Portal:World

The World Portal

The world is the totality of entities, the whole of reality, or everything that exists. The nature of the world has been conceptualized differently in different fields. Some conceptions see the world as unique, while others talk of a "plurality of worlds". Some treat the world as one simple object, while others analyze the world as a complex made up of parts.

In scientific cosmology, the world or universe is commonly defined as "the totality of all space and time; all that is, has been, and will be". Theories of modality talk of possible worlds as complete and consistent ways how things could have been. Phenomenology, starting from the horizon of co-given objects present in the periphery of every experience, defines the world as the biggest horizon, or the "horizon of all horizons". In philosophy of mind, the world is contrasted with the mind as that which is represented by the mind.

Theology conceptualizes the world in relation to God, for example, as God's creation, as identical to God, or as the two being interdependent. In religions, there is a tendency to downgrade the material or sensory world in favor of a spiritual world to be sought through religious practice. A comprehensive representation of the world and our place in it, as is found in religions, is known as a worldview. Cosmogony is the field that studies the origin or creation of the world, while eschatology refers to the science or doctrine of the last things or of the end of the world.

In various contexts, the term "world" takes a more restricted meaning associated, for example, with the Earth and all life on it, with humanity as a whole, or with an international or intercontinental scope. In this sense, world history refers to the history of humanity as a whole, and world politics is the discipline of political science studying issues that transcend nations and continents. Other examples include terms such as "world religion", "world language", "world government", "world war", "world population", "world economy", or "world championship". (Full article...)

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Image 1
Two men next to a pile of American bison skulls awaiting industrial processing and conversion into fertilizer in the United States, in 1892.

The Holocene or Anthropocene extinction is an ongoing extinction event caused by human activity during the current geological epoch, impacting diverse families of plants and animals, including mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish, and invertebrates, as well as both terrestrial and marine species. It is sometimes also called the sixth extinction (though this can also describe the Capitanian).

Current extinction rates are estimated at 100 to 1,000 times higher than natural background extinction rates. The Holocene extinction was preceded by the Late Pleistocene extinctions at the end of the last ice age (to which human activity also likely contributed) and the extinctions caused by Polynesian expansion. (Full article...)
Image 2

IDA logo

The International Development Association (IDA) (French: Association internationale de développement) is a development finance institution which offers concessional loans and grants to the world's poorest developing countries. The IDA is a member of the World Bank Group and is headquartered in Washington, D.C. in the United States. It was established in 1960 to complement the existing International Bank for Reconstruction and Development by lending to developing countries which suffer from the lowest gross national income, from troubled creditworthiness, or from the lowest per capita income. Together, the International Development Association and International Bank for Reconstruction and Development are collectively generally known as the World Bank, as they follow the same executive leadership and operate with the same staff.

The association shares the World Bank's mission of reducing poverty and aims to provide affordable development financing to countries whose credit risk is so prohibitive that they cannot afford to borrow commercially or from the Bank's other programs. The IDA's stated aim is to assist the poorest nations in growing more quickly, equitably, and sustainably to reduce poverty. The IDA is the single largest provider of funds to economic and human development projects in the world's poorest nations. From 2000 to 2010, it financed projects which recruited and trained 3 million teachers, immunized 310 million children, funded $792 million in loans to 120,000 small and medium enterprises, built or restored 118,000 kilometers of paved roads, built or restored 1,600 bridges, and expanded access to improved water to 113 million people and improved sanitation facilities to 5.8 million people. The IDA has issued a total US$238 billion in loans and grants since its launch in 1960. Thirty-six of the association's borrowing countries have graduated from their eligibility for its concessional lending. However, nine of these countries have relapsed and have not re-graduated. (Full article...)
Image 3
World GDP per capita between 1500 and 2003

The world economy or global economy is the economy of all humans in the world, referring to the global economic system, which includes all economic activities conducted both within and between nations, including production, consumption, economic management, work in general, financial transactions and trade of goods and services. In some contexts, the two terms are distinct: the "international" or "global economy" is measured separately and distinguished from national economies, while the "world economy" is simply an aggregate of the separate countries' measurements. Beyond the minimum standard concerning value in production, use and exchange, the definitions, representations, models and valuations of the world economy vary widely. It is inseparable from the geography and ecology of planet Earth.

