Name: Sites of the Lapita culture (serial, transnational)
Countries: Tonga, Samoa, Vanuatu, Solomon Islands, Fiji, PNG, Australia, France
TWHS: in part (Tonga and Samoa)
Description: The Lapita culture was a prehistoric Pacific Ocean people who flourished in the Pacific Islands from about 1600 BCE to about 500 BCE. Archaeologists believe that the Lapita are the ancestors of historic cultures in Polynesia, Micronesia, and some coastal areas of Melanesia. The characteristics of the Lapita culture are the extension of human settlement to previously uninhabited islands scattered over a large area in the Pacific Ocean, the spread of Oceanic languages in that area, the distinctive geometric dentate-stamped pottery, and the use and widespread distribution of obsidian. Finds include a cemetery in Teoma, Vanuatu, which is the oldest known cemetery in the Pacific islands. Sites representing the Lapita culture are spread over the following territories: Tonga, Samoa, Vanuatu, Santa Cruz Islands (Solomon Islands), Fiji, Bismarck Archipelago (PNG), Torres Islands (Australia) and New Caledonia (France), where the type site is located.
Criteria: cultural

Name: Futurist architecture of Astana (Nur-Sultan)
Country: Kazakhstan
THWS: no
Description: Originally a marginal Russian outpost called Akmoly, Astana was made the new capital of Kazakhstan in 1997. In order to plan its center, leading architects such as Kisho Kurukawa and Norman Foster were commissioned. The centre is charactarised by grand boulevards and futuristic monumental buildings, including the world's largest tent. The design is inspired by Kazakh folk traditions.
https://www.lonelyplanet.com/articles/a-tour-of-astanas-wacky-and-wonderful-architecture
https://www.archipanic.com/astana-architecture/
Criteria: cultural
Comparative analysis: Washington, Pyongyang

I'd support the Lapita nomination - it's a key culture linked to the spread of humans from PNG/Melanesia to the most far-flung Polynesian islands

I think the initial proposal was as a natural site. Clyde suggested adding a tribal cultural landscape aspect to it. I support a mixed site but does that mean it needs to be officially renominated as such? I don't know much about Vanuatu tribes and maybe the cultural aspect just got absorbed into the Lapita nomination?

I think there is no question that the Gobi Desert is deserving of at least one inscription (if not more). I support a natural nomination called The Great Gobi that would combine both tentative nominations on the Mongolian tentative list.

Cretaceous Dinosaur Fossil Sites in the Mongolian Gobi (19/12/2014)
Desert Landscapes of the Mongolian Great Gobi (19/12/2014)

This is an very interesting proposal, since actually the drum and bell towers were not uncommon in many East and mainland SE Asian cities, from Beijing to Bangkok, both towers were used to tell time and acted as tools to announce something, fire, riot, war etc. In my language we still informally use the sound of bell to tell time in daylight and sound of drum to indicate nighttime.

In big East Asia cities especially in China, the grand towers are located in city center like in Beijing, Pingyao or Xian. Also some can be find to be built in the government complex like in Japan or lesser cities of China and Vietnam. But in other Asian countries, such towers are located in temples, each Buddhist temples in Thailand, Laos, Myanmar, Cambodia, Japan and Korea have bell and drum towers which are still the center of community to tell time.

So we have to 3 set of drum and bell towers to represent this culture:
1. Bell and drum towers built by state, located in city center solely use to tell time and city announcement.
2. Bell and drum towers built in cities' main temples and maybe or maybe not supported by state, use to tell time and announcement as well as religious ceremony.
3. Bell and drum tower built in government complex, solely use to tell time and city or government announcement.

In Bangkok, there even has a shrine worship God of drum tower in old city, a very interesting Hindu-Buddhist-animistic practice.

This one is also interesting, while my visit to Si Phan Don was not that good, its nearby fall which dubbed as Niagara of Asia was lovely. It is quite a shame that Laos government has no plan to protect this area but just crossed the border Cambodia protected the lesser group of riverine archipelago from Laos Border to city of Kratie making the biggest sanctuary of freshwater dolphins in SE Asia. If Laos and Cambodia proposed transnational site of Anlong Kampi Kratie - Siphandon, it would be a really great site.

