Since so many of us live in this region, I am sure there will be some excellent proposals with first-hand insight. I really had to check my own proposals between "deserving of inscription" vs Top Missing". It was really hard to cut out some places that I want to become world heritage sites!

Three UNESCO regions are complete! Here is the Missing 2020 list so far. As always, I look forward to your proposals!

Full Name of Site: Ancestral Lands of the Diné: Canyon de Chelly & Monument Valley
Country: United States of America (AZ, UT)
TWHS? No
Short description of site: Serial nomination of 2 outstanding sites 1) Canyon de Chelly: Reflecting one of the longest continuously inhabited landscapes of North America, it preserves ruins of the indigenous tribes that lived in the area, from the Ancestral Puebloans (formerly known as Anasazi) to the Navajo. None of the land is federally owned. Canyon de Chelly is entirely owned by the Navajo Tribal Trust of the Navajo Nation. It is the only National Park Service unit that is owned and cooperatively managed in this manner. About 40 Navajo families live in the park. The park's distinctive geologic feature, Spider Rock, is a sandstone spire that rises 750 feet (229 m) from the canyon floor at the junction of Canyon de Chelly and Monument Canyon. According to traditional Navajo beliefs, the taller of the two spires is the home of Spider Grandmother. 2) Called "Tsé Bii' Ndzisgaii" ("Valley of the Rocks") by the Navajo, Monument Valley is a region of the Colorado Plateau characterized by a cluster of vast sandstone buttes, the largest reaching 1,000 ft (300 m) above the valley floor. The valley's vivid red color comes from iron oxide exposed in the weathered siltstone. The valley includes large stone structures including the famed "Eye of the Sun".
Resources: Flickr Album, Canyon de Chelly National Monument (Wikipedia), Monument Valley (Wikipedia)
Criteria: Mixed
Outstanding universal value / comparative analysis: Chaco Culture, Mesa Verde National Park, Grand Canyon National Park

Full Name of Site: Coso Rock Art District
Country: United States of America (CA)
TWHS? No
Short description of site: Coso Rock Art District is a rock art site containing over 100,000 Petroglyphs by Paleo-Indians and/or Native Americans. This is the largest known concentration of petroglyphs in the western hemisphere. Big and Little Petroglyph Canyons were declared a National Historic Landmark in 1964. In 2001, they were incorporated into this larger National Historic Landmark District. The majority of the Coso Range images fall into one of six categories: bighorn sheep, entopic images, anthropomorphic or human-like figures (including animal-human figures known as pattern-bodied anthopomorphs), other animals, weapons & tools, and "medicine bag" images.
Resources: Flickr Album, Coso Rock Art District (Wikipedia)
Criteria: Cultural
Outstanding universal value / comparative analysis: Petroglyphic Complexes of the Mongolian Altai (Mongolia), Petroglyphs within the Archaeological Landscape of Tamgaly (Kazakhstan)

Full Name of Site: Rock Art of the Chumash People
Country: United States of America (CA)
TWHS? No
Short description of site: Serial nomination of 3 outstanding sites. 1) Painted Rock is a free-standing rock on the Carrizo Plain near the Sierra Madre Mountains at the southern tip of the Great Central Valley. 2) Pleito Cave (Wind Wolves): Within the Main Cave of the site, there are 12 multi-colored, or polychrome, panels comprising many hundreds of individual elements with likely the greatest intensity of superimposed painting of any pictograph site on the North American continent. It is for this reason that the famous rock-art researcher Campbell Grant (1978: 532) described the site as the "finest example of prehistoric rock art in the United States." Chumash rock art depicts images like humans, animals, celestial bodies, and other (at times ambiguous) shapes and patterns. The colors of the paintings vary as well, from red or black monochromes (different shades of a single color) to elaborate polychromes (many various colors). 3) Chumash Painted Cave State Historic Park: The walls of this small cave carved from towering sandstone boulders contain some of the finest remaining rock art created by Chumash Native Americans. 
Resources: Flickr Album, Rock Art of the Chumash People (Wikipedia), Chumash Painted Cave 3D Modeling
Criteria: Cultural
Outstanding universal value / comparative analysis: Rock Paintings of the Sierra de San Francisco (Mexico), Zuojiang Huashan Rock Art Cultural Landscape (China)

