World Heritage Series n°28 Navigating the Future of Marine World
Heritage Since the early 1980s, forty-three marine sites have
been inscribed on the World Heritage List, covering about 1.4
million km2 of ocean surface – an area about the size of the
Gulf of Mexico. Each of these forty-three sites represent
exceptional features in the ocean – features that are recognized
by the international community for their outstanding natural
beauty, exceptional biodiversity, or unique ecological,
biological and geological processes. In recognition of mounting
conservation challenges in marine areas, UNESCO's World Heritage
Marine Programme decided to bring, for the first time, all
forty-three site managers together in Hawaii, United States (1–3
December 2010) to discuss ways of strengthening the conservation
of these special ocean places. This publication summarizes the
conclusions and recommended actions from this meeting. The
meeting focused in particular on the exchange of success
stories, providing the basis for a st