UNESCO Chief Highlights Importance of History’s Lessons

UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay on Friday hailed how well Saudi Arabia’s cultural gem of AlUla has been preserved and the lessons future generations can learn from the region’s history. Speaking at the Hegra Conference of Nobel Prize Laureates, which was being held at the site’s Maraya Hall, Azoulay highlighted the importance of the site in promoting a cultural exchange. She joined more than 20 Nobel Prize winners and 100 leading thinkers at the forum to discuss global social issues, and offer solutions in areas including education, technology, health care and sustainability.
The UNESCO leader said that she had been impressed by AlUla’s historical diversity and the lessons it offers visitors. “This ensures that heritage is a motive for peace, education and so much more.”
Asked what the most pressing issue facing the world today was, Azoulay said: “Right now we have an emergency, first and foremost, it is our relationship with nature. We need to learn how to live with nature in harmony, it’s something that we’ve lost. And that is our challenge.”