This thesis investigates States Parties' implementation of the 1972 UNESCO
Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage. Its
objectives are two-fold. The first of these is the quantitative and qualitative analysis of
the evolution of the values for which cultural heritage sites have been nominated for
World Heritage status in relation to the decisions of the World Heritage Committee
across different categories of cultural heritage. The second objective is the examination
of States Parties' representations of the past and the nation, of human and cultural
diversity, of economic value, and of authenticity and conservation by means of an
evaluation of sampled nomination dossiers of cultural heritage sites for inclusion on
the World Heritage List.
The thesis methodology is based on intensive archival work of UNESCO documents as
well as value-led analyses of one hundred and six purposefully sampled nomination
dossiers. ATLAS. ti, a Computer Assisted Qualitative Data Analysis Software program,
was used for the quantitative and qualitative analyses and interpretation of the sampled
data set. The end result has been to identify how States Parties have understood the
notion of outstanding universal value which is the key and central concept of the
World Heritage Convention. It has also been to highlight the problems in States
Parties' implementation of the World Heritage Convention and in the requested format
of nomination dossiers. This has led to practical changes to official discourses on
World Heritage and suggestions for procedural improvements. These changes and
suggestions should help States Parties to identify better the values for which sites are
being nominated for World Heritage status and improve their long-term conservation
and management