The Watch is a biennial nomination-based advocacy program featuring 25 historic places facing major challenges such as climate change, tourism, conflict, and natural disaster.
World Monuments Fund (WMF) today announces the 25 sites on the 2025 World Monuments Watch. This year’s Watch includes a wide variety of cultural heritage sites facing major challenges, such as Gaza's Historic Urban Fabric; Ukraine's Teacher's House in Kyiv; Africa's Swahili Coast; the Old City of Antakya, Türkiye; and Chapel of the Sorbonne, France. The 25 sites represent 29 countries across five continents and the Moon.
With more than 700 projects in 112 countries worldwide, WMF is the global leader in heritage preservation. In 1996, WMF launched the World Monuments Watch, a biennial, nomination-based program, to mobilize action, build public awareness, and demonstrate how heritage can help communities confront the crucial issues of our time. To date, WMF has contributed more than $120 million toward projects at nearly 350 Watch sites, with the visibility provided by the Watch helping communities leverage an additional $300 million from other sources.
“The Watch underscores World Monuments Fund’s commitment to ensuring that heritage preservation not only honors the past but actively contributes to building a more sustainable, inclusive, and resilient future for communities around the world and beyond,” said President and CEO, Bénédicte de Montlaur.
The 2025 open call resulted in over 200 nominations that underwent extensive internal and external review before final selection by an independent panel of international heritage experts. Data analysis of these nominations revealed specific regional trends: In Sub-Saharan Africa, climate change emerged as a critical issue for sites and communities, while in Asia and the Pacific, rapid urbanization emerged as a pressing challenge. Nominations from Europe and North America cited insufficient funding and resources, while those from Latin America and the Caribbean reported tourism as a primary concern. For the Middle East and North Africa region, conflict and natural disaster was cited as a critical focus.
Many of the sites on the 2025 Watch illustrate how preservation can provide solutions for sites and communities facing these challenges, that offer lessons for similar sites worldwide. Please see the end of the release for the full list.
“For the first time, the Moon is included on the Watch to reflect the urgent need to recognize and preserve the artifacts that testify to humanity’s first steps beyond Earth—a defining moment in our shared history,” stated de Montlaur. “Items such as the camera that captured the televised moon landing; a memorial disk left by astronauts Armstrong and Aldrin; and hundreds of other objects are emblematic of this legacy. Yet, they face mounting risks amidst accelerating lunar activities, undertaken without adequate preservation protocols. The inclusion of the Moon underscores the universal need for proactive and cooperative strategies to protect heritage—whether on Earth or beyond—that reflect and safeguard our collective narrative.”
Main Image: Astronaut's footprint at Tranquility Base. Photo courtesy of NASA.
Anna Melnykova, "Palace of Labor (palats praci), architector I. Pretro, 1916", shot with analog Canon camera, 35 mm Fuji film in March 2022.
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