https://www.scmp.com/rss/521805/feed The latest news and top stories on United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation. A prominent Paris, France based specialized agency of the United Nations, UNESCO is dedicated to promoting peace and security through international cooperation in education, sciences, culture, communication and information. Its main areas of focus include advancing literacy, fostering scientific collaboration and preserving cultural heritage. The organisation is recognised for establishing World... en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Associated Press Associated Press It is said that a bowl of soup made of cow bellies and legs can cure ulcers, hangovers and an assortment of other ailments – if you are courageous enough to try it. And Dimitris Tsarouhas, the owner of a restaurant in the Greek city of Thessaloniki that specialises in patsa, is striving to register the soup with Unesco as a unique and traditional dish of Greece that harks back to the time of Homer’s epic poem The Odyssey. That has conjured up a new dispute with age-old rival Turkey, which also... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3350248/tripe-soup-being-culturally-appropriated-dispute-boils-between-2-nations?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3350248/tripe-soup-being-culturally-appropriated-dispute-boils-between-2-nations?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 19 Apr 2026 09:15:08 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press A stampede at a mountaintop fortress popular with tourists in northern Haiti has killed at least 25 people and injured dozens of others, authorities said, revising an earlier, higher number of fatalities. Municipal authorities in the city of Cap-Haitien in a statement said that Saturday’s stampede in Milot “resulted in numerous cases of asphyxiation, trampling and loss of consciousness”. Authorities said dozens of people who attended traditional festivities at the historical site were taken to... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3349818/stampede-historical-fort-haiti-kills-least-30-culture-minister-confirms?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3349818/stampede-historical-fort-haiti-kills-least-30-culture-minister-confirms?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 12 Apr 2026 17:30:53 +0000 Fiona Sun Fiona Sun Hong Kong’s leader has pledged to foster an inclusive society for people with autism, with a Unesco official saying the city has the potential to become a global hub for support services. Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu on Thursday highlighted the importance of a better understanding and acceptance of autistic people at an event marking the United Nations’ World Autism Awareness Day. “Awareness is our starting point. Inclusion is our destination. Action is the bridge that joins them,” he... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3348838/hong-kong-can-become-global-hub-autism-support-unesco-official-says?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3348838/hong-kong-can-become-global-hub-autism-support-unesco-official-says?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 02 Apr 2026 12:06:55 +0000 Peter Neville-Hadley Peter Neville-Hadley It seems odd that one of the earliest depictions of a kiss in the history of Western painting should be found in a church. But after a half-hour train ride inland from Venice, and a gentle stroll through historic Padua’s winding streets, there it is, inside the heavily painted interior of the early 14th century Scrovegni Chapel. In a fresco called Meeting at the Golden Gate (circa 1305), by Giotto di Bondone, two ageing figures greet each other with a public display of affection that seems to... https://www.scmp.com/postmag/travel/article/3348137/padua-italys-painted-city-best-shows-are-frescoes?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/postmag/travel/article/3348137/padua-italys-painted-city-best-shows-are-frescoes?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 28 Mar 2026 22:00:08 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said on Friday that they had turned back three ships trying to transit the Strait of Hormuz, adding the route was closed to vessels travelling to and from ports “belonging to allies and supporters of the Zionist-American enemies”. “This morning, following the lies of the corrupt US president claiming that the Strait of Hormuz was open, three container ships of different nationalities … were turned back after a warning from the IRGC Navy,” the Guards said on their... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3348177/iran-says-hormuz-closed-shipping-and-enemy-ports?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3348177/iran-says-hormuz-closed-shipping-and-enemy-ports?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Mar 2026 10:48:54 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press US and Israeli strikes on Iran have damaged at least four cultural and historical sites, including palaces and an ancient mosque, raising alarms about the impact of the widening war on protected landmarks that are important to Iranian identity and world history. The speed and extent of the damage have so concerned Iran and Lebanon that they sent a request to the United Nations’ cultural agency, Unesco, to add more sites to its enhanced protection list. Unesco confirmed that it has verified... