The New York Times ranked the Dana Biosphere Reserve 25th out of 52 global sites that are considered the most prominent and beautiful in the world.
The newspaper highlighted the Dana Reserve as a site worth visiting, which combines a deeply rooted history, unique environmental components and breathtaking natural beauty.
“Perched on a cliff overlooking the central valley of Jordan’s largest nature reserve stand the quaint Ottoman-era stone houses of Dana Village. Once abandoned by its original inhabitants, the settlement is being brought back to life through an ecotourism project that aims to preserve the area’s biodiversity by empowering local communities,” it said.
Speaking on Dana’s inclusion on the list, the Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature (RSCN) said that the Dana Biosphere Reserve has won dozens of international awards, calling it a “treasure and natural and cultural heritage.”
Additionally, the Dana Biosphere Reserve is the first national reserve to be listed on the United Nations Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organization’s Man and the Biosphere Program, the RSCN added.
The Dana Reserve, it added, provides a unique model in environmental economy, creating job opportunities for the local community. Some 85 people from the local community are employed at the reserve, while 500 families benefit indirectly from it as the reserve purchases its supplies from the community.