The Gibraltar Museum is pleased to announce the next lecture in its series. This will be the first time that the Christmas Lecture will be delivered, an innovation that is hoped will become a tradition in years to come.

The Christmas Lecture will be delivered on Thursday 1st December, 2016, at the John Mackintosh Hall at 7pm by Dr Christopher Young who is an independent heritage consultant, providing advice on the management of the historic environment, particularly related to the UNESCO World Heritage Convention.

Before becoming a consultant he was the Head of International Advice at English Heritage for 15 years from 1999. Dr Young has advised on many World Heritage property nominations and management plans as well as on management issues at various properties both in the United Kingdom and abroad, including the Gorham’s Cave Complex. He has also worked with the UNESCO World Heritage Centre on policy issues and reports, and with ICCROM and ICOMOS on matters related to World Heritage

Dr Young’s lecture is entitled “World Heritage Sites: Our Global Inheritance”. Dr Young’s lecture will provide an overview of the history and concept of World Heritage, illustrating the wealth and diversity of inscribed sites around the globe, and setting the newly-inscribed Gorham’s Cave Complex into its wider context. He will explore the issues and conflicts surrounding the management of World Heritage Sites and the need for effective management and community engagement. He will explore what the World Heritage Convention is trying to achieve both as a conservation tool and in terms of UNESCO’s wider aims, again linking in Gibraltar’s new World Heritage Site.

The lecture is free and open to the public