Ablutions
An act of washing or cleansing the body
Aquifers
An underground bed or layer of permeable rock, sediment or soil that yields water
Awareness
Knowledge or understanding of a subject, issue or situation
Abode of Gods
Resting place of Gods or Supreme power
Animal Activists
People who are actively involved in protection of animals from exploitation and abuse by humans.
Animal sacrifice
Animal sacrifice is the ritual killing and offering of an animal to appease or maintain favour with a divine agency.
Adaptation
The process of change by which an organism or species becomes better suited to its environment.
Altitude
The height of an object or point in relation to sea level or ground level.
Aesthetics
A set of principles concerned with the nature and appreciation of beauty.
Avatar
In Hinduism, an avatar is a deliberate descent of a deity to Earth, or a descent of the Supreme Being. The phenomenon of an avatar is observed in Hinduism and is regarded as one of the core principles of Hinduism. An early reference to avatar, and to avatar doctrine, is in the Bhagavad Gita.
Agriculture
The science or practice of farming, including cultivation of the soil for the growing of crops and the rearing of animals to provide food, wool, and other products.
Alternative energy
Energy that is not popularly used and is usually environmentally sound, such as solar or wind energy (as opposed to fossil fuels).
Ambient air
Refers to the surrounding air. Generally, ambient air refers to air outside and surrounding an air pollution source location. Often used interchangeably with "outdoor air."
Algal blooms
Sudden spurts of algal growth that can affect water quality adversely and that indicate potentially hazardous changes in local water chemistry.
Autotroph
Organism that derives energy from inorganic sources (light or inorganic chemical reactions); a producer.
Agroforestry
Planting crops among trees.
Animism
Animism is the belief that objects, places, and creatures all possess a distinct spiritual essence. Potentially, animism perceives all things—animals, plants, rocks, rivers, weather systems, human handiwork, and perhaps even words—as animated and alive. Animism is used in the anthropology of religion as a term for the belief system of many indigenous peoples, especially in contrast to the relatively more recent development of organised religions
Advisory Bodies, UNESCO
A nominated property is independently evaluated by two Advisory Bodies mandated by the World Heritage Convention: the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), which respectively provide the World Heritage Committee with evaluations of cultural and of natural sites nominated. The third Advisory Body is the International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM), an intergovernmental organization which provides the Committee with expert advice on conservation of cultural sites, as well as on training activities.