Pacific World Heritage Action Plan 2016-2020

Abstract

1 PACIFIC WORLD HERITAGE ACTION PLAN 2016 – 20201 Vision for 2020 Pacific Island heritage is protected and enriched for current and future generations Preamble: We the people of the Pacific offer a unique contribution to the World Heritage community, through our enormous wealth of cultural diversity, as well as the island and marine biodiversity of our region which covers one third of the earth’s surface. For us, indigeneity is inseparable from heritage. Our indigeneity has the following characteristics: • Heritage in the Pacific defines our cultural identity and remains inseparable from our social, economic and environmental well-being, now and for future generations; • Our heritage is holistic, embracing all life, both tangible and intangible, and is understood through our cultural traditions; • There is an inseparable connection between the outstanding seascapes and landscapes in the Pacific Islands region, which are woven together by the rich cultural, historica