Full Name of Site: Bodie Historic District (CA)
Country: United States of America
TWHS? No
Short description of site: Bodie Historic District, the best-preserved ghost town from the California Gold Rush, is located 7 miles south of Bridgeport, California at an elevation of 8,379 feet in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Now in a state of arrested decay, Bodie is an excellent example of an American West boomtown and the accompanying lifestyle that developed in the western mining towns. As part of the California Gold Rush, many Chinese came to live and work in Bodie during its early years. More than 100 historic buildings remain in the district to convey what life in Bodie was like between its founding in 1859 and its end in 1942, when mining was suspended and the last Bodie residents left the town.
Resources: Flickr Album, Bodie, California (Wikipedia)
Criteria: Cultural
Outstanding universal value / comparative analysis: Sewell Mining Town (Chile)

Full Name of Site: Case Study Houses in Los Angeles
Country: United States of America (CA)
TWHS? No
Short description of site: Case Study House #8, better known as the Eames House and Studio (completed in 1949), is one of the most famous Mid-Century Modern buildings in Los Angeles. It was designed by its owners, legendary designers Charles and Ray Eames, for Arts & Architecture magazine's Case Study House program. Case Study House #22, better known as Stahl House dramatically soars over the Los Angeles basin. Built in 1960 as part of the Case Study House program, it is one of the best-known houses of mid-century Los Angeles. With its glass-and-steel construction, the Stahl House remains one of the most famous examples of the program's principles and aesthetics.
Resources: Flickr Album, Case Study Houses (Wikipedia), Los Angeles Conservancy (Eames House), Los Angeles Conservancy (Stahl House)
Criteria: Cultural
Outstanding universal value / comparative analysis: The 20th-Century Architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright (USA), Berlin Modernism Housing Estates (Germany), Bauhaus and its Sites in Weimar, Dessau and Bernau (Germany), The Architectural Work of Le Corbusier, an Outstanding Contribution to the Modern Movement

Full Name of Site: California Current Conservation Complex
Country: United States of America (CA)
TWHS? Yes
Short description of site: This upwelling system supports a highly productive and diverse ecosystem, including a broad mosaic of marine and coastal habitats such as offshore canyons, banks, seamounts and islands; rocky shorelines; and kelp forests. These ecosystems make up less than one percent of the world ocean, but support extraordinarily high productivity and biodiversity. Seasonal upwelling initiates an annual productivity cycle that supports a rich resident biological community as well as migratory populations of sea turtles, fishes, sea birds, and marine mammals that travel thousands of miles to feed or breed in these fertile waters. The area includes some of the most stunning shorelines in the world, almost entirely accessible by the iconic U.S. Highway 1. 
Resources: Flickr Album, Big Sur (Wikipedia)
Criteria: Natural
Outstanding universal value / comparative analysis: Benguela Current Marine Ecosystem Sites (Namibia)

Full Name of Site: Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Park
Country: United States of America (CA)
TWHS? No
Short description of site: The park is south of, and contiguous with, Kings Canyon National Park; both parks are administered by the National Park Service together as the Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks. UNESCO designated the areas as Sequoia-Kings Canyon Biosphere Reserve in 1976. The park is notable for its giant sequoia trees, including the General Sherman tree, the largest tree on Earth. The General Sherman tree grows in the Giant Forest, which contains five of the ten largest trees in the world. The Giant Forest is connected by the Generals Highway to Kings Canyon National Park's General Grant Grove, home of the General Grant tree among other giant sequoias. The park's giant sequoia forests are part of 202,430 acres of old-growth forests shared by Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks. The parks preserve a landscape that still resembles the southern Sierra Nevada before Euro-American settlement. The combined Pacific Crest Trail/John Muir Trail, a backpacking route, traverses the entire length of the park from north to south. Towering 14,494 feet, Mount Whitney lies on the eastern border of Sequoia National Park and is the tallest mountain in the lower 48 states.
Resources: Flickr Album, Sequoia National Park (Wikipedia), Kings Canyon National Park (Wikipedia)
Criteria: Natural
Outstanding universal value / comparative analysis: Yosemite National Park, Redwoods National and State Parks, Waterton Glacier International Peace Park (Canada)

