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In February, the U.S. Department of Interior submitted a multi-country nomination to the UNESCO World Heritage List of historic “Moravian Church Settlements” in Bethlehem, North America, and Europe. This transnational nomination includes Bethlehem, Gracehill, Northern Ireland/UK, and Herrnhut, Germany. If approved by the international World Heritage Committee, these three sites will join the previously inscribed Moravian settlement of Christiansfeld, Denmark to form a single UNESCO listing for the Moravian Church Settlements.
Transnational Working Group meetings were held in Northern Ireland in March and Denmark in July.
What is World Heritage and what would inclusion on the UNESCO list mean for the Lehigh Valley and the City of Bethlehem? Here are the Top 10 things you need to know:
Learn MoreLearn more about the unique and storied history of Historic Moravian Bethlehem. Our city, located in Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Valley, changed the course of our nation and its culture. We invite you to experience more about Bethlehem's rich and fascinating history.
Learn MoreWant to learn more about UNESCO, World Heritage, and sites in the United States and around the world? Find all you want to know right here!
Learn MoreWorld Heritage represents places on Earth having outstanding universal value for humanity and as such, have been inscribed on the World Heritage List to be protected for future generations to appreciate and enjoy. As of October 2020, the World Heritage List contains 1121 cultural, natural and mixed properties.
UNESCO is the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. It is one of the specialized agencies of the United Nations which contributes to the building of peace, the reduction of poverty, sustainable development and intercultural dialogue through the implementation of programmes in the field of education, natural and social sciences, culture, communication and information.
Once a country joins the 1972 Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage and has sites inscribed on the World Heritage List, the resulting prestige often helps to raise awareness among the general public and the state authorities of heritage preservation. Greater awareness leads to a general rise in the level of the protection and conservation given to heritage properties. A country may also receive financial assistance from the World Heritage Fund and expert advice from the World Heritage Committee to support activities for the preservation of its sites.
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