UNESCO World Heritage List Welcomes New Destinations

"During its 37th session in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, the UNESCO World Heritage Committee inscribed 19 sites to its World Heritage List, which includes notable destinations such as Yellowstone National Park and the Galapagos Islands of Ecuador," reports the Los Angeles Times' travel blog. Additions to the list include the historic core of Agadez, in Niger, which dates to the 15th century and "is characterized by mudbrick architecture, including the Grand Mosque", and 64 square miles of rice terraces in the province of Yunnan in southern China, which have been "developed over 1,300 years by the Hani people."

As the article notes, "[b]esides prestige and tourism, inscription offers opportunities for preservation aid."