Full Name of Site: Southwest Alentejo and Costa Vicentina
Country: Portugal
TWHS? Yes
Short description of site: The Southwest Coast, one of the few remaining well preserved coastlines in southern Europe, is located in Portugal. With an extraordinarily diverse geological and biological natural heritage, it hosts a high diversity of habitats and unique species worldwide, making it of great importance in terms of conservation. It corresponds to the entire area of the Southwest Alentejo and Vicentine Coast Natural Park.
Resources: Flickr Album, Southwest Alentejo and Vicentine Coast Natural Park (Wikipedia)
Criteria: Natural
Outstanding universal value / comparative analysis: Cape Floral Region Protected Areas (South Africa), Redwood National and State Parks (USA)

Full Name of Site: Historic Centre of York
Country: United Kingdom
TWHS? No
Short description of site: The Emperors Hadrian, Septimius Severus and Constantius I all held court in York during their various campaigns. During his stay 207–211 AD, the Emperor Severus proclaimed York capital of the province of Britannia Inferior. Northumbria was in the midst of internecine struggles when the Vikings raided and captured York. Under Viking rule the city became a major river port, part of the extensive Viking trading routes throughout northern Europe. In the 12th century York started to prosper. The city, through its location on the River Ouse and its proximity to the Great North Road, became a major trading centre. York Minster, located in the very heart of the city, this is the largest medieval Gothic cathedral in Northern Europe.
Resources: Flickr Album, York (Wikipedia)
Criteria: Cultural
Outstanding universal value / comparative analysis: Old and New Towns of Edinburgh, City of Bath

To summarize:

1. Monument Valley/Canyon de Chelly - Icon of the American West (Navajo Nation)
2. Coso Rock Art District - largest known concentration of petroglyphs in the western hemisphere
3. Rock Art of the Chumash People - the greatest intensity of superimposed painting of any pictograph site on the North American continent
4. Bodie Historic District - excellent example of an American West boomtown during the California Gold Rush
5. Case Study Houses in Los Angeles - Mid-Century Modern masterpieces
6. California Current Conservation Complex - Big Sur, HWY 1, majority of California coast
7. Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Park - the largest tree on Earth and the Giant Forest, which contains five of the ten largest trees in the world
8. Southwest Alentejo and Costa Vicentina - one of the few remaining well preserved coastlines in southern Europe
9. Historic Centre of York - largest medieval Gothic cathedral in Northern Europe, capital of Viking Northumbria

Already getting started! I'll gladly second the California Current Conservation Complex because of the diversity of marine life found both above and below water, as well as the extremely photogenic coastal region. It is amazing! Also, although the Golden Gate Bridge itself is not part of the proposed site, the surrounding Golden Gate National Recreation Area encompasses the bridge. This is one of the most photographed areas in the United States.

I'll also second Ancestral Lands of the Diné: Canyon de Chelly & Monument Valley — the landscape is stunning, but it would also be awesome to recognize this land of the Navajo. I'm all in favor of highlighting the diverse heritage of Native Americans/First Nations in North America. I still wonder whether the US would ever consider seeking to make some its natural World Heritage Sites, such as Grand Canyon, Olympic, and Volcanoes, mixed sites, to recognize the cultural heritage of those who lived in the area before settlers arrived.

I'm intrigued by Sequoia and Kings Canyon, but I also wonder whether it would make a better extension to Yosemite National Park.

The Case Study Houses, the Stahl House in particular, are very recognizable and innovative. I'll second this one, too, since the US has some great architecture.

I haven't been to the Bodie Historic District, but if you think it is the best preserved site representing the California Gold Rush, I'll second this one. The gold rush helped change the shape of the west coast, as it drew many immigrants from the US and abroad. California now has one of the largest economies in the world.

Finally, why York was not inscribed earlier on the list is a great shame, but I fully understand its worth from a historical perspective. I'll second this one.

I'm bringing this nomination over from the Asia-Pacific topic since it was approved there but recommended to be placed in the Europe-North America topic. I'm repeating it just to ensure visibility.

Full Name of Site: Heritage of the Hawaiian Kingdom
Country: United States
TWHS? No
Short description of site: The Kingdom of Hawaii existed in its unified form for almost 100 years, from the late 18th century until the late 19th century. The kingdom was recognized by European powers, putting it on equal footing with other free societies in the world. Additionally, for a time the kingdom was among the most educated societies in the world, with over a 90% literacy rate. This nomination would recognize sites associated with Hawaiian heritage in the 19th century. Recommended properties include the royal residences of ʻIolani Palace in Honolulu, Hānaiakamalama (Queen Emma Summer Palace) in Nuʻuanu, Mokuʻula -- the archeological site of King Kamehameha III's Royal Residential Complex in Lahiana, and Huliheʻe Palace in Kailua-Kona; the former seat of government at Aliʻiōlani Hale; Kawaiahaʻo Church, known as the Hawaiian Westminster Abbey; Mauna ʻAla, the Royal Mausoleum of Hawaii; and the Hawaiian Mission Houses Historic Site and Archives, which explores the first production of newspapers and printed materials in the Hawaiian language in the 19th century.

Criteria: Cultural
Outstanding universal value / comparative analysis: Chief Roi Mata's Domain, Royal Palaces of Abomey

Here's my first new suggestion for a nomination. The terrain is similar to that of sites inscribed in Canada, but with a broader diversity of grasslands. The park also includes one of the greatest concentrations of fossils from the Eocene/Ogliocene Era.

Full Name of Site: Badlands National Park: A North American Prairie
Country: United States
TWHS? No
Short description of site: Badlands National Park is home to the largest intact mixed-grass prairie in the United States, a transitional zone between tall-grass and short-grass prairie in North America's Great Plains. The park is home to the black-footed ferret, one of the most endangered animals in the world, as well as bison, prairie dogs, and pronghorn antelope. The park also contains the largest assemblage of known late Eocene and Oligocene mammal fossils, including rhinoceroses, camels, and three-toed horses.

Criteria: Natural
Outstanding universal value / comparative analysis: Dinosaur Provincial Park, Writing-on-Stone Provincial Park, Australian Fossil Mammal Sites (Riversleigh/Naracoorte)

This next site comes straight from the US Tentative WHS list. If you like skyscrapers, you have this TWHS to thank:

Full Name of Site: Early Chicago Skyscrapers
Country: United States
TWHS? Yes
Short description of site: This group of buildings in Chicago's central business district, the "Loop", includes very early, technically innovative, and architecturally expressive examples of a new type of construction, the modern tall buildings, or "skyscraper." Making use of new technologies of the time, particularly internal metal structural systems instead of load-bearing masonry walls, they were able to rise to heights of near 20 stories with large plate-glass windows, the first elevators (lifts) to reach the high floors, and electric lights to make interior spaces usable. The form and style that emerged in these buildings, later known as the Chicago School of Architecture, exhibit an exceptional synthesis of technical and design inventiveness, a decisive innovation in modern architecture that has forever changed the form of commercial buildings and the cities they make up.

Criteria: Cultural
Outstanding universal value / comparative analysis: Ironbridge Gorge, The Speicherstadt and Kontorhaus District with Chilehaus

Finally, from Europe, France has proposed the Phare de Cordouan TWHS to be brought to the World Heritage Committee this year, if they hold the meeting. I'm not particularly impressed with this nomination. For me, if you want to submit an innovative lighthouse, I'd go with this one:

Full Name of Site: Bell Rock Lighthouse
Country: United Kingdom
TWHS? No
Short description of site: Bell Rock Lighthouse is the world's oldest surviving sea-washed lighthouse. The lighthouse was constructed by master engineer Robert Stevenson between 1807 and 1810 on the Bell Rock Reef, eleven miles off the coast of Scotland in the North Sea, northeast of Edinburgh. The structure has stood intact for over 200 years. The remarkable engineering required to build this lighthouse in the middle of the sea has led to it being considered one of the Seven Wonders of the Industrial World.

Criteria: Cultural
Outstanding universal value / comparative analysis: Tower of Hercules, Phare de Cordouan (TWHS)

I second this, this was part of the Top 2014 Missing List and it deserves to be carried over. Check our my review to learn more about this nomination.


Undoubtably unique and perhaps deserving of world heritage status, but I think it might be a stretch for "Top Missing"?

I will hold my judgement on the Badlands, it might be better to hear some other voices. I am reluctant to start "seconding" too many sites from my home country.

