Managing Multi-Internationally Designated Areas (MIDAs) effectively

Strengthening the management system of heritage places with multiple international designations  

Organizers 

Global Research and Training Centre for Internationally Designated Area (GCIDA), ICCROM and IUCN through the World Heritage Leadership Programme (WHL) 

Why  

The course “Managing Multi-Internationally Designated Areas (MIDAs) effectively: Strengthening the management system of heritage places with multiple international designations” focuses on enhancing understanding of how to manage Multi-Internationally Designated Areas (MIDAs) with particular attention to World Heritage properties that are also internationally designated as Biosphere Reserves, UNESCO Global Geoparks, and Ramsar Sites and understanding the needs of MIDAs and including the differences between diverse international designations (objectives and purpose).  

During the course, participants will reflect on how integrating various international designations in the management of World Heritage properties can support site managers and professionals. This integration enables the analysis of management challenges in the current context and prepares them for future changes and developments. This also contributes to creating a more robust management system for the heritage place.  

The course will also provide site managers with tools and knowledge to conduct management effectiveness assessment using the methodology of the Enhancing Our Heritage Toolkit 2.0 to analyse the management system and identify what can be improved and strengthened, as well as diverse tools and resources to build capacities in the conservation and management of heritage places that are MIDAs.  

How  

The foundational concept of the course is the heritage place approach to heritage management, which focuses on understanding how to conserve and enhance the multiple values of heritage places in their wider social, environmental, and economic contexts. This includes applying place-based and people-centred approaches when working with diverse actors and within different frameworks of other international designations. The course will also look at the specificities of different international designations to identify areas where these can support each other, as well as potential conflicts that need to be resolved through the management of the heritage place.  

In this course, MIDAs are approached as places where different international designations – each with their own distinct objectives and management requirements – operate in parallel. The course explores how to move beyond fragmented or potentially competing priorities and instead promote more coordinated and integrated approaches to managing these places.  

Recognizing the need to adapt to changing times and realities, the course provides a general overview of what constitutes a heritage management system. By understanding how such a system functions, it becomes possible to evaluate its operation and performance, including how the different purposes and requirements of different international designations can be integrated, and discuss challenges and opportunities of working with areas with multiple international designations.  

This course is based on resources produced through the WHL, including the new World Heritage Management Manual (2026) and the Enhancing our Heritage Toolkit 2.0 (EOH 2.0). Furthermore, it draws on resources developed to support MIDAs, such as the IUCN publication Managing MIDAs: Harmonising the management of Multi-Internationally Designated Areas: Ramsar Sites, World Heritage sites, Biosphere Reserves and UNESCO Global Geoparks (2016), the upcoming IUCN publication Managing MIDAs 2.0, and other relevant resources.   

The case study of Jeju – inscribed as a World Heritage property as well as under all Ramsar and UNESCO designations – will be used as a shared case study to explore how multiple designations are managed, examining how different values are understood, the requirements of different designations, and the governance arrangements put in place to ensure its long-term effective protection. 

Additionally, the experiences and approaches implemented by participants and resource persons at their own World Heritage properties and heritage places will provide the base for better understanding heritage management in the international context and fostering peer learning and knowledge sharing throughout the course.  

Who should apply?  

The course will bring together approximately 20 participants from the Republic of Korea, Asia and the Pacific, and Africa.  

Participants should represent site management offices, institutions, protected area agencies and organizations, as well as heritage conservation professionals and members of communities engaged in the management of World Heritage properties that are also designated under other international designations such as Biosphere Reserves, UNESCO Global Geoparks, and/or Ramsar Sites.  

Please note that only places that are designated under two or more international designations will be considered for this course.  

Course fees and scholarships 

Selected participants will not be required to pay a course fee.  

Limited travel scholarships will be available for selected participants from Africa, Asia, and the Pacific. These scholarships will cover round-trip travel and visa costs.