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Tian Xuejun attends World Heritage Site Managers Forum

Organized by UNESCO in cooperation with the Host Country China, the World Heritage Site Managers Forum of the extended 44th session of the World Heritage Committee was held online from July 7 to 13.

About 100 representatives from world heritage site management agencies from 55 countries attended the event, engaging in discussion on the topic of “World Heritage governance – Being prepared to manage change and continuity”.

Tian Xuejun, Vice Minister of Education, Chairperson of the National Commission of the People"s Republic of China for UNESCO, and Chairperson of the extended 44th session of the World Heritage Committee attended the event and gave a speech at the opening ceremony on July 7.

Tian said world heritage was invaluable treasure shared by mankind, and should thus be jointly protected by the international community, including governments, local authorities, civil society, specialized agencies and international organizations. World heritage site managers working on the front line played a particularly crucial role in this regard.

Tian stressed that currently world heritage protection and sustainable development were facing a series of threats and challenges, such as climate change, natural disasters, growing populations, over-exploitation of natural resources and ongoing wars and conflicts. It was therefore paramount to adopt systematic and proactive measures with foresight.

Tian pointed out that a prerequisite for world heritage protection was concerted efforts and consensus. He expressed the hope that world heritage site managers and all the other stakeholders would enhance cross-cultural dialogue and inter-disciplinary competence, better protect the outstanding universal value of world heritage sites according to their specific circumstances and promote the sustainable development of world heritage sites.