Underwater Cultural Heritage and Sustainable Development The UNESCO 2001 Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage (UCH)

Tourism and Culture Tourism and culture are intimately connected; the latter provides an incentive for the former 9.5% of global GDP comes from tourism In developing States, tourism can account for up to 25% of GDP Studies show that 37% of global tourism is related to culture and heritage One study has shown that for every $1 that a visitor spends at a heritage site, they may spend up to $12 at surrounding businesses, such as hotels, restaurants, etc.

Culture is Development Sustainable tourism development must include the protection and promotion of cultural heritage Underwater cultural heritage represents a unique form of cultural heritage that distinguishes those areas that promote it from other destinations © Larue, photographing a shipwreck.

Underwater Cultural Heritage Tourism Underwater cultural heritage is especially important for coastal and island States, many of which have established maritime and coastal tourism industries For example, the Vasa Museum in Stockholm brings an estimated $300 Million each year to the city Museums featuring underwater cultural heritage present a unique and original experience for tourists © A. Ohlson\UNESCO Vasa Museum, Stockholm

Diving Tourism Dive trails, guided tours and protected marine areas can attract significant numbers of tourists For example, from , the Yongala Wreck in Australia attracted nearly 8,000 divers per year There are an estimated 6 Million active divers in the world The number of active divers in increasing; The number of divers has increased by an average of 8.5% annually since 1970; the number of divers in California grew by nearly 13.5% annually between 2005 and 2013 Dive tourists spend more time and money at their destinations than others © Xploredive\UNESCO Plan of SS Yongala, Australia

Untapped Potential Despite the potential of underwater cultural heritage for sustainable tourism development, many coastal and island States have not attempted to utilize their available heritage A recent UNESCO study in the Maldives shows that the major focus remains beach tourism States that rely heavily on tourism must diversify their offerings to continue to grow Underwater heritage presents a unique opportunity to diversify An area not known for its culture can be shown to have a rich cultural legacy underwater The pairing of land and underwater sites in cultural routes, museums or tours can promote development and increase tourism

The Challenges Underwater archaeologists are needed to discover and research sites Many sites are not under any legal or operational protection, they are open to pillaging by treasure-hunters, who often know the sites better than local law-enforcement Little effort has so far been made to make sites accessible Many sites are not accessible to tourists, due to depth, preservation, or dangers

The Dangers of Treasure Hunting The temptation of recovering precious metals and other treasures from wrecks can be great But, such exploitation is not sustainable States that allow treasure hunting have lost billions in recent decades (loss of heritage, legal fights, administrative hassles) Development focused on preservation and tourism is sustainable – Treasure hunting is not “Florida’s policy towards its underwater antiquities has cost the State millions… If Florida had … invested USD 10 million in two great maritime museums back in the 1960s, instead of giving leases to salvors, the State would be nearly half a billion dollars richer each year…” 1 (Peter Throckmorton)

UNESCO Contact: Ulrike Guérin, UNESCO Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage (2001) 7, place de Fontenoy, Paris 07 SP France Tel: Web: