The Latest Breaking News from World Heritage

The Secret Vishnu Temples Hidden in Thanjavur’s Shadow of Brihadishwara

Thanjavur is often called the heart of the Chola empire. Its skyline is dominated by the magnificent Brihadishwara Temple, a UNESCO World Heritage marvel. Thousands visit it every year. But devotion in Thanjavur did not begin or end with the Cholas. Near Vennatrankarai, close to the River Vennar a branch…

MyLifeXP · Feb 24

Why These 5 Shiva Temples Are Must-Visit This Maha Shivratri?

Maha Shivratri on 15 February 2026 is a sacred night of devotion, fasting, meditation, and prayer, celebrating the divine bond of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati. The cosmic Tandava dance of Shiva represents the victory of consciousness over ignorance, inspiring spiritual awakening. Beyond the famous Jyotirlingas, India is home to…

MyLifeXP · Feb 5

K'gari’s unique ancient lakes once dried out. Could this happen again?

The lakes on the world’s biggest sand island, K'gari, are famous. Pivotal to the World Heritage listing of the Queensland island formerly known as Fraser Island, their turquoise waters feature in international tourism campaigns and social media posts.

The Conversation · Dec 3, 2025

Natural World Heritage sites under growing threat, but bright spots remain

Botswana’s fertile Okavango Delta is one of the last remaining high-biodiversity ecosystems in the world, home to cheetahs, African wild dogs, baobab trees, crocodiles, termites and owls that catch fish. Roughly the size of the state of Connecticut, the freshwater Okavango Delta opens into an enormous alluvial fan that stretches…

The Conversation · Oct 11, 2025

UNESCO is choosing a new director who will face a big funding shortage after US exit

An Egyptian antiquities professor and a Congolese economist are competing to become the new director of UNESCO

The Independent UK · Oct 6, 2025

Unesco veteran Matoko pitches reform agenda ahead of leadership vote

The UN's scientific and cultural agency, Unesco, faces criticism for being slow, politicised and short of funds. As it prepares to choose a successor to its French director general, Audrey Azoulay, on Monday, Congolese veteran Firmin Édouard Matoko tells RFI that his three decades inside the organisation are an asset…

Radio France Internationale · Oct 3, 2025

Celebrating the beauty and mystery of Carnac’s ancient megaliths

Some 500 kilometres west of Paris, on Brittany’s Atlantic coast, stand the mysterious prehistoric stone alignments of Morbihan – now on Unesco's World Heritage list. RFI went to see why the ancient site still casts a spell on visitors.

Radio France Internationale · Aug 24, 2025

Iconic Easter Island statues could be gone in 60 years, study warns

New study warns that rising sea levels could threaten Easter Island’s iconic moai statues by the end of this century

The Independent UK · Aug 13, 2025

Untouched reefs cop record bleaching in intense heat

It could take up to 15 years for coral reefs off Australia's western coastline to fully recover from the worst bleaching event on record for the region.

AAP · Aug 11, 2025

WA’s ‘longest and most intense’ marine heatwave killed coral across 1,500km stretch

Scientists shocked by bleaching event that hit reefs from the world heritage-listed Ningaloo to the remote Ashmore Reef

The Guardian - AU · Aug 11, 2025