It is common to limit questions of the world economy exclusively to human economic activity, and the world economy is typically judged in monetary terms, even in cases in which there is no efficient market to help valuate certain goods or services, or in cases in which a lack of independent research, genuine data or government cooperation makes calculating figures difficult. Typical examples are illegal drugs and other black market goods, which by any standard are a part of the world economy, but for which there is, by definition, no legal market of any kind. (Full article...)
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The Internet (or internet) is the global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a network of networks that comprises private, public, academic, business, and government networks of local to global scope, linked by electronic, wireless, and optical networking technologies. The Internet carries a vast range of information services and resources, such as the interlinked hypertext documents and applications of the World Wide Web (WWW), electronic mail, discussion groups, internet telephony, streaming media and file sharing.

Most traditional communication media, including telephone, radio, television, paper mail, newspapers, and print publishing, have been transformed by the Internet, giving rise to new media such as email, online music, digital newspapers, news aggregators, and audio and video streaming websites. The Internet has enabled and accelerated new forms of personal interaction through instant messaging, Internet forums, and social networking services. Online shopping has also grown to occupy a significant market across industries, enabling firms to extend brick and mortar presences to serve larger markets. Business-to-business and financial services on the Internet affect supply chains across entire industries. (Full article...)
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A multinational corporation (MNC) is a corporate organization that owns and controls the production of goods or services in at least one country other than its home country. Control is considered an important aspect of an MNC to distinguish it from international portfolio investment organizations, such as some international mutual funds that invest in corporations abroad to diversify financial risks. A MNC may also called a multinational enterprise (MNE), transnational enterprise (TNE), transnational corporation (TNC), international corporation, or stateless corporation,

Currently, most of the largest and most influential companies are publicly traded multinational corporations, including Forbes Global 2000 companies. (Full article...)
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The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA or GA) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), serving as its main deliberative, policymaking, and representative organ. Currently in its 80th session, its powers, composition, functions, and procedures are set out in Chapter IV of the United Nations Charter.

The United Nations General Assembly is responsible for the United Nations budget, appointing the non-permanent members to the Security Council, appointing the secretary-general of the United Nations, receiving reports from other parts of the United Nations System, and making recommendations through resolutions. It also establishes numerous to advance or assist in its broad mandate. The United Nations General Assembly is the only United Nations organ where all member states have equal representation. (Full article...)
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Globalism has multiple meanings. In political science, it is used to describe "attempts to understand all of the interconnections of the modern world—and to highlight patterns that underlie (and explain) them". While primarily associated with world-systems, it can be used to describe other global trends. The concept of globalism is also classically used to focus on ideologies of globalisation (the subjective meanings) instead of its processes (the objective practices); in this sense, "globalism" is to globalisation what "nationalism" is to nationalisation. Globalism as a concept dates from the 1940s and became a dominant set of ideologies in the late twentieth century. (Full article...)

