The US Interior Department, before leaving office, nominated the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge in southeast Georgia as a World Heritage Site under the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The move was announced by the Trump administration seven months before its departure, which goes into effect on Dec. 31, 2026. The State Department stated that continuing involvement in UNESCO was not in the national interest of the United States and that it was against its globalist agenda for international development. The World Heritage Committee will decide if the nomination should proceed. All three Georgia counties surrounding the swamp have adopted ordinances opposing the UNESCO bid. The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), a global coalition of government agencies, academic institutions, and other agencies, has been critical of the designation.