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3346738/damage-irans-historical-sites-raises-alarm-about-impact-war-cultural-heritage?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3346738/damage-irans-historical-sites-raises-alarm-about-impact-war-cultural-heritage?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 16 Mar 2026 11:15:07 +0000 Agencies Agencies The US military has said that it has hit nearly 2,000 targets inside Iran since Saturday. More than 1,000 people have been killed, including some whom US President Donald Trump said he had considered as possible future leaders of the country. While numerous government and military sites have been targeted - including the facility where Iran’s Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed on the first day of the operation - the intensity of the bombardment has damaged at least one... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3345447/irans-unesco-listed-golestan-palace-damaged-us-and-israel-ramp-air-war?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3345447/irans-unesco-listed-golestan-palace-damaged-us-and-israel-ramp-air-war?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 04 Mar 2026 11:56:15 +0000 Bibek Bhandari Bibek Bhandari Nepal’s Lumbini has long anchored the Buddhist pilgrimage map as the Buddha’s birthplace. Nearby, however, stand the fortified ruins of Tilaurakot – believed to be the ancient capital where Siddhartha Gautam spent his princely years – a site of profound historical weight that draws only a fraction of the visitors. A newly unearthed temple could change that, archaeologists say, offering fresh evidence that Tilaurakot once held far greater religious significance to Buddhists than its quiet present... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3344160/unearthed-temple-nepal-sheds-new-light-buddhas-early-life?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3344160/unearthed-temple-nepal-sheds-new-light-buddhas-early-life?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 21 Feb 2026 07:00:08 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse An Indian court has issued death sentences against three men convicted of raping an Israeli tourist and another woman, and killing a man near a Unesco World Heritage site. The men had attacked a group of five people, which included the Israeli and another tourist, an American man, as they were stargazing in a village in south India last year, according to media reports at the time. They were in the area of Hampi, which is popular with visitors, known for rocky hillocks and sprawling temple... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3343824/indian-court-hands-death-penalty-3-tourist-rape-murder-near-unesco-heritage-site?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3343824/indian-court-hands-death-penalty-3-tourist-rape-murder-near-unesco-heritage-site?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 17 Feb 2026 09:28:06 +0000 Cale Holmes Cale Holmes The United Nations is broke. According to UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, the institution can’t pay its bills. Members, such as the US, haven’t paid their dues. The UN doesn’t just face a liquidity crisis. An old rule obliges it to pay members back for unspent money, even from dues it never received. The UN Secretariat and some major operations could close by July. The UN is far from ideal. The secretariat and agency headquarters are massive bureaucracies, the General Assembly is widely... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3343337/more-funding-un-needs-restructuring?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3343337/more-funding-un-needs-restructuring?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 14 Feb 2026 21:30:08 +0000 Ronan O'Connell Ronan O'Connell Beyond the most prominent Unesco World Heritage sites in Asia, such as the Taj Mahal and Angkor Wat, there are many others deserving of attention. There may be fewer foreign visitors at India’s 1,500-year-old cave temple complex, in Japan’s demon-riddled sacred forest and around Macau’s historic centre, yet each has its own charms. Here are five of Asia’s most underappreciated Unesco wonders. Historic Centre of Macao Many of the United Nations agency’s World Heritage “sites” are not a single... https://www.scmp.com/postmag/travel/article/3341012/5-asias-overlooked-unesco-wonders-macau-bali-south-korea-india-and-japan?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/postmag/travel/article/3341012/5-asias-overlooked-unesco-wonders-macau-bali-south-korea-india-and-japan?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 31 Jan 2026 03:00:09 +0000 Vincenzo La Torre Vincenzo La Torre When Eugene Tan and Rina Teoh opened The Edison George Town in 2016, the capital of Penang Island in Malaysia had yet to become the social media magnet it is today. The quaint and charming city, which in 2008 was named a Unesco World Heritage site, has always been a top destination among travellers to Southeast Asia, but in recent years it’s been attracting a new cohort of visitors looking for that perfect Instagram post. From the incredible variety of its food to its vibrant street art and long... