Research & practice seminar on the occasion of the Golden Mountains of Altai 10th anniversaryThe seminar was held on October 16-17 in the Tungur settlement (Belukha Natural Park, Altai Republic). It marked the 10th anniversary of the inscription of the Golden Mountains of Altai natural site on to the World Heritage List. Among the attendees were representatives of Specially Protected Areas of the Altai Republic (clusters of the World Heritage site), Natural Heritage Protection Fund and the Altai Republic Commission for UNESCO, Authorities of the Ust'-Koksa Region and the Katandinsky settlement, delegates of El Kurultai State Assembly and regional Council of Deputies, representatives of NGOs and members of mass media. The participants learned about international and domestic experience in the implementation of the Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage; they were familiarized with recommendations of the 2007 UNESCO/IUCN mission and the decisions of the World Heritage Committee concerning the Golden Mountains of Altai World Heritage site. During the seminar the current state of conservation of the property, its urgent problems and development prospects were discussed. The outcome of the seminar is the Proposals concerning the Management Strategy and the Development of the Golden Mountains of Altai World Heritage site defining the following priority activities: (1) Providing long-time conservation of outstanding universal value of the property; (2) Elaboration of regulatory and legal framework for the property and (3) Optimization of the site's management; (4) Providing financial stability of the property; (5) broad public awareness of the values and specific character of the site; (6) Strengthening of interregional and international cooperation; (7) Extension of the territory of the site and providing justification for additional criteria of its value. |