Causses and CévennesQui sommes nous ?PartnersThe Government

The Government

The State is the sole guarantor of the proper conservation of the Causses and Cévennes Property before UNESCO. As a living cultural landscape, the Causses and Cévennes are monitored by the Ministry of the Environment. The Ministries of Culture and Agriculture are also involved with this Property, which has cultural worth and outstanding universal value based on agricultural activities. Therefore, the decentralised State departments in the regions and departments of France are closely involved in the management of this Property.

The Regional Directorates of the Environment, Planning and Housing in Languedoc-Roussillon and Midi-Pyrénées support territorial policies for the protection and management of landscapes and sites. In particular they ensure the protection of listed sites and contribute to the enhancement of UNESCO’s World Heritage Sites.

The Regional Directorates of Cultural Affairs provide support, advice, expertise and control. They are in charge of:

  • knowledge, protection, restoration and promotion of heritage;
  • supporting the development of the culture economy and cultural industries, and supporting the creation and dissemination of art;
  • contributing to cultural planning in the territory;
  • increasing access to culture for all audiences and encouraging specialist arts education.

They are supported by the Technical Architecture and Heritage Services (STAP), which have three main missions: consulting, control and conservation. They give their opinions on all projects that are liable to bring changes to built or natural protected spaces. The Architecte des Bâtiments de France, an official of the STAP, also manages maintenance work projects for buildings that are listed as historic monuments.

The Regional Directorates of Food, Agriculture and Forests are involved in:

  • social and economic knowledge of rural, agricultural and forestry areas and the people who live and work there

  • planning and supporting regional policies, in particular the State-region plan contract

  • agricultural training (agricultural vocational schools in particular)

The DREALs and DRAAFs are supported by the Departmental Directorates of the Territories and the Sea, which in particular work to:

  • implement the Natura 2000 network, whose contractual measures for environment management are of crucial importance in maintaining the values of the Property

  • processing files linked to the agricultural economy

  • processing planning applications

To find out more about the State and its departments in the regions and departments of France:

Ministry of the Environment: http://www.developpement-durable.gouv.fr/

Ministry of Culture: http://www.culturecommunication.gouv.fr/

Ministry of Agriculture: http://agriculture.gouv.fr/