Can we try to limit the number of patriotic proposals (e.g. sites from the country you live in)? Especially ones from Europe, which is overrepresented by far anyway? (not picking on the 2 US citizens above btw)

I was looking for an Arctic site in Canada. First thought about (Northern) Baffin Island, for its Narwhal & Polar Bear sightings.
But found a probably even better one at Canada's T List

Full Name of Site: Quttinirpaaq National Park
Country: Canada
TWHS? Yes
Short description of site: The park consists of sedimentary mountains, ice caps, glaciers, ice shelves and fiords. Much of the park, including the Hazen Plateau, is a polar desert receiving less than 2.5 cm of annual precipitation. Some areas of highly productive sedge grasslands occur, which support a range of Arctic wildlife including muskox, arctic hare, wolves and the endangered Peary caribou. Lake Hazen is one of the largest freshwater lakes in the circumpolar region, and has attracted great scientific interest as a thermal oasis in a polar desert. The major valleys of the park are central to one of the routes by which early Aboriginal peoples moved from the Canadian Arctic to Greenland.
Criteria: Mixed
Outstanding universal value / comparative analysis: I don't think a polar desert is represented yet, but comparable to Antarctica and Greenland

Excellent proposals. Let me second the following ones:

The largest rock art site in the Americas.

For its intricate rock art, probably the best in the Americas.

The sequoia probably deserves its own WHS.

Mediterranean shrubland constitutes a IUCN gap.

So far we have no representation of Pacific cultures from this period. It was also the most advanced Pacific society which kept its unique cultural features.

Probably the most important palaeontoligical site in North America.

Another IUCN gap which needs filling.

Bringing over FredericM's proposal and seconding it:

Full Name of Site: Chagos Marine Protected Area
Country: UK, but claimed by Maldives and Mauritius (and in the middle of Indian Ocean, so I'm unsure if it fits in this continent)
TWHS? No
Short description of site:
The Chagos Marine Protected Area is one of the world's largest marine protected areas, and one of the largest protected areas of any type (land or sea) on Earth. The Chagos marine reserve protects the world's largest coral atoll (the Great Chagos Bank) and has one of the healthiest reef systems in the cleanest waters of the world, supporting nearly half the area of good quality reefs in the Indian Ocean. One of the most unusual aspects of the Chagos marine environment is its extremely healthy and diverse coral cover. The area hosts 220 species of coral including the Ctenella chagius, a variety of brain coral believed to be endemic to the atoll. Chagos provides an important benchmark for coral conservation, and is a 'natural laboratory' in which we can study the functioning of these wonderfully complex ecosystems. The fish of the region are equally diverse, with at least 784 different species having been identified including the Chagos clownfish (Amphiprion chagosensis) which is endemic to the archipelago. The islands of the archipelago provide vital nesting sites for green and hawksbill turtles (Chelonia mydas and Eretmochelys imbricata). The breeding seabirds of the Chagos are considered to be of international importance. The archipelago harbours eighteen different species of breeding birds and ten of its islands have been designated as Important Bird Areas (IBAs) by Birdlife International, making the region the most diverse breeding seabird community in this tropical region. The coconut crab (Birgus latro) is abundant with an overall density in the conservation area on Diego Garcia of 298 crabs per hectare – the highest ever recorded. (Wikipedia)

Russia is still strongly underrepresented. Some proposals:

Site: Arkaim
Country: Russia
TWHS: no
Description: Arkaim is an archaeological site of an ancient fortified settlement, situated in the steppe of the Southern Ural. Arkaim is attributed to the early Proto-Indo-Iranian of the Sintashta culture, which some scholars believe represents the proto-Indo-Iranians before their split into different groups and migration to Central Asia and from there to Persia and India and other parts of Eurasia. Arkaim was a circular stronghold consisting of two concentric bastions made of adobe with timber frames, and covered with unfired clay bricks. Within the circles, close to the bastions, sixty dwellings stood, The dwellings had hearths, cellars, wells and metallurgical furnaces. They opened towards an inner circular street paved with wood. The street was lined by a covered drainage gutter with pits for water collection. At the centre of the complex was a rectangular open space. The complex had four entrances, consisting of intricately constructed passages and oriented towards the cardinal points. Evidence suggests that the complex was built according to a plan, which indicates that the society had a developed structure of roles and had leaders with great authority.
Criteria: cultural