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The following are images from various world-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Tiktaalik, a fish with limb-like fins and a predecessor of tetrapods. Reconstruction from fossils about 375 million years old. (from History of Earth)
Image 2A view of Earth with its global ocean and cloud cover, which dominate Earth's surface and hydrosphere; at Earth's polar regions, its hydrosphere forms larger areas of ice cover. (from Earth)
Image 3Standing Buddha from Gandhara, 2nd century CE
Image 4Cuneiform inscription, eastern Turkey
Image 5Scientific worldview (from World)
Image 6Image of the physical world, captured by the Hubble Space Telescope (from World)
Image 7Wittenberg, birthplace of Protestantism (from Human history)
Image 8A reconstruction of human history based on fossil data. (from History of Earth)
Image 9The Colosseum in Rome (from Human history)
Image 10A map of heat flow from Earth's interior to the surface of Earth's crust, mostly along the oceanic ridges (from Earth)
Image 11Earth's history with time-spans of the eons to scale. Ma means "million years ago", Ga means "billion years ago". (from History of Earth)
Image 12Geologic map of North America, color-coded by age. From most recent to oldest, age is indicated by yellow, green, blue, and red. The reds and pinks indicate rock from the Archean.
Image 13Pillar erected by Ashoka, a Mauryan Emperor in India
Image 14Trilobites first appeared during the Cambrian period and were among the most widespread and diverse groups of Paleozoic organisms. (from History of Earth)
Image 15Earth's major plates, which are:
(from Earth)
Image 16European migrations by mostly Germanic peoples, 2nd–6th centuries (from Human history)
Image 17Yggdrasil, an attempt to reconstruct the Norse world tree which connects the heavens, the world, and the underworld. (from World)
Image 18Carving of Persian and Median soldiers, Persepolis, Achaemenid Empire, 5th century BCE
Image 19Earth's Western Hemisphere showing topography relative to Earth's center instead of to mean sea level, as in common topographic maps (from Earth)
Image 20A composite image of artificial light emissions at night on a map of Earth (from Earth)
Image 21Chloroplasts in the cells of a moss (from History of Earth)
Image 22Artist's impression of the enormous collision that probably formed the Moon (from History of Earth)
Image 23Portrait of Alfraganus in the Compilatio astronomica, 1493. Islamic astronomers began just before the 9th century to collect and translate Indian, Persian and Greek astronomical texts, adding their own astronomy and enabling later, particularly European astronomy to build on. Symbolic for the post-classical period, a period of an increasing trans-regional literary culture, particularly in the sciences, spreading and building on methods of science. (from Human history)
Image 24Obelisk of Axum, Ethiopia
Image 25Artist's conception of Hadean Eon Earth, when it was much hotter and inhospitable to all forms of life. (from History of Earth)
Image 26Artist's impression of a Hadean landscape with the relatively newly formed Moon still looming closely over Earth and both bodies sustaining strong volcanism. (from History of Earth)
Image 27Taj Mahal, Mughal Empire, India
Image 28A depiction of the early Solar System's protoplanetary disk from which Earth and other Solar System bodies were formed (from Earth)
Image 29A view of Earth with different layers of its atmosphere visible: the troposphere with its clouds casting shadows, a band of stratospheric blue sky at the horizon, and a line of green airglow of the lower thermosphere around an altitude of 100 km, at the edge of space (from Earth)
Image 30Earth's night-side upper atmosphere appearing from the bottom as bands of afterglow illuminating the troposphere in orange with silhouettes of clouds, and the stratosphere in white and blue. Next the mesosphere (pink area) extends to the orange and faintly green line of the lowest airglow, at about one hundred kilometers at the edge of space and the lower edge of the thermosphere (invisible). Continuing with green and red bands of aurorae stretching over several hundred kilometers. (from Earth)
Image 31Lithified stromatolites on the shores of Lake Thetis, Western Australia. Archean stromatolites are the first direct fossil traces of life on Earth. (from History of Earth)
Image 32Exaggerated illustration of Earth's elliptical orbit around the Sun, marking that the orbital extreme points (apoapsis and periapsis) are not the same as the four seasonal extreme points, the equinox and solstice (from Earth)
Image 33An artist's impression of ice age Earth at glacial maximum. (from History of Earth)
Image 34The replicator in virtually all known life is deoxyribonucleic acid. DNA is far more complex than the original replicator and its replication systems are highly elaborate. (from History of Earth)
Image 35Atomic bombing of Nagasaki, 1945
Image 36A schematic view of Earth's magnetosphere with solar wind flowing from left to right (from Earth)
Image 37Pangaea was a supercontinent that existed from about 300 to 180 Ma. The outlines of the modern continents and other landmasses are indicated on this map. (from History of Earth)
Image 38COVID-19 pandemic, 2020 (from Human history)
Image 39Olmec colossal head, now at the Museo de Antropología de Xalapa
