THE NEW SEVEN WONDERS - OFF TO SPACE

In 1999, a Swiss adventurer, Bernard Weber, launched a surprising campaign. His unusual proposal shocked many; he encouraged people from all around the world to vote for the new Seven Wonders of the World. Even more surprising is his resolution to store 3-D images of the chosen historical treasures into a “golden disk” and shoot them into space, so the monuments may be preserved “forever”. The reactions were diverse; many opposed his idea as silly comparing the poll to a beauty contest. On the other hand, Weber’s Switzerland-based foundation intends to promote cultural diversity and provide sufficient funds to restore many of the endangered historical monuments. The foundation, the New7Wonders has already launched a project to reconstruct the magnificent Buddha statues at Bamiyan, Afganistan. Weber and his associates received hundreds of suggestions; eventually, the list of the nominated monuments was limited to 21 ‘wonders’. Anyone had the opportunity to vote for the chosen monument via the Internet or cellular phone. And on July 7th, the winners were finally revealed; they are Brazil’s Statue of Christ Redeemer, Peru’s Machu Picchu, Mexico’s Chichen Itza pyramid, the Great Wall of China, Jordan’s Petra, the Colosseum in Rome and India’s Taj Mahal. The pyramids of Giza have also retained their exceptional status. One contest has just finished and Weber has already announced a new one. His campaign regards a different type of ‘wonder’. People from all over the planet are to select the new Seven Natural Wonders of the world. Nominations will be accepted until August 8, 2008. Examples of these include precious animal reserves, majestic canyons, breathtaking fjords and such examples of nature’s perfection.