Site: Pazyryk burial sites
Country: Russia
TWHS: yes (6283)
Description: The "Treasures of the Pazyryk Culture" of the Early Scythian Epoch includes the unique and world famous burial mounds (kurgans) and petroglyphs of the Pazyryk Culture.On the large area of the Altai Mountains it existed from the 6th to the 2nd centuries BCE. This culture has left clear evidences which are presented by unique burial complexes. The archaeological sites presenting cultural heritage of Pazyryk time include burial mounds (the frozen tombs of tribal nobility) and petroglyphs made in an "animal style".
Criteria: cutural

Site: Vainakh towers
Country: Russia
TWHS: yes (569)
Description: The Vainakh tower architecture is a characteristic feature of medieval architecture of Chechnya and Ingushetia.
Some towers were used as dwellings, others had a military purpose; some combined both functions. The oldest remains of buildings with the characteristics of Vainakh towers date from the 1st century AD, and can already be distinguished into residential and military types. Construction greatly increased in the 12th and 13th centuries. Vainakh tower architecture and construction techniques reached their peak in the 15th–17th centuries. The Vainakh towers are comparable to the Svan towers of nearby Georgia, although they are significantly older and their architecture is distinct.
Criteria: cultural
Comparative analysis: Svaneti, San Geminiano, Kaiping Daolou

Site: Dolmens of North Caucasus
Countries: Russia, Georgia
TWHS: no
Description: Concentrations of megaliths, dolmens (Adyghe: исп-унэ) and stone labyrinths dating between the end of the 4th millennium and the beginning of the 2nd millennium B.C. have been found (but little studied) throughout the Caucasus Mountains. While generally unknown in the rest of Europe, these structures are equal to the great megaliths of Europe in terms of age and quality of architecture, but are still of an unknown origin. The dolmens have a limited variety in their architecture. The floor plans are square, trapezoidal, rectangular and round. All of the dolmens are punctuated with a portal in the centre of the facade. While round portholes are the most common, square ones are also found. In front of the facade is a court that usually splays out, creating an area where rituals possibly took place. The court is usually outlined by large stone walls, sometimes over a meter high, which enclose the court. It is in this area that Bronze and Iron Age pottery has been found - which helped date these sites -, along with human remains, bronze tools and silver, gold and semi-precious stone ornaments.
Criteria: cultural
Comparative analysis: Antequera, Bru na Boinne, Korean dolmens, megalithic temple of Malta, Hal Saflieni, Orkney

Site: Vera Island
Country: Russia
TWHS: no
Description: The small Vera Island is home to a large cultic complex from the chalcolithic period. It features dolmens as well as an artificially levelled platform with a system of menhirs.
Criteria: cultural
Comparative analysis: Antequera, Bru na Boinne, Korean dolmens, megalithic temple of Malta, Hal Saflieni, Orkney

Site: Kapova Cave (Shulgan-Tash)
Country: Russia
TWHS: yes (5666)
Description: The cave Shulgan-Tash (Kapova) belongs to the unique phenomena - more than 150 Paleolithic cave drawings of global importance having been discovered (drawings of mammoths, horses, rhinoceroses, bulls and abstract characters in red ochre). The radiochemical analysis testifies that Shulgan-Tash drawings are not less than 13-14 thousands years old. Such antique cave art can be found only in France and Spain. Discovery of the Paleolithic art in the Southern Urals within the distance of 4 thousand kilometers from Pyrenees gives evidence to the existence of the Ural center of the Paleolithic culture (the second after the South-Western Europe).
A dwelling site of Paleolithic people with plenty of bonfires, charcoal and different objects have been found in the vegetable soils of Shulgan-Tash cave during the recent years. As much as 193 objects were found, with the tools made of the local cryptalline limestone, calci-spar and green and brown jasper prevailing. Green serpentinite ornamentals, discovered in the soil, are purely unique. There are also pendants made of bones or, possibly, mammoth tusks. Discovery of a clay lamp fragment was unique, since earthenware is very rarely found in the cultural Paleolithic soils.
Criteria: cultural
Comparative analysis: Altamira, Coa Valley, Pont d'Arc, Vezere

