2018 World Monuments Watch Lists 50 Cultural Sites at Risk from Human and Natural Threats

Written by Patrick Lynch
Published on October 23, 2017

The World Monuments Fund has announced their 2018 World Monuments Watch, highlighting 25 cultural sites from across the globe currently at risk due to economic, political or natural threats. Covering more than 30 countries and territories, these monuments represent sites of exceptional cultural value dating from prehistory to the 20th century.

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Some key themes of this year’s list outlined by the World Monuments Fund include sites threatened due to:

Conflict (the Souk in Aleppo, Syria, a community hub burned during conflict; the al-Hadba’ Minaret in Mosul, Iraq, an historic landmark destroyed by ISIS; the Old City of Ta’izz in Yemen, an ancient city engulfed by war; and Sukur Cultural Landscape in Nigeria, a cultural landscape controlled by Boko Haram)
Disaster Response (Disaster Sites of the Caribbean, the Gulf, and Mexico; the town of Amatrice, Italy, nearly entirely leveled by an earthquake in 2016)
Sites of Social Movement (Alabama Civil Rights Sites, locations important to the United State Civil Rights Movement of the 1950’s and 60’s)
Climate Change (Blackpool Piers, a historic seaside destination in the UK threatened by rising sea levels and strengthening storm surges)
Modern Sites (Post-Independence Architecture of Delhi, including works by notable Indian architects Charles Correa and Raj Rewal; Kagawa Prefectural Gymnasium, a concrete sports hall in Japan designed by Kenzo Tange; the Sirius Building, a Brutalist public housing building in Sydney, Australia)
Cultural Landscapes (the Tebaida Leonesa, a series of once-isolated rural communities in Spain now overrun with tourism and development; the Ramal Talca-Constitución, Chile’s last-remaining rural passenger railway, recently damaged by forest fires; the Matobo Hills Cultural Landscape in Zimbabwe, one of the world's great rock art collections, also threatened by fire and deforestation)

“By building an international coalition, the World Monuments Watch protects both the sites themselves and the shared history they embody,” said Joshua David, President & CEO, WMF. “We may be best known for the excellence of our conservation practices, but the human impacts of our work ultimately mean the most. Sites like the 25 on the 2018 Watch are where we come together as citizens of the world and renew our commitments to justice, culture, peace, and understanding.”

The complete list includes:

Disaster Sites of the Caribbean, the Gulf, and Mexico