2009 - Jan - Feb - Mar - Apr - May - Jun - Jul - Aug - Sep - Oct - Nov - Dec

2008 - Jan - Feb - Mar - Apr - May - Jun - Jul - Aug - Sep - Oct - Nov - Dec

2007 - Jan - Feb - Mar - Apr - May - Jun - Jul - Aug - Sep - Oct - Nov - Dec

29 January

• Virtual visit of The House of Slaves in Gorée Island (Dakar, Senegal)
  The house of slaves was built in 1776. Built by the Dutch -it is the last slave house to date in Goree, the first ones date back to 1536 and were built by Portuguese, the first Europeans to set foot on the Island in 1444.

23 January

• Museum archaeologists confirm historic shipwreck site on Barrier Reef
  Australian National Maritime Museum archaeologists working off the coast of North Queensland are now convinced they have located the site where HM Colonial Schooner Mermaid ran aground and broke up on the Great Barrier Reef in 1829. Surveying the site on Flora Reef, some 20 km out from Cairns, they have found further metallic objects including heavy copper sheathing which they are convinced came from the ship's hull.

• Rapa Nui Exhibition, Easter island
  From November 20th 2008 to March 1st 2009 in the Foundation EDF, Paris (France)
  The exhibition makes us revive the incredible history of the people of Easter through time. About one hundred and fifty works, most of them never displayed in public, illustrate the wealth of the public and private French collections. This very small land, isolated in the center of the Pacific, is the result of an exploration that lead marine experts to populate all the lands scattered in the immense Pacific from Southeast Asia to this end of the world.

21 January

• Niger-Loire Project: Mission in Mali from 10th to 19th December 2008
  Vincent Rotgé, Director of international Activities, and Simon Hardy, Rivers and heritage Assistant, of the Val de Loire Mission, participated in this mission « Niger-Loire Project: Governance and culture ».
  

  They assisted notably in :

  • Steering committee of the Niger-Loire Project 11th & 12th December 2008
  • Basis for decentralised cooperation – Bamako, 13th December 2008

   

• Between two rivers : building a Toue (Loire river boat) in Mali
  From 17th November 2008 to 19th January 2009, the « Between Two Rivers » association in partnership with the Loire de Blois Observatory and with the help of the Regional Council of the Centre, have organised the construction of a toue (Loire river boat) in Mopti in Mali. This work in progress is the second part of a project for the exchange of techniques and know-how between French and Malian river water carpenters around the construction of two boats. The first part took place in the Val de Loire in 2006 with the construction of a pinasse (Malian dugout canoe) in la Possonnière.

20 January

• Valley of the Loire meetings. Results: Presentations, photographs and videos of the meetings
  In the pages of the Workshops (links on the right column), you will find the presentations of the participants and the video of the speakers. François Bonneau, Chairperson of the Center region and the Valley of the Loire Mission, goes back to the mobilization of stakeholders in these Valley of the Loire Meetings for the conservation and the valuation of the site registered in the world heritage List.

• Reducing Disasters Risks at World Heritage Properties
  World Heritage properties, as with all heritage properties, are exposed to natural and man-made disasters which threaten their integrity and may compromise their values. The loss or deterioration of these outstanding properties would negatively impact local and national communities, both for their cultural importance as a source of information on the past and a symbol of identity, and for their socio-economic value.

• Mayors&Heritage: Budapest (Hungary)
  Dr. Gábor Demszky, Mayor of the world heritage city of Budapest (Hungary)
  January 2009. (Born in 1952 in Budapest). He studied Law in the Faculty of Law of the University of Budapest. When he was student, he was separated from his studies for a year for having organized a left-wing student demonstration in 1972. From 1978 to 1981, he studied sociology. In 1988-1989 he spent ten months in the University of Columbia. He is one of the founders of the Network of the free initiatives and the Alliance of free democrats. In the first free elections in the spring of 1990 he was chosen deputy.
  

16 January

• <WHTour.org> : Tombs of Buganda Kings at Kasubi in Uganda and Ngorongoro Conservation Area in Tanzania in 360º
  World Heritage Tour is a non-profit organization documenting the UNESCO World Heritage List in panographies - interactive 360 x 180 degree imaging. This is for those who are unable to travel for whatever reason, and also a legacy to future generations. Soon documentation and reproduction will be the only ways to see, enjoy and share many past glories that are slowly disappearing because of climate change and natural disasters. Tito Dupret, assisted by Bijuan Chen, is the engine of the organization. <WHTour.org> is alive thanks to the J.M. Kaplan Fund, the donors and the staff.

13 January

• Ulugh Beg: the scholar on the throne (pages 21-23)
  There is only one case in history of an astronomer being the ruler of a mighty state. Ulugh Beg (1394–1449) was born in Sultaniya (Persia), during a campaign of his grandfather, amerlane, founder of the vast Timurid Empire (see overleaf). At the age of 17, Ulugh Beg became the ruler of Maverannakhr (Transoxiana), the part of his grandfather’s empire lying between the Syrdarya and Amudarya rivers and whose capital, Samarkand, is situated in modern-day Uzbekistan.

9 January

• United Nations 62nd General Assembly proclaimed 2009 the International Year of Astronomy
  On 20 December 2007, the United Nations 62nd General Assembly proclaimed 2009 the International Year of Astronomy. UNESCO was designated as the lead agency and focal point for the Year. The UNESCO Thematic Initiative “Astronomy and World Heritage” launched in support of this International Year aims to establish a link between science and culture with a view to highlighting the scientific value of cultural sites connected with astronomy.

8 January

• European Commission contributes €2.5 million to Central Africa World Heritage Forest Initiative
  On 18 December 2008, the European Commission and UNESCO signed an agreement in Libreville, Gabon for a contribution of €2.5 million to the Central Africa World Heritage Forest Initiative (CAWFHI). Since 2004, the UNESCO World Heritage Centre has been coordinating the Initiative for a total amount of about $10 million, with $3.3 million financed by the United Nations Foundation, $3.3 by non-governmental organizations (World Wildlife Fund, World Conservation Society, Conservation International) and $3.3 million financed by French Global Environmental Fund.

• Garamba National Park (DRC) attacked by LRA rebels
  On 2 January 2009, Ugandan rebels known as the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) attacked Garamba National Park, one of five World Heritage sites in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. So far, there are 8 dead, including two guards and two wives of park rangers, and 13 wounded. Park authorities are also evaluating damage done to the park. Nagero Station, targeted by the rebels, is reported to be "desolate", with several buildings as well as transport and communication equipment destroyed. Stocks of fuel and patrol rations were looted.

Atlas historique de Kyôto
Analyse spatiale des systèmes de mémoire d'une ville, de son architecture et de son paysage urbain
Sous la direction de Nicolas Fiévé. Préface de Jacques Gernet
Collection Patrimoine mondial
2008, 978-92-3-204020-6
Dès sa fondation au VIIIe siècle, la ville du Kyôto a été l’une des plus vastes capitales mondiales, surpassant en taille et en magnificence les villes de l’Europe médiévale. Exception superbe dans un pays essentiellement rural, la ville est restée le foyer de la civilisation japonaise pendant près de mille ans.