Image 40An animation of the changing density of productive vegetation on land (low in brown; heavy in dark green) and phytoplankton at the ocean surface (low in purple; high in yellow) (from Earth)
Image 41A 580 million year old fossil of Spriggina floundensi, an animal from the Ediacaran period. Such life forms could have been ancestors to the many new forms that originated in the Cambrian Explosion. (from History of Earth)
Image 42Dinosaurs were the dominant terrestrial vertebrates throughout most of the Mesozoic (from History of Earth)
Image 43Maya observatory, Chichen Itza, Mexico
Image 44The pale orange dot, an artist's impression of the early Earth which might have appeared orange through its hazy methane rich prebiotic second atmosphere. Earth's atmosphere at this stage was somewhat comparable to today's atmosphere of Titan. (from History of Earth)
Image 45Earth's axial tilt causing different angles of seasonal illumination at different orbital positions around the Sun (from Earth)
Image 46A composite image of Earth, with its different types of surface discernible: Earth's surface dominating Ocean (blue), Africa with lush (green) to dry (brown) land and Earth's polar ice in the form of Antarctic sea ice (grey) covering the Antarctic or Southern Ocean and the Antarctic ice sheet (white) covering Antarctica. (from Earth)
Image 47Overall increase in average surface air temperature juxtaposed with natural drivers: human activity has caused increased temperatures, with natural forces adding some variability. (from Earth)
Image 48Machu Picchu, Inca Empire, Peru
Image 49Vitruvian Man, c. 1490 by Leonardo da Vinci, epitomizes the advances in art and science seen during the Renaissance. (from History of Earth)
Image 50Pale orange dot, an impression of Early Earth, featuring its tinted orange methane-rich early atmosphere (from Earth)
Image 51Notre-Dame de Paris, France
Image 5213th-century French historiated initial with the three classes of medieval society: those who prayed (the clergy), those who fought (the knights), and those who worked (the peasantry)
Image 53Artist's conception of Devonian flora (from History of Earth)
Image 54The first airplane, the Wright Flyer, flew on 17 December 1903.
Image 55An impression of the Archean, the eon after Earth's formation, featuring round stromatolites, which are early oxygen-producing forms of life from billions of years ago. After the Late Heavy Bombardment, Earth's crust had cooled, its water-rich barren surface is marked by continents and volcanoes, with the Moon still orbiting Earth half as far as it is today, appearing 2.8 times larger and producing strong tides. (from Earth)
Image 56Florence, birthplace of the Italian Renaissance
Image 57A pillar at Neolithic Göbekli Tepe
Image 58A computer-generated image mapping the prevalence of artificial satellites and space debris around Earth in geosynchronous and low Earth orbit (from Earth)
Image 59A banded iron formation from the 3.15 Ga Moodies Group, Barberton Greenstone Belt, South Africa. Red layers represent the times when oxygen was available; gray layers were formed in anoxic circumstances. (from History of Earth)
Image 60Angkor Wat temple complex, Cambodia, early 12th century
Image 61Great Pyramids of Giza, Egypt
Image 62Umayyad Mosque in Damascus (from Human history)
Image 63Artist's rendition of an oxinated fully-frozen Snowball Earth with no remaining liquid surface water. (from History of Earth)
Image 64The flag of the United Nations (from Earth)
Image 65Successive dispersals of Homo erectus (yellow), Homo neanderthalensis (ochre) during Out of Africa I and Homo sapiens (red, Out of Africa II), with the numbers of years since they appeared before present. (from Human history)
Image 66Battle during the 1281 Mongol invasion of Japan
Image 67Earth and the Moon as seen from Mars by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (from Earth)
Image 68James Watt's steam engine powered the Industrial Revolution.
Image 69Satellite time-lapse imagery of Earth's rotation showing axis tilt (from Earth)
Image 70Artist's impression of Earth during the later Archean, the largely cooled planetary crust and water-rich barren surface, marked by volcanoes and continents, features already round microbialites. The Moon, still orbiting Earth much closer than today and still dominating Earth's sky, produced strong tides. (from History of Earth)
Image 71Relief of Earth's crust (from Earth)
Image 72A conception of the scorched Earth after the Sun has entered the red giant phase, about 5–7 billion years in the future (from Earth)
Image 73Moai, Easter Island (from Human history)
Image 74One of the eleven Rock-hewn Churches of Lalibela constructed during the Zagwe dynasty in Ethiopia (from Human history)
Image 75Chennakesava Temple, Belur, India
Image 76Cross-section through a liposome (from History of Earth)
Image 77Last Moon landing: Apollo 17 (1972)
Image 78Fall of the Berlin Wall, 1989
Image 79Earth's land use for human agriculture in 2019 (from Earth)
Image 80Japanese depiction of a Portuguese carrack, a result of globalizing maritime trade
Image 81An artist's rendering of a protoplanetary disk (from History of Earth)
Image 82Benin Bronze head from Nigeria
Image 83Graph showing range of estimated partial pressure of atmospheric oxygen through geologic time (from History of Earth)
Image 84A reconstruction of Pannotia (550 Ma). (from History of Earth)
Image 85Ming dynasty section, Great Wall of China

