Venise et sa Lagune, un site Patrimoine mondial... pour quoi faire?

This essay raises the question of what to do with a World Heritage site such as Venice and its lagoon. It firsts presents the main features of the World Heritage programme, emphasizing the diversity of actors involved and the complexity of dynamics at work, from the global to the local level. A brief presentation of the most evident implications of Venice and its lagoon’s listing as a World Heritage site follows, with a focus on the latter’s 'management'. Finally, the threats on the site’s integrity are opposed with a common view on the World Heritage programme as a 'showcase', suggesting that various uses of the same are possible, and that some new ones might still be experimented.