In Seoul, there is Bosingak. While this could conceivably be included in a transnational nomination it is not deserving of inscription alone and the examples in Beijing are the best that exist in East Asia (to my knowledge). I think it would be a nice project for East Asian cooperation, but for Top Missing? It's also a very different nomination than the one China is pursuing with the Central Axis of Beijing. Thanks for bringing up this potential connection though, I have never really thought about this. I think there is potential for quite a few transnational nominations between China, Korea, Japan, and Vietnam in particular.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bosingak

Assif

I support Futurist architecture of Astana (Nur-Sultan) although this might also apply to Ashgabat, Turkmenistan (albeit less of an ensemble).

I seconded these proposals alongwith Hoyasala temple.

I also wish to amend Ranakpur Jain Temple & Dilwara temple as a serial nomination.

I also propose following.

Archaeological Sites of the Ancient Shu State - Chinese Bronze Age site
Lingqu Canal - One of the oldest contour canal in the world
Sacred Mountain of Kailash (6,638m) and Holy Lake of Manasarovar - Pilgrimage site for multiple religion
Mausoleum of the Nanyue King - Southern Yue
Wooden Structures of Liao Dynasty - Tallest & Biggest wooden structure
Brahmaputra Canyon - One of the deepest canyon in the world
Imam Reza Holy Complex -Islamic spiritual site
The Great Wall of Gorgan - One of the largest fortress
Ancient Waterfront Towns in the South of Yangtze River - river town concept
shuDao - One of oldest continuously used Road system
Marine Landscape of the Banda Islands - Marine landscape in southeast Asia
Monastery of St. Amenaprkich (Vank) - Non-Islamic architecture in Safavid era
Monuments and Forts of the Deccan Sultanate (includes Gol Gombuz) - Deccan architecture
jain temple of Dilwara & Ranakpur - Intricate Jain carvings
Desert Landscapes of the Mongolian Great Gobi - One of largest cold winter desert in world
Central Karakorum National Park - Contains many of the highest mountains in world
Sufi Mausoleums of Multan - Sufi saint culture in South Asia
Southwestern Coast Tidal Flats
Silk Roads: Penjikent-Samarkand-Poykent pCorridor (includes chor-bakr) - One of major silk route
Badshahi sadak / Grant trunk road (India/Pakistan/Bangladesh/Afghanistan)- One of the oldest route for multiple purposes like political influence, pilgrimage, trade, etc

@kkanekahn: You list some interesting additions.

I would like to support these ones:

I would support this one.

Not sure if this has already been proposed (sorry if I missed it!) .
I'd like to suggest the Great Tibetan monasteries - a serial site of the most important monasteries in Tibet (be it from the dominant Yellow Hat sect, or from other sects). This could include monasteries such as Labrang, Palcho, Ganden, Sera, Drepung, Palpung, and others.
While the WHL already includes the palatial complexes of the Potala and Norbulingka, as well as the temple of Jokhang, the monastic tradition that shaped Tibet so much is not really represented yet.

To please winterkjm (great link for Taiwan btw), I would like to propose this site for Taiwan.

Name: Taroko National Park
Country: Taiwan
THWS: no
Description: The park covers 1200 sq km, rising from sea level to over 3700m, incorporating 27 peaks over 3000m. Almost all Taiwan's bio-geographical zones are represented here, along with half the island's plant and animal species. Renowned for geological uplifting and erosion by the Liwu River, which has formed a U-shaped, 1,000-meter-deep limestone canyon that is currently one of the largest marble canyons known to mankind. Most of Taroko National Park is undisturbed wilderness, and its wildlife is diverse. So far, 152 species of birds have been recorded in the park, including 14 species unique to Taiwan. In addition, 46 species of large mammals, including the black bear, Formosan Macaque, Formosan Serow, Formosan wild boar, and Formosan Sambar Deer are found in abundance.
Criteria: Natural