Megacities of the world - show another

Skyline from Itaim Bibi, highlighting Parque do Povo, Marginal Pinheiros, Jockey Club and Pico do Jaraguá (background).

São Paulo (/ˌsaʊ(m) ˈpaʊloʊ/; Portuguese: [sɐ̃w ˈpawlu] ^ⓘ; Portuguese for 'Saint Paul') is the capital city of the state of the same name, as well as the most populous city in Brazil, South America, the Americas, and in both the Western and Southern Hemispheres. The city exerts international influence in commerce, finance, culture, gastronomy, arts, fashion, technology, entertainment and media, having been listed by UNESCO's Creative Cities Network as a "City of Film" and the title of "World Capital of Gastronomy", and by the Globalization and World Cities Research Network (GaWC) as an alpha global city. It is the largest urban area by population outside Asia and the most populous Portuguese-speaking city in the world. The city's name "São Paulo" honors Paul the Apostle and people from the city are known as paulistanos. The city's Latin motto is Non ducor, duco, which translates as "I am not led, I lead".

Founded in 1554 by Jesuit priests, São Paulo is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities on the American continent. It played a strategic role during the Brazilian colonial period, serving as the center and starting point for the expeditions of the Paulista bandeirantes (pioneers) settlers for the territorial and economic expansion of the country; however, its economic opulence was consolidated during the Brazilian coffee cycle in the mid-19th century. From that period onward, it became the stage for landmark events in Brazilian history, such as the Cry of Ipiranga, the Modern Art Week, the 1932 Revolution, and the Diretas Já (Direct Elections Now) movement. In the 20th century, it consolidated its role as the main national economic hub with industrialization in Brazil, which made the city a cosmopolitan melting pot, home to the largest Arab, Italian, and Japanese diasporas in the world, with ethnic neighborhoods like Bixiga, Bom Retiro, and Liberdade, and people from more than 200 other countries. The city's metropolitan area, Greater São Paulo, is home to more than 20 million inhabitants and ranks as the most populous in Brazil and one of the most populous in the world. The process of conurbation between the metropolitan areas around Greater São Paulo also created the São Paulo Macrometropolis, the first megalopolis in the Southern Hemisphere, with more than 30 million inhabitants. (Full article...)

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... that in 2025 Oscar Piastri became the first Australian since 2010 to lead the Formula One World Drivers' Championship?
... that Najmul Akhyar worked out of a shipping container for some time after the 2018 Lombok earthquakes?
... that at the 1965 World Pentathlon Championships, Herbert Polzhuber was said to have drunk ten beers and a bottle of cognac before firing his pistol at the ground and passing out?
... that Milan A. P. Harminc, the consul-general of the Slovak Republic in London, broke with his government at the outbreak of World War II and sided with the Allies?
... that the publisher of Serious Sam II petitioned Guinness World Records to recognise it for the most enemies simultaneously displayed in a video game?
... that the magazine Acoustic Guitar said that Dan Erlewine "might be the most famous guitar repairperson on earth"?
... that the world's oldest timepiece with an anchor escapement is in the collection of the Irish Museum of Time?
... that the 1972 Finnish film The Sheep Eaters gathered more than a million viewers opposite the 1975 Ice Hockey World Championships match between Finland and the Soviet Union?

Countries of the world - show another

Somalia, officially the Federal Republic of Somalia, is the easternmost country in continental Africa. Stretching across the Horn of Africa, it borders Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti to the northwest, Kenya to the southwest, the Gulf of Aden to the north, and the Indian Ocean to the east. Somalia has the longest coastline on Africa's mainland. Somalia has an estimated population of more than 18 million, of which 2.7 million live in the capital and largest city, Mogadishu. As one of Africa's most ethnically homogenous countries, around 85% of its residents are ethnic Somalis. The official and national language of the country is Somali while Arabic is recognised as a second language. The overwhelming majority of the population are Sunni Muslims.