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/lifestyle/travel-hotels/article/3338464/edison-george-town-old-world-charm-meets-modern-elegance-penangs-unesco-listed-capital?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/lifestyle/travel-hotels/article/3338464/edison-george-town-old-world-charm-meets-modern-elegance-penangs-unesco-listed-capital?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 02 Jan 2026 05:00:11 +0000 Ushar Daniele Ushar Daniele Lion dancers, drummers, stilt walkers and unicyclists flooded the streets of George Town on Sunday as the northern Malaysian city staged its annual Chingay parade, a century-old procession best known for performers balancing towering flagpoles on their chins and fingertips. This year’s spectacle carries added weight. Malaysia and Singapore have jointly nominated Chingay for recognition on Unesco’s Intangible Cultural Heritage list, a move organisers hope will elevate the tradition onto the... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3337285/malaysias-chingay-parade-dazzles-george-town-unesco-bid-singapore-gains-steam?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3337285/malaysias-chingay-parade-dazzles-george-town-unesco-bid-singapore-gains-steam?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 22 Dec 2025 07:15:08 +0000 Adele Brunner Adele Brunner On a defunct 1960s cargo pier in the Zhoushan archipelago, Zhejiang province, the temporary Seaside Pavilion, built in 2024, stands with a deceptive grace that belies the extreme logistical coordination required to place it there. Prefabricated parts had to be transported to the remote Chaishan island via a multi-stage journey of cargo ships, small trailers and often sheer human effort. The construction team was also frequently forced to perch on surrounding rocks and work with basic handheld... https://www.scmp.com/postmag/design-interiors/article/3336425/can-architecture-be-fleeting-check-out-these-transient-structures-and-see?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/postmag/design-interiors/article/3336425/can-architecture-be-fleeting-check-out-these-transient-structures-and-see?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 19 Dec 2025 07:15:11 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Italian food is known and loved around the world for its fresh ingredients and palate-pleasing tastes. On December 10, the UN’s cultural agency gave foodies another reason to celebrate their pizza, pasta and tiramisu by listing Italian cooking as part of the world’s intangible cultural heritage. Unesco added the rituals surrounding Italian food preparation and consumption to its list of the world’s traditional practices and expressions. It is a designation celebrated alongside the more... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3336034/unesco-adds-italian-cuisine-and-its-rituals-world-cultural-heritage-list?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3336034/unesco-adds-italian-cuisine-and-its-rituals-world-cultural-heritage-list?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 11 Dec 2025 20:15:09 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Atop one of Egypt’s Sinai mountains, near where the three Abrahamic faiths say God spoke with Moses, another unmistakable sound rings out: the incessant drilling of construction work. In the remote, rugged terrain of southern Sinai, Egypt has undertaken a vast megaproject aimed at drawing mass tourism to the once serene mountain town of Saint Catherine. Heritage experts and locals say the state’s bulldozers have already damaged the nature reserve and Unesco World Heritage site, home to the... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3335279/saint-catherine-we-knew-gone-egyptian-locals-say-sinai-mountain-megaproject?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3335279/saint-catherine-we-knew-gone-egyptian-locals-say-sinai-mountain-megaproject?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 06 Dec 2025 04:15:09 +0000 Tribune News Service Tribune News Service The status of Unesco World Heritage site is bestowed on places that possess outstanding universal value for humanity in terms of cultural, historical, scientific or natural significance. Such sites are also designated for protection and preservation under international treaties. As of October, a total of 1,248 Unesco World Heritage sites are located across 170 countries. Some of the most popular and well-known sites include the Great Barrier Reef, the Pyramids of Egypt and the Taj Mahal. The US... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3334836/11-best-unesco-world-heritage-sites-us-grand-canyon-yellowstone?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/travel-leisure/article/3334836/11-best-unesco-world-heritage-sites-us-grand-canyon-yellowstone?