Many activities such as tourism, infrastructure development, new buildings, urban regeneration and changes in land use may have negative impacts on the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of the World Heritage properties. 

 The World Heritage Committee requests States Parties to present the possible impacts of the project proposals through Heritage Impact Assessments (HIAs).

Under the auspices of the Republic of Turkey Ministry of Culture and Tourism, coordinated by the Site Management Directorate of the Historic Areas of Istanbul and supported by the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality Department of Cultural Properties, international experts will meet in Istanbul at the Haliç Congress Center between 17-18 April to discuss the Cultural Heritage Impact Assessment process and the Guidance on Cultural Heritage Impact Assessments for Cultural World Heritage Properties published by ICOMOS. Various critical issues on cultural heritage impact assessment will be discussed with the objective to contribute to further improvement of the Guidance on Cultural Heritage Impact Assessments for Cultural World Heritage Properties in the light of the outcomes of the workshop.