In antiquity, Somalia was an important commercial centre. During the Middle Ages, several powerful Somali empires dominated the regional trade, including the Ajuran Sultanate, Adal Sultanate, and the Sultanate of the Geledi. In the late 19th century, the Somali sultanates were colonised by the Italian and British empires, who merged all of these tribal territories into two colonies: Italian Somaliland and British Somaliland. In 1960, the two territories united to form the independent Somali Republic under a civilian government. Siad Barre of the Supreme Revolutionary Council (SRC) seized power in 1969 and established the Somali Democratic Republic, brutally attempting to quash the Somaliland War of Independence in the north of the country. The SRC collapsed in 1991 with the onset of the Somali Civil War. The Transitional National Government of Somalia (TNG) was established in 2000, followed by the formation of the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia (TFG) in 2004, which reestablished the Somali Armed Forces. (Full article...)

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See also: List of sovereign states

Wonders of the World - show another

Seven Wonders of the Industrial World is a 7-part British docudrama television miniseries that originally aired from 4 September 2003 (2003-09-04) to 16 October 2003 (2003-10-16) on BBC and was later released on DVD. The programme examines seven engineering feats that occurred since the Industrial Revolution. The same feats are covered in a companion book of the same name by producer Deborah Cadbury. (Full article...)

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Protected areas of the world - load new batch

Image 1
Heathland at the Hoge Kempen National Park

There are numerous protected areas in Belgium with a wide variety of types, protection levels and sizes. The below list gives an overview of the most important protected areas. (Full article...)
Image 2

Canada's National Parks and National Reserves by provinces and territories

This is a list of protected areas of Prince Edward Island. (Full article...)
Image 3
Llyn y Fan Fach in the Brecon Beacons, one of Wales's three national parks

Wales, a country that is part of the United Kingdom, contains protected areas under various designations. The largest designation by land area is Wales's three national parks, followed by the five National Landscapes (Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty), with both sometimes collectively described as the "Designated Landscapes of Wales".

Among these protected areas is Snowdonia (Eryri), Wales's first and the UK's third designated national park, and the Gower AONB covering parts of the Gower Peninsula being both Wales's and the UK's first Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB), as well as smaller designations. (Full article...)
Image 4
The protected areas of Finland include national parks, nature reserves and other areas, with a purpose of conserving areas of all of Finland's ecosystems and biotopes.

Protected areas include:
- National parks of Finland (Kansallispuisto/Nationalpark) – 8,170 km²
- Strict nature reserves of Finland (Luonnonpuisto/Naturreservat) – 1,530 km²
- Mire reserves of Finland (Soidensuojelualue/Myrskyddsområde) – 4,490 km²
- Protected herb-rich forest areas (Lehtojensuojelualue/Lundskyddsområde) – 13 km²
- Protected old-growth forest areas (Vanhat metsät/Gamla skogar) – 100 km²
- Grey seal protection areas (Hylkeidensuojelualue/Sälskyddsområde) – 190 km²
- Other protected areas on state-owned land – 468 km²
(Full article...)
Image 5
Upolu Island, Samoa

This is a list of some protected areas of Samoa which include national parks, reserves, community conservation areas, marine protected areas and fish reserves and other areas of significant biodiversity and conservation.

In 1994, Samoa ratified the international and legally binding treaty, the Convention on Biological Diversity to develop national strategies for conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity. In 2010, protected areas in the country cover 5% of land although the government aims to increase protected areas coverage to 15%. (Full article...)
Image 6
This is a list of protected areas of Saudi Arabia, some of which are managed by the Saudi Wildlife Authority.:
(Full article...)
Image 7
This is a list of protected areas of Romania.

About 5.18% of the area of Romania has a protected status (12,360 km²), including the Danube Delta, which makes half of these areas (2.43% of Romania's area). (Full article...)
Image 8
The mountain of Stob Binnein lies in the Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park.

