The Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage (the World Heritage Convention) was adopted by the General Conference of UNESCO in 1972. To date, more than 182 countries have adhered to the Convention, making it one of the most universal international legal instruments for the protection of the cultural and natural heritage.

By fostering communication between managers and the exchange of know-how pertaining to the management of World Heritage Cities, the OWHC is helping to support public officials in the execution of the responsibilities that each government that is a party to the Convention has assumed by signing the agreement, i.e. to act as the key guarantor of the preservation of the sites and monuments included on the UNESCO World Heritage List located within its territory.

• UNESCO
• The World Heritage Center
  • Mission Statement
  • Heritage: A Gift From The Past To The Future
  • A Brief History
  • World Heritage List
  • Who's Who
• The World Heritage Convention
  • Introduction to the Convention
  • General Principles
  • Indications to States Parties concerning nominations to the List
  • Criteria for the inclusion of cultural properties in the World Heritage List
  • Guidelines for the evaluation and examination of nominations
  • Format and content of nominations
  • Procedure and timetable for the processing of nominations
  • Benefits of Ratification
  • The Tentative List
  • Funding And Support
  • The List of World Heritage in Danger
  • Some Success Stories
  • For Further Reading
• The Organization of World Heritage Cities
  • The Cities
  • New Inscriptions
  • The Regional Secretariats

While the Organization of World Heritage Cities does not appear with ICCROM, ICOMOS and the IUCN among the partner organizations of UNESCO indicated in the World Heritage Convention, the General by Laws of the OWHC stipulate that it is dedicated to the implementation of the 1972 Convention. This initiative by the OWHC was officially recognized by Federico Mayor, Director-General of UNESCO, at the opening of the Third International Symposium of World Heritage Cities held in Bergen in June 1995: "The World Heritage Convention relies heavily on the services provided by several important professional networks, in particular the IUCN, ICCROM and ICOMOS. The Secretariat [of the World Heritage Centre] and I deem the OWHC to be equally important."

Organization chart