International Day For Monuments And Sites Spotlights Climate Change
Editor
April 19, 2022
One in three natural sites and one in six cultural heritage sites are currently threatened by climate change, the UN cultural agency, UNESCO, warned on Monday, the International Day for Monuments and Sites.
In addition to providing interesting places to visit and learn about the past, these sites are also climate change observatories that gather and share info on climate practices.
As climate change is one of the defining issues of our time, and among the greatest threats facing cultural and natural World Heritage monuments and sites, this year’s theme is Heritage and Climate.
In recent months and years, the world has witnessed cultural and natural heritage sites threatened by wildfires, floods, storms and mass-bleaching events.
UNESCO’s report reveals that a staggering 60 per cent of World Heritage forests are threatened by climate change-related events.
Marine sites are equally under pressure, with two-thirds of these vital carbon stores – home to 15 per cent of global blue carbon assets – currently experiencing high risks of degradation, according to the UNESCO
And if no action is taken, coral may disappear at natural heritage sites by the end of this century.