage of national or regional value
Heritage protected at local level
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Cultural Criteria

• (i) masterpiece of human genius
• (ii) important interchange of human values
• (iii) unique/exceptional testimony to a cultural
  tradition or civilisation which is living or
  which has disappeared
• (iv) outstanding example of a type of building,
  architectural or technological ensemble or
  landscape
• (v) outstanding example of traditional human
  settlement, land use or sea use
• (vi) directly or tangibly associated with events
  or living traditions, with ideas, or with
  beliefs, with artistic and literary works of
  outstanding universal significance.

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Comparative Assessment

• ICOMOS examines the foundation and development of
  a nominated property.
• Thematic Framework What are the relevant themes
  (issues) of universal nature?
• Chronological-Regional Framework Does the
  property represent an outstanding response
  compared with the relevant chronological-regional
  context?
• Typological Framework How should the type of
  property be defined as a result of this analysis?

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Authenticity

• Depends on the type of place the cultural
  context
• form design
• materials
• use function
• traditions, techniques, management systems
• location setting
• language other forms of intangible heritage
• spirit and feeling
• Nara Document 1994

• The ability to understand the value attributed to
  the heritage depends on the degree to which
  information sources about this value may be
  understood as credible or truthful.. differs
  from culture to culture

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Integrity

• Integrity is the measure of wholeness and
  intactness of the natural and/or cultural
  heritage and its attributes
• adequate size?
• adverse effects of development or neglect?
• are all elements are included in the boundary?

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Cultural Landscapes

• Cultural Landscapes represent the combined works
  of nature and man They are illustrative of the
  evolution of human society and settlement over
  time, under the influence of the physical
  constraints and/or opportunities presented by
  their natural environment and of successive
  social, economic and cultural forces, both
  external and internal.

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Tentative Lists

• Indicates properties a country intends to
  nominate to the World Heritage List now a
  prerequisite to nomination
• Increasing support for transboundary serial
  nominations
• International Assistance through the World
  Heritage Fund

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Transboundary Nominations
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The Nomination Cycle

• ICOMOS World Heritage Panel (November/December,
  Year 1)
• Recommendations forwarded to World Heritage
  Centre (April, Year 2)
• Meeting of the World Heritage Committee
  (June/July, Year 2)

• Nomination dossiers submitted (February, Year 1)
• Review/Checking by World Heritage Centre
• Acceptance of the nomination and notification of
  State Party (March, Year 1)
• Nominations forwarded to ICOMOS/IUCN (March,
  Year 1)
• Evaluation missions by ICOMOS/IUCN (September,
  Year 1)

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Tentative List
World Heritage Inscription Process
Nomination
World Heritage Centre technical check
Passed to expert advisory body (IUCN/ICOMOS)
Site inspection
Peer review
Advice to WH Committee
WH Committee decision
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• Advisory bodies are asked to be objective,
  rigorous and scientific in their evaluations

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ICOMOS Evaluation process

• Review by ICOMOS WH consultants staff (March)
• Desktop Review
• comparative assessment
• outstanding universal value
• ICOMOS Evaluation Mission (August/September)
• adequate management system
• issues of authenticity
• meetings with owners/stakeholders
• ICOMOS World Heritage Panel (November/December)

• 2nd Panel Meeting (March)
• Final Report Recommendations (April)
• Information provided by World Heritage Centre to
  State Parties (June)

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ICOMOS Evaluation

• Review of Nomination Dossier
• Thematic Studies
• Research by ICOMOS
• Desk Assessments
• Experts/academics
• ICOMOS ISCs
• Partners TICCIH, Docomomo
• Mission Reports
• Extra material requested from the State Party

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ICOMOS IUCN assess nominated properties for

• Outstanding Universal Value?
• Satisfy the criteria
• Authenticity integrity tests
• Adequate legal protection?
• Boundaries
• Buffer Zone
• Adequate management system?
• Desired state of conservation

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Evaluation Report

• Recommendations
• Inscribe
• Refer back same nomination with amendments may
  be re-submitted within 3 years
• Defer site may be re-submitted as a new
  nomination, with a new mission
• Not to inscribe site may not be submitted again,
  unless in exceptional circumstances.

• Summary of nomination
• ICOMOS/IUCN assessment of nomination
• ICOMOS/IUCN Recommendations

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World Heritage Committee

• A highly political process
• Increasingly WHC challenging Advisory Bodies
  recommendations
• Immense economic interests in listing outcomes

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Protection Management

• Appropriate boundary buffer zone
• Adequate legal protection
• Threats including climate change
• Management System
• State of Conservation
• Visitor Management Presentation
• Local Community Involvement
• Monitoring reactive, periodic, reinforced

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The Architecture and Urban Design work of Le
Corbusier 2010

• 21 sites
• France
• Germany
• Belgium
• Argentina
• Japan
• Criteria i,ii,iv

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• The World Heritage process is focused on sites
  rather than iconic individuals
• In its 2010 evaluation, ICOMOS considered that
  only a few of the nominated buildings had the
  capacity to be considered as outstanding in their
  own right and suggested that these were
• 1928 Villa Savoye et maison du gardien Poissy, Fr
• 1945 Unité dhabitation, Marseille, Fr
• 1950 Chapelle Notre-Dame-du-Haut, Ronchamp, Fr
• and possibly
• 195459 National Museum of Western Art, Main
  Building, Tokyo, Japan

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Assessment 2010

• ICOMOS needs to consider whether as a whole the
  series
• represents a masterpiece of human creative genius
• exhibits an important interchange of human values
  within a cultural area of the world on
  developments in architecture
• is tangibly associated with ideas of outstanding
  universal significance (the Modern Movement)
• and also whether each of the component parts can
  be said to justify these criteria.
• Consider what is missing?

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The Architecture of Le Corbusier 2011Une
contribution exceptionnelle au Mouvement Moderne
an outstanding contribution to the Modern
Movement

• 19 buildings, no urban designs
• Improved management and buffer zones
• But, an absence of substantial comparative
  analysis with contemporary architects/designers
  and their oeuvres.
• 'Le Corbusier was not the only architect who
  promoted the modern architectural movement, in
  which many architects participated.

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OUV for Twentieth Century Heritage Places

• Property not person
• Movement not ouvre
• Seminal examples not entire range
• Beyond national values
• The historic themes of the Twentieth century

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• UNESCO World Heritage Centre http//whc.unesco.org
  
• ICOMOS www.icomos.org/
• IUCN www.iucn.org
• Australian Department of the Environment Water
  Resources www.environment.gov.au
• Australia ICOMOS www.icomos.org/australia/