Viñales, Cuba, Nominated as a UNESCO Global Geoparque

Cuba has presented the candidacy of the Viñales Geopark, located in Pinar del Río, to become a UNESCO Global Geopark by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.

During a session of the National Geoparks Committee, Enrique Castellanos, Director of Geology at the Ministry of Energy and Mines, explained that Viñales, which was approved as a national geopark in 2021, is now seeking this international designation following intensive work. If successful, it would be the first UNESCO Global Geopark in Cuba and the Caribbean.

Authorities clarified that to aspire to this status, UNESCO requires a minimum of two years of visibility and development. Consequently, the international candidacy process began in 2024 based on a technical plan approved by the Institute of Geology and Paleontology.

Following this, UNESCO experts visited the area, helped identify its potential, and provided recommendations to strengthen the application.

Building a Case for Designation

In response to the experts' suggestions, several initiatives have been completed. These include the creation and launch of the Viñales Geopark website, the production of an eight-part documentary series, and the development of various promotional materials. Additionally, a "Viñales National Geopark Seal" has been established and awarded to organizations, businesses, and creators with proven merits in conserving geo-heritage and promoting sustainability.

However, several improvements are still pending. These include ensuring the international accessibility of the website and strengthening the Geopark's visibility through better signage and descriptive banners for its geo-routes and geosites.

Work must also be intensified to educate local communities about their heritage, enhance networking with local and external actors, and consolidate a governance structure that includes all local stakeholders. Further goals are to increase the production of goods linked to the Geopark and its heritage assets.

A Landscape of Universal Value

Viñales is already a UNESCO World Heritage Site, designated both as a Natural World Heritage site and a Cultural Landscape for Humanity. Since 2021, it has held the status of Cuba's first National Geopark. Located in the western province of Pinar del Río, its outstanding values include a variety of both subterranean and surface karst formations.

The landscape is distinguished by its "mogotes," unique steep-sided limestone hills that exist in only a few other places on Earth. The area also contains rocks formed before, during, and after the major impact of the Chicxulub meteorite, an event that affected the entire planet and caused the extinction of many species, including the dinosaurs.

The Geopark also features several fossil sites unique to Cuba's geological evolution, the country's largest cave systems—spanning dozens of kilometers with multiple levels of galleries—and a varied biodiversity of endemic plants and animals. Evidence of indigenous presence, such as vessels, tools, and cave pictographs, alongside a historical foundation as a setting for Cuba's independence wars, adds to its rich cultural and natural heritage.