Site: Seven Sisters
Country: Russia
TWHS: no
Description: The Seven Sisters a group of seven skyscrapers in Moscow designed in the Stalinist style. They were built from 1947 to 1953. At the time of construction they were the tallest buildings in Europe, and the main building of Moscow State University remained the tallest building in Europe until 1997. The are good representatives of Communist architecture which was influential throughout the Eastern Block. Communist architecture constitutes a gap as it is not represented on the WH list.
Criteria: cultural
Comparative analysis: Chicago skyscrapers

Site: Moscow metro stations
Country: Russia
TWHS: no
Description: The metro stations of Moscow, constructed under Stalin's regime in the style of socialist classicism, were meant as underground "palaces of the people". Stations such as Komsomolskaya, Kiyevskaya or Mayakovskaya and others built after 1935 in the second phase of the evolution of the network are tourist landmarks, their photogenic architecture, large chandeliers and detailed decoration unusual for an urban transport system.
Criteria: cultural

Site: Tobolsk
Country: Russia
TWHS: no
Description: Founded in 1590, Tobolsk is the second-oldest Russian settlement in Asian Russia, and is a historic capital of the Siberia region. Tobolsk is the only town in Siberia and one of the few in Russia which has a standing stone kremlin (Tobolsk Kremlin): an elaborate city-fortress from the turn of the 17th and 18th centuries. Its white walls and towers with an ensemble of churches and palatial buildings spectacularly sited on a high river bank were proclaimed a national historical and architectural treasure in 1870. Tobolsk represents early Russian colonialism in Asia (Siberia), an expansion that culminated in the Cold War.
Criteria: cultural

Site: Trans-Siberian Railway
Country: Russia
TWHS: no
Description: The Trans-Siberian Railway is a network of railways connecting Moscow with the Russian Far East. With a length of 9,289 kilometres (5,772 miles), from Moscow to Vladivostok, it is the longest railway line in the world. The railway was built between 1891 and 1916 under the supervision of Russian government ministers. Between 1906 and 1914, the peak migration years, about 4 million peasants arrived in Siberia. Despite the low speed and low possible weights of trains, the railway fulfilled its promised role as a transit route between Europe and East Asia.
Criteria: cultural

Site: Kolyma Highway (Road of Bones) and related settlements
Country: Russia
TWHS: no
Description: The Kolyma Highway is a road in the Russian Far East. The Dalstroy construction directorate built the Kolyma Highway during the Soviet Union's Stalinist era. Inmates of the Sevvostlag labour camp started the first stretch in 1932, and construction continued with the use of gulag labour until 1953.
The road is treated as a memorial, as the bones of the people who died while constructing it were laid beneath or around the road. As the road is built on permafrost, interment into the fabric of the road was deemed more practical than digging new holes to bury the bodies of the dead. The region of Kolymá, which gives its name to this road, was a territory known for its abundance of Gulags. Hundreds of th

Site: Lena river delta
Country: Russia
TWHS: no
Description: The Lena Delta is a gap specifically mentioned in the IUCN gap study. The delta has a size of about 30,000 square kilometres (12,000 sq mi), making it one of the largest in the world. delta. It is frozen tundra for about seven months of the year, but in May the region is transformed into a lush wetland for a few months. Part of the area is protected as the Lena Delta Wildlife Reserve. Lena Delta Nature Reserve is a Zapovednik ("scientific nature reserve") is divided into two subareas, and has a total land area of 14,330 square kilometres (5,530 sq mi), making it one of the largest protected areas in Russia. It protects large concentrations of birds, including swans, geese and ducks, loons, shorebirds, raptors and gulls. It is also an important fish spawning site.
Criteria: natural

Site: The Great Vasyugan Mire
Country: Russia
TWHS: yes (5114)
Description: The Great Vasyugan Mire, the largest swamp system in the northern hemisphere of the planet, is located in the central sector of the West Siberian plain, a geographical phenomenon due to extremely wide spreading of swamps. The area of the Great Vasyugan Mire is over 55 000 m*, which is about 2% of the whole area of peat bogs of the world. It appeared nearly 10,000 years ago and from that time has constantly increased in size. 75% of the contemporary area became waterlogged less than 500 years ago. The Great Vasyugan Mire reflects the processes of development and evolution of swamp ecosystems from the beginning of Holocene period till nowadays. It further includes habitats of typical flora and fauna of the region, rare plant and animal species, as well as key habitats of migrating animal species.
Criteria: natural
Comparative analysis: Trans-Fly, Pantanal, Okavango