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 02 Dec 2025 04:45:13 +0000 Lisa Lim Lisa Lim The United Nations came into existence eight decades ago, after the end of World War II, with the ratification by its initial 51 members of its founding document, the UN Charter, which entered into force on October 24, 1945. Now comprising 193 sovereign states, with all of its members having equal representation in its General Assembly, the UN is the world’s largest intergovernmental organisation. With its primary aims of maintaining international peace and security and achieving cooperation... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/3330166/how-multilingualism-core-un-value-can-help-move-towards-global-peace-and-tolerance?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/3330166/how-multilingualism-core-un-value-can-help-move-towards-global-peace-and-tolerance?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 26 Oct 2025 00:15:08 +0000 SCMP SCMP We have put together stories from our coverage last weekend to help you stay informed about news across Asia and beyond. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. India says it destroyed Pakistan’s Chinese and US-made fighter jets in clashes 2. Hong Kong’s Unesco-listed park is big hit with tourists and that’s a problem 3. Saudi-Pakistan defence pact poses nuclear dilemma for China 4. Was Venice’s winged lion made in China and delivered by Marco Polo’s... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/article/3327953/tourists-throng-hong-kong-park-chinas-nuclear-dilemma-5-weekend-reads-you-missed?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/article/3327953/tourists-throng-hong-kong-park-chinas-nuclear-dilemma-5-weekend-reads-you-missed?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 06 Oct 2025 04:15:08 +0000 Lo Hoi-ying Lo Hoi-ying Hong Kong will step up patrols at a Unesco Global Geopark for the rest of the National Day “golden week” break after hordes of tourists flooded the place, with some trampling on corals and starting fires. The Environment and Ecology Bureau on Sunday said that staff from the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) together with officers from the police force and Marine Department launched a joint operation on Sharp Island, also known as Kiu Tsui Chau, in Sai Kung. It said that... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3327926/hong-kong-steps-patrols-after-golden-week-tourists-overrun-sai-kung-island?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3327926/hong-kong-steps-patrols-after-golden-week-tourists-overrun-sai-kung-island?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 05 Oct 2025 11:44:34 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse The United Nations’ heritage body on Monday announced the launch of a virtual museum showcasing hundreds of looted artefacts in a bid to draw attention to the trafficking of cultural property. A Zambian ritual mask, a pendant from the ancient Syrian site of Palmyra and a painting by Swedish artist Anders Zorn are among nearly 250 stolen objects displayed on Unesco’s new interactive platform. But that is only a fraction of the roughly 57,000 items Interpol estimates are in circulation, part of a... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3327296/un-heritage-body-opens-virtual-museum-spotlight-artefact-trafficking?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3327296/un-heritage-body-opens-virtual-museum-spotlight-artefact-trafficking?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 29 Sep 2025 20:40:29 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Sixties screen siren Claudia Cardinale, who died on Tuesday aged 87, entranced audiences across the globe with the sultry gaze that made her the muse of Luchino Visconti and Federico Fellini. With her fierce beauty and husky voice, Cardinale not only captivated Italy’s greatest filmmakers, she played opposite most of the leading men of the time, from Burt Lancaster to Alain Delon and Henry Fonda. She died at Nemours near Paris, in the presence of her children, her agent said, adding that the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3326606/italian-screen-siren-claudia-cardinale-dies-aged-87?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3326606/italian-screen-siren-claudia-cardinale-dies-aged-87?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 23 Sep 2025 22:16:37 +0000 Zoey Zhang Zoey Zhang Deep in the mountains of southern China lives the White Trousers Yao, the nation’s last tribe legally permitted to own guns. Renowned for their embroidered knee-length white trousers, they greet guests with roasted rat, which is considered a prized delicacy. Historical records indicate that this ancient group numbers about 40,000 people, a branch of the Yao community predominantly found in Guangxi and Guizhou provinces. Men don white trousers that fall just below the knee, embellished with five... https://www.scmp.com/news/people-culture/article/3325844/china-white-trousers-yao-tribe-allows-men-carry-guns-hunting-views-rat-meat-delicacy?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/people-culture/article/3325844/china-white-trousers-yao-tribe-allows-men-carry-guns-hunting-views-rat-meat-delicacy?