World Heritage Webinars – Introducing European World Heritage Sites # 5

The last in a series of five webinars, that will showcase a handful of World Heritage Sites from across Europe.

WHS – the Historic Centre of Florence

The Historic Centre of Florence, enclosed within the system of avenues along the ancient medieval walls, was inscribed into the World Heritage List in 1982 during the 6^th session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, under the criteria I, II, III, IV and VI. In February 2005, the desire to preserve and appreciate the city’s great heritage led to the establishment of the specific “Florence World Heritage and Relations with UNESCO” Office of the Municipality of Florence. The Office was created in order to respond to the primary needs of creating a document, the Management Plan, to protect and enhance the UNESCO World Heritage Site “Historic Centre of Florence” and to fulfill the provisions of the UNESCO Convention 1972 concerning the protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage.

Speakers – Dr Valentina Ippolito and Dr Carlo Francini

Carlo Francini, an art historian, is the site manager of the UNESCO World Heritage site “Historic Centre of Florence”, since 2005. As of 2025, he also holds the position of Director of the Florentine Civic Museums. In his long-standing career in heritage management, Carlo has served crucial roles, acting as a key mediator between private local actors and international bodies such as UNESCO. Since 2009 he has the role of scientific coordinator of the Italian World Heritage Association, as well as coordinating HeRe-Lab, the joint research laboratory in heritage-related topics between the Municipality of Florence and the University of Florence.

Valentina Ippolito has been head of the “Florence World Heritage and Relations with UNESCO Office” of the Municipality of Florence since 2025. From 2015 she has also been an integral part of the team responsible for the updates of the Management Plan of the Historic Centre of Florence and its Monitoring. She is collaborating with HeRe-Lab, the joint laboratory in heritage-related topics. In 2021, HeRe-Lab was recognized on the PANORAMA – Solutions for a Healthy Planet platform (jointly coordinated by ICCROM, ICOMOS, and IUCN) as a prime example of effective World Heritage site governance. Her collaboration with HeRe-Lab specifically involves various European and research projects.

World Heritage UK is a member of the European Network of World Heritage Associations, (ENWHA) which is a union of associations and initiatives that regularly exchange information and experience about the World Heritage. The aim is to raise general awareness of European World Heritage, to advocate its protection and conservation, and to discuss common issues and topics using an open and transparent approach.

WHUK hopes this series will be the first of many drawing on WHSs from across the ENWHA membership and will allow attendees the opportunity to discover World Heritage outside of the UK.

• Tuesday 23rd September – An introduction to the series and the ENWHA, with WHUK President Chris Blandford OBE (YouTube recording)
• Tuesday 7th October – Val de Loire Cultural Landscape, France, with Bruno Marmiroli (YouTube recording)
• Tuesday 21st October –  Hanseatic Old Towns of Wismar and Stralsund on the Baltic Sea in Germany, with Miles Spohr (YouTube recording)
• Tuesday 11th November – Western Norwegian Fjords, with Katrin Blomvik (YouTube recording)

Details:

• Talks will be given in English
• Webinar timings – 6-7pm UK time, 7-8 CET
• Online platform – All webinars will run on Zoom
• All webinars will be recorded and uploaded to WHUK’s private YouTube account; all ticket holders will be provided the link later in the week after the webinar
• Single tickets are £5; a series ticket for all five is £20

Images: Florence Ponte Vecchio; Firenze Highpass – both N. Bandini