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UNESCO World Heritage Site Cyrene in Libya Honored with 2009 World Tourism Award for Integrated Cultural Heritage Preservation

October 20, 2009

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

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UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE SITE CYRENE IN LIBYA HONORED WITH 2009 WORLD TOURISM AWARD FOR INTEGRATED CULTURAL HERITAGE PRESERVATION

International Conservancy Global Heritage Fund Leads
Consortium of Partners In Historic Preservation, Management and
Maintenance of Cyrene

October 22 2009 - Palo Alto, California USA – Cyrene received the 2009 World Tourism Award for its integrated heritage preservation and management of the UNESCO World Heritage site of Cyrene in Libya. Global Heritage Fund, an international conservancy focused on protecting cultural heritage sites in developing countries, leads the consortium of partners dedicated to the preservation, management and maintenance of Cyrene. 

The 2009 World Tourism Award, co-sponsored by American Express (AMEX), International Herald Tribune (IHT) and Reed Travel Exhibitions, will be presented at a special ceremony on November 10, 2009, at World Travel Market, Excel Centre, London.

The 2009 Honorees are being recognized for their dedication to sustainable tourism and the preservation of natural and cultural heritage.  The award honors “Libya’s unique approach in establishing an integrated model for North African Archaeological and Heritage Preservation and Management with an emphasis on the education and training of local nationals for employment in the development and maintenance of this site; and for Engineer Saif Shahat’s initiatives taken to ensure the protection of Libya’s Heritage Sites and the quality of its tourism.”

In Cyrene, the program is a Global Heritage Fund (GHF)-led partnership between the Second University of Naples (Italy), the Libyan Department of Antiquities, and the Libyan Ministry of Culture. As the first integrated project involving Libyans, Italians and Americans working together, it aims to implement the conservation work within a structured training program for site conservators, archaeologists, and site maintenance and park services personnel of the Libyan Department of Antiquities in Cyrenaica. 

During the course of the project, Libyan nationals from Cyrene’s surrounding area have been employed as both skilled and unskilled labor on site, while University groups from Benghazi and Baida will study the project as a unique case study in both African archaeology and heritage management.

“We are thrilled that Cyrene in Libya has received the prestigious World Tourism Award and excited to see Global Heritage Fund’s efforts to preserve one of Libya’s great historic treasures come to fruition,” said executive director of Global Heritage Fund Jeff Morgan.  “Our special thanks goes to our Project Director Dr. Serenella Ensoli and her team, and our partners in Libya, who have successfully developed a model for sustainable tourism in the area, engaged the neighboring community and employed Libyan specialists to protect the majestic Greek and Roman complex of the Sanctuary of Apollo at Cyrene and its spectacular amphitheatre.” 

About the World Tourism Awards
Inaugurated in 1997, the World Tourism Award was established to recognize “the extraordinary initiatives by individuals, companies, organizations, destinations and attractions for outstanding accomplishments in the travel industry.”  The World Tourism Awards are presented in the form of a specially designed Steuben Crystal bridge entitled PARTNERSHIP, which “celebrates the bond of a supportive partnership which, like a bridge, spans both time and distance.” 

About Global Heritage Fund
Global Heritage Fund is an international conservancy dedicated to preserving endangered world heritage sites in developing countries to improve lives of local people. GHF enables successful, long-term preservation of the developing world’s most important archaeological sites and ancient townscapes in developing countries, creating new opportunities for economic growth. To achieve this, Global Heritage Fund deploys a well-proven Preservation by Design methodology: 1) comprehensive master conservation planning, 2) sustained preservation through local community involvement, 3) excellence in scientific conservation, and 4) partnerships and complementary funding. Global Heritage Fund is a registered non-profit international conservancy based in Palo Alto, California and London, U.K..  Web site: http://www.globalheritagefund.org.