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 21 Sep 2025 10:00:12 +0000 Amalissa Hall Amalissa Hall Nutrition and education are inherently interlinked. In March 2025, Unesco released the Education and Nutrition: Learn to Eat Well report, which underscores the “importance of school meals in the health and learning of children” and advocates for more food education and nutritious foods. The report found that in 2022, 27 per cent of school meals worldwide were not designed in consultation with nutritionists, and only 93 countries out of the 187 evaluated had legislation, standards or guidelines... https://www.scmp.com/special-reports/article/3325835/learning-eat-well-hong-kong-schools-stress-eating-meals-nourish-and-educate?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/special-reports/article/3325835/learning-eat-well-hong-kong-schools-stress-eating-meals-nourish-and-educate?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 17 Sep 2025 22:15:11 +0000 He Huifeng He Huifeng Kent Cai, a Chinese entrepreneur based in the eastern province of Zhejiang, made a major life decision earlier this year by moving abroad to pursue a PhD. While this is not uncommon, his destination of choice might appear unusual – he did not, as many of his peers, relocate to the United States or Europe. He went to Malaysia. Upon arriving on campus in Kuala Lumpur to study the application of AI-driven tools in media production, Cai noticed he was not the only one to make such a move. He is, in... https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3323678/young-chinese-are-seeking-their-fortune-southeast-asia-will-they-find-it?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3323678/young-chinese-are-seeking-their-fortune-southeast-asia-will-they-find-it?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 01 Sep 2025 00:00:14 +0000 David Dodwell David Dodwell US President Donald Trump’s “flood the zone” strategy – intended to keep the world’s media so busy with his narratives they have no capacity to generate their own – is set to change this weekend. After three months focused largely on tariffs and coercive trade deals (with unwelcome distractions from Ukraine, Gaza and Jeffrey Epstein), his administration is due to deliver the fruits of a 180-day State Department review of all multilateral organisations, conventions and treaties, and “provide... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3320327/us-faces-costly-isolation-world-minus-one-cooperation-grows?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3320327/us-faces-costly-isolation-world-minus-one-cooperation-grows?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 01 Aug 2025 08:30:08 +0000 Zhou Xin Zhou Xin Without alluding to the country’s tech rivalry with the US, Chinese Premier Li Qiang has called on the world to “enhance coordination and alignment” as a way to make AI more inclusive, which would benefit more people and countries. In his keynote speech on Saturday at the opening of the three-day World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai, Li proposed the establishment of an international organisation to form a global governance framework for AI, unifying nations’ different regulatory... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3319854/china-champions-inclusive-ai-framework-win-hearts-and-minds-developing-world?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3319854/china-champions-inclusive-ai-framework-win-hearts-and-minds-developing-world?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 28 Jul 2025 23:00:08 +0000 SCMP SCMP This article was first published on July 16, 2005. By Freda Wan Her­it­age list­ing hailed as key to widen­ing Macau’s appeal Macau’s aim to pos­i­tion itself as something more than a gambling hub received a boost on Tuesday night (July 15, 2005) when many of its land­marks were added to Unesco’s World Herit­age list. The 29 sites, which played a key role in the earli­est encoun­ters between east and west, now rank along­side such famed sites as China’s Great Wall and the Angkor temples in... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3318120/macaus-historic-centre-added-unesco-world-heritage-list-2005-scmp-archive?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3318120/macaus-historic-centre-added-unesco-world-heritage-list-2005-scmp-archive?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 15 Jul 2025 07:00:09 +0000 Sammy Heung Sammy Heung Hong Kong experienced the hottest Xiaoshu on record on Tuesday, with the mercury at the Observatory hitting 34.3 degrees Celsius (93.7 Fahrenheit). But the hottest weather was still yet to come, the forecaster warned. The Post explains what Xiaoshu is and shares traditional Chinese remedies for coping with the heat. 1. What is Xiaoshu? Xiaoshu, the 11th of the 24 solar terms in the Chinese lunisolar calendar, means minor or moderate heat and signifies the onset of summer, but not in full force.... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3317384/hong-kongs-hottest-xiaoshu-what-does-it-mean-and-how-can-you-cope?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3317384/hong-kongs-hottest-xiaoshu-what-does-it-mean-and-how-can-you-cope?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 08 Jul 2025 08:44:22 +0000