The Grand Canyon, the Matterhorn and the Great Barrier Reef are competing with 25 other spectacular natural landmarks in the final phase of the global poll to choose the New 7 Wonders of Nature.
The Grand Canyon, the Matterhorn and the Great Barrier Reef are competing with 25 other spectacular natural landmarks in the final phase of the global poll to choose the New 7 Wonders of Nature.
The Amazon rainforest, the Dead Sea, Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa and Ecuador's Galapagos islands are also among the finalists, according to the organisation New 7 Wonders led by Swiss adventurer Bernard Weber.
People can vote by Internet or phone.
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Nature Matters: Bernard Weber, president of New 7 Wonders announces the finalists in Zurich yesterday, as the Matterhorn mountain, one of the candidates, is seen on a screen behind him. |
The winners will be announced in 2011 and share in the glory already enjoyed by the seven man-made wonders chosen two years ago.
Over 1 billion people are expected to join in the voting, Weber said yesterday.
"This campaign should contribute to the appreciation to the knowledge of our environment and not just the one in our country but worldwide," he told The Associated Press. "If we or our children want to save anything, we should first appreciate it."
The finalists also include Azerbaijan's Mud Volcanoes, Lebanon's Jeita Grotto, Ireland's Moher Cliffs and Germany's Black Forest.
A panel of experts chose the finalists among the 77 nominees that gained the most votes in an early round of polling. People had suggested 261 landmarks in countries all over the world.
The panel chaired by Federico Mayor, former chief of UNESCO, the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation, picked the finalists depending on geographical balance, diversity and the importance to human life.
Also in the RunningAmazon rainforest
Black Forest, Germany
Cliffs of Moher, Ireland
Dead Sea
Galapagos Islands
Komodo, Indonesia
Maldives
Mount Kilimanjaro
Mount Vesuvius, Italy
Table Mountain, South Africa