Many parts of Scotland are protected in accordance with a number of national and international designations because of their environmental, historical or cultural value. Protected areas can be divided according to the type of resource which each seeks to protect. NatureScot has various roles in the delivery of many environmental designations in Scotland, i.e. those aimed at protecting flora and fauna, scenic qualities and geological features. Historic Environment Scotland is responsible for designations that protect sites of historic and cultural importance. Some international designations, such as World Heritage Sites, can cover both categories of site.

The various designations overlap considerably with many protected areas being covered by multiple designations with different boundaries. (Full article...)
Image 9
The protected areas of South Africa include national parks and marine protected areas managed by the national government, public nature reserves managed by provincial and local governments, and private nature reserves managed by private landowners. Most protected areas are intended for the conservation of flora and fauna. National parks are maintained by South African National Parks (SANParks). A number of national parks have been incorporated in transfrontier conservation areas.

Protected areas may also be protected for their value and importance as historical, cultural heritage or scientific sites. More information on these can be found in the list of heritage sites in South Africa. (Full article...)
Image 10
Protected areas of Canada consist of approximately 12.1 percent of the nation's landmass and freshwater are considered conservation areas, including 11.4 percent designated as protected areas. Approximately 13.8 percent of Canada's territorial waters are conserved, including 8.9 percent designated as protected areas. Terrestrial areas conserved have increased by 65 percent in the 21st century, while marine areas conserved have increased by more than 3,800 percent.

Conservation and protected areas have different mandates depending on the organization which manages them, with some areas having a greater focus on ecological integrity, historical preservation, public usage, scientific research, or a combination of usages. Some areas such as the Polar Bear Pass, are co-managed and overseen by government and local indigenous agencies. (Full article...)
Image 11
Cape Spencer Lighthouse, Innes National Park

Protected areas of South Australia, consisting of protected areas located within South Australia and its immediate onshore waters and which are managed by South Australian Government agencies. As of 2018, South Australia contained 359 separate protected areas declared under the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1972, the Crown Land Management Act 2009 and the Wilderness Protection Act 1992. Together, they cover a total land area of 211,387.48 km² (81,617.16 sq mi) or 21.5% of the state's area. (Full article...)
Image 12
Protected areas of Slovenia include one national park (Slovene: narodni park), three regional parks (regijski park), several natural parks (krajinski park), and hundreds of natural monuments (naravni spomenik) and monuments of designed nature (spomenik oblikovane narave). They cover about 12.5% of the Slovenian territory. Under the Wild Birds Directive, 26 sites totalling roughly 25% of the nation's land are "Special Protected Areas"; the Natura 2000 proposal would increase the totals to 260 sites and 32% of national territory. (Full article...)
Image 13
This is a list of protected areas in Thailand: (Full article...)
Image 14
A list of protected areas of Oman:
- Al Jabal Algharbi Nature Reserve
- Aldhahra Nature Reserve
- Alburaimi Oasis Nature Reserve
- Oryx Nature Reserve
- Turtle Reserve
- Ad Dimaniyat Islands Reserve
- Al Saleel National Park (As Salil Natural Park)
- Jabal Samhan Nature Reserve
- Al Jabal Al Akhdar Scenic Reserve
- Western Hajer Stars Lights Reserve
- Al Rustaq Wildlife Reserve
- Al Wusta Wetland Reserve
- Jabal Qahwan Nature Reserve
- Al Sareen Nature Reserve
- Ras al Shajar Nature Reserve
- Al Khuwuair Nature Reserve
- Khawrs of the Dhofar Coast Reserve
  - Khor Slalalah Nature Reserve
  - Khawr al Mughsayl Reserve
  - Khawr al Baleed Reserve
  - Khawr Sawli Reserve
  - Khawr al Dahareez Reserve
  - Khawr Taqah Reserve
  - Khawr Rawri Reserve
  - Khawr Awqad Reserve
  - Khawr al Qurum al Sagheer Reserve
  - Khawr al Qurum al Kabeer Reserve
(Full article...)
Image 15
Entrance to Tanintharyi Nature Reserve.

This list of protected areas of Myanmar includes national parks, wildlife sanctuaries and botanical gardens that were established since 1927. (Full article...)