Global Heritage Fund

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Thai Prime Minister Visits Ayutthaya to Assess Flood Damage and Future Prevention

February 21, 2012

Speaking in Ayutthaya this week as part of a World Heritage Site celebration, Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra expressed confidence that this year’s flood prevention plan will guard against a repeat of the 2011 floods that shuttered hundreds of factories and damaged 158 historic monuments.

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Modernization Threatens Nepal’s Historic Towns

February 17, 2012

In 1979, seven historic monumental zones in the Kathmandu Valley were collectively designated Asia’s first UNESCO World Heritage Site. For scholars and tourists alike, these Hindu and Buddhist monuments are what immediately come to mind when picturing Nepal’s rich cultural heritage. But according to a German architect who has been working in Nepal for four decades, it is only a matter of time before modernization wipes out the majority of the country’s ancient architecture.

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New Bridge at GHF Ciudad Perdida Improves Safety of Indigenous Community and Tourists

February 15, 2012

Santiago Giraldo, Project Director of GHF Ciudad Perdida, logged on to Global Heritage Network (GHN) this week to make an exciting announcement: A brand new suspension bridge has been built over the Buritaca River, greatly improving the safety of indigenous community members, guides and visitors.

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GHF Executive Director Attends Opening of Asia Society Hong Kong Center

February 10, 2012

The brand new Asia Society Hong Kong Center opened with a bang this week, as more than 400 guests gathered to celebrate the completion of a project over a decade in the works. Among the event’s attendees was Jeff Morgan, Executive Director of GHF, which will partner with Asia Society to host another event in May.

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Beijing Developers Demolish Home of China’s “Father of Modern Architecture”

February 10, 2012

In 1931, after earning his master’s degree in architecture at the University of Pennsylvania, Liang Sicheng returned to China where he joined a newly formed Beijing organization called the Institute for Research in Chinese Architecture. For seven years he and his wife Lin Huiyin, one of China’s first female architects, lived in the courtyard house located at 24 Beizongbu Hutong, where together they completed their groundbreaking book, History of Chinese Architecture.

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Egypt’s Tourism Sector Tumbles Amid Violence

February 03, 2012

For the millions of Egyptians whose incomes depend on tourist money, a bleak economic outlook grew even bleaker this week after a soccer riot in Port Said left as many as 74 dead. Considered the worst outbreak of violence since Hosni Mubarak was overthrown a year ago, the clashes were followed a day later by protests that resulted in injuries to nearly 400 people.

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Turkey Contributes $5 Million to UNESCO Emergency Fund

February 01, 2012

Since last November’s controversial vote to introduce Palestine as its 195th member, UNESCO has been eager to recoup the funding it lost when the U.S. and Israel withdrew their support for the organization — about 22 percent of the group’s annual budget.

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Ancient Cave Monastery in Need of Conservation

January 31, 2012

Dug into the side of Mount Erusheli in southern Georgia, the ancient cave monastery of Vardzia is not just spectacular physically, it is also one of the region’s most important historical and cultural sites.

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Students in Siem Reap Seize Opportunities Afforded by Angkor

January 27, 2012

Every day, thousands of tourists visit Angkor to stare in amazement at its awesome temples and sculptural decorations. And every day, after the complex closes, many of the young people who staff the site head straight to university to seize opportunities the likes of which their parents could not have dreamed.

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Bosnia’s Top Cultural Institutions Under Threat

January 25, 2012

Nearly two decades after a brutal war that killed hundreds of thousands of civilians, displaced two million from their homes, and destroyed museums and libraries, Bosnia-Herzegovina’s top cultural institutions are again in imminent danger — this time because of political conflict and neglect.

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