In his presentation, Herman van Hooff, director of the host organization, provided an overview of the World Heritage Convention, highlighting that the major aim of this standard-setting instrument, which dates back to 1972, is to cover, in one single document, the concepts of cultural preservation and natural conservation.

UNESCO: MEDIA SERVICES

The 1972 World Heritage Convention links together in a single document the concepts of nature conservation and the preservation of cultural properties.

UNESCO: UK National Commission for UNESCO - UNESCO Conventions, Recommendations & Declarations in the UK

The most significant feature of the 1972 World Heritage Convention is that it binds in a single document the concepts of nature conservation and the preservation of cultural properties and sets out the duties of member-states and the international community for the preservation of monuments of world heritage.

UNESCO: Convention on World Cultural and Natural Heritage

The Library of Congress recently issued a 78-page document called "The Library of Congress National Recording Preservation Plan" whose purpose is to ensure that our descendants will be able to listen to the sounds of the past long after we're dead and gone.

WSJ: Copyright Protection That Serves to Destroy | Sightings by Terry Teachout