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The World Heritage Committee, meeting for its 32nd session, finished inscribing new sites on the UNESCO World Heritage List on with the addition of 19 cultural sites and eight natural sites to the list. The new sites were accepted onto the list this week, following recommendations by the World Conservation Union (IUCN).

Breathtaking Photos: UNESCO World Heritage List Additions

Chosen by a committee of the UN's Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), World Heritage sites denote natural and cultural areas recognized for their universal value to humanity. They include the Socotra Archipelago in Yemen, Canada's Joggins Fossil Cliffs, the French Lagoons of New Caledonia.


Also making the list are Saryarka in Northern Kazakhstan, Mount Sanqingshan National Park in China, the Swiss Tectonic Arena Sardona, and the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve in Mexico and Surtsey in Iceland. The island of Surtsey, found 20 miles (32 kilometers) off the southern coast of Iceland, was formed by volcanic eruptions during the 1960s.

National Geographic has all of the photos here. Also included are the new cultural sites inscribed during the 32nd session: They include the Preah Vihear Temple in Cambodia and the Fujian Tulou in China along with thirty others.