Is being listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site always beneficial?

CGTN Europe

CGTN Europe interviewed Dr David Gwyn, historian and heritage consultant

Transcript

00:00Gaining UNESCO World Heritage status is a rare honour.

00:04As of 2024, there were 1,223 World Heritage sites across 168 countries.

00:12According to UNESCO, the most visited site is the Great Wall of China,

00:16averaging around 15 million visitors a year.

00:21Being chosen as a World Heritage site isn't just a title,

00:25it can have lasting economic and tourism benefits.

00:28Researchers found that between 2004 and 2017,

00:33UNESCO status in Chinese cities led to a 3.8% increase in GDP per capita for the city.

00:40The French region of Champagne has seen overnight stays increase by 60%

00:45since it was included on the list in 2015.

00:48There's also been a 33% increase in tourism jobs.

00:52The World Heritage Convention is an international treaty

00:55that sets out guidelines for countries to protect and preserve sites.

00:59There's also a fund to help with the cost of this.

01:02But some local communities are unhappy, saying that a place on the UNESCO list is actually unwelcome

01:08because it can lead to over-tourism and environmental damage.

01:12Venice was chosen as a UNESCO site in 1987.

01:16Despite banning cruise ships and charging tourist fees,

01:19it's now threatened with a place on the so-called UNESCO blacklist

01:23as it struggles with excessive tourism.

01:27Now, Dr David Grin is a historian and heritage consultant.

01:30He joins us now.

01:32David, thank you so much for your time.

01:33You were instrumental in getting the slate landscape in Wales designated a UNESCO heritage site.

01:41So, how significant will today's event be for China?

01:46Well, very much so.

01:48And I'd like to offer my congratulations to the latest World Heritage Site.

01:53Now, of course, recognition as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO

01:57means effectively that any particular site has to be presented

02:01in terms of its significance for the whole of humankind.

02:06So, when we were successful in gaining the inscription

02:09for the slate quarrying landscapes of northwest Wales,

02:13the basic story is, of course, that somebody from Afghanistan or Russia or China

02:19needs to be able to come to one of these places and say,

02:22yes, okay, I get this.

02:24This is very interesting and very significant.

02:27As you say, there can be a problem with over-tourism.

02:32That's certainly been the case in many World Heritage Sites.

02:36But on the other hand, of course, you know, let's just bear in mind,

02:39Venice has been a tourist destination since the 1700s.

02:43It's practically impossible to imagine Venice as not being a World Heritage Site.

02:49But even if the designation hadn't been invented,

02:52people would be coming there anyway.

02:54Good point.

02:55So, will Shisha, the tombs, becoming a UNESCO Heritage Site

03:00automatically mean there's going to be a massive increase in tourism?

03:04Not necessarily.

03:06Now, every World Heritage inscription has to be accompanied by a plan

03:12which UNESCO will have accepted, if the site is inscribed,

03:16that says how it is going to be managed.

03:19Now, if it's likely to lead to an excessive footfall,

03:23then the plan, I imagine, a good plan,

03:26will certainly say how this is to be accommodated,

03:30whether, in fact, people are going to be discouraged

03:33from going to particularly sensitive parts of the World Heritage Site,

03:37whether virtual access is a possibility.

03:40So, there are ways around the problem of over-tourism.

03:44Talk to me about the obligations, then.

03:47You know, we've had aerial shots,

03:49we've seen lots of information about these amazing tombs.

03:53What will have to be done to make sure,

03:56not only that they communicate the importance of what these sites mean

03:59to anyone who visits,

04:00but to make sure they preserve properly as well?

04:02Well, every World Heritage Site needs to be maintained

04:07in such a way that its contribution to outstanding universal value is maintained.

04:13Now, this has to happen in any number of many different ways,

04:17according to the nature of the site.

04:20So, there isn't a one-size-fits-all rule

04:23for how a World Heritage Site is maintained.

04:27Now, for instance, in our slate quarries,

04:30we accepted early on that benign effect

04:34would have to be a management tool for some of the sites.

04:38We couldn't conserve every little hut in every slate quarry,

04:42whereas somewhere like Stonehenge

04:44obviously has to be managed in a completely different way.

04:48So, every management system, which UNESCO will have approved

04:51if a site has been inscribed,

04:54will be suitable to the circumstances of that particular location.

04:59Wonderful.

05:00And thank you so much for sharing your insights with us today.

05:03Dr. David Gwynne, a historian and heritage consultant in Wales.

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