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As U.S. plans to exit UNESCO, Ohio earthwork may see years of delay in World Heritage nomination

Screenshot from YouTube
Serpent Mound is a 1,300-foot serpentine earthwork built thousands of years ago, located in Peebles, Ohio.

The United States announced it will leave the United Nations cultural agency UNESCO last week. Once the exit is finalized at the end of 2026, this will mean that the U.S. will no longer be able to nominate sites for World Heritage listing.

This has some archaeologists and American Indian leaders concerned that a historical Ohio site will face big barriers to being recognized as a World Heritage site. Ohio’s renowned Serpent Mound, located in Peebles, was among 17 U.S. sites on a tentative list for nominations.

U.S. State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said in a statement that the ideologies of UNESCO are at odds with the administration’s America First foreign policy. It also states the administration takes issue with UNESCO’s recognition of Palestine as a member state.

The World Heritage list inscribes historic locations across the globe that represent exceptional universal value. Sites often benefit from tourist attraction and legal protections in some cases.

Serpent Mound is a 1,300-foot-long earthen mound shaped like a serpent — the largest of its kind in the world. It was built thousands of years ago.

Thousands of mound sites once rose across Ohio, but only dozens remain, said Chief of the Shawnee Tribe Ben Barnes.

"It's an expression of culture. So when we find these sites around the globe, it's important to designate them of cultural significance for the entire world so that we can continue to protect them throughout the generations," Chief Barnes said.

Current research points to Shawnee peoples as some of the direct descendants of the moundbuilders.

Al Tonetti is president of the Heartland Earthworks Conservancy, which works to raise awareness and provide education about Ohio’s earthworks. He agreed the listing would be meaningful and shared concerns that the U.S. exit from UNESCO will further draw out that process.

“It's already internationally recognized as a significant place of Indigenous heritage. And the World Heritage listing would just kind of cement that in everybody's mind,” Tonetti said.

Ohio is also home to the Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks, which received UNESCO World Heritage designation in 2023. Serpent Mound, while also technically an earthwork, could not be incorporated into the Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks' bid because they weren’t built within the same time period nor by the same cultural group.

Tonetti said there’s concern that the exit from UNESCO could also impact protections of current World Heritage site listings in the U.S., such as the Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks.

“There's a lot of unknowns. We don't really know how far the Trump administration is going to take this,” he said.

Tonetti said the Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks site is maintained with the help of federal funds and benefits from referring to itself as a UNESCO World Heritage location.

Ohio History Connection maintains Serpent Mound. The organization declined to comment.

Adriana Martinez-Smiley (she/they) is the Environment and Indigenous Affairs Reporter for WYSO.