In October , the Trump administration announced that the United States would withdraw from Unesco, the United Nations cultural organization known for its World Heritage sites program, by the end of 2018. But that rejection, tied to perceptions of anti-Israel bias, has not stopped Unesco from naming a number of American cities to its Creative Cities Network.

In November, Kansas City, San Antonio and Seattle joined a class of 64 cities inducted into the program which evaluates applicants in seven different creative fields, including crafts and folk art, design, film, gastronomy, literature, media arts and music. The network, which now includes 180 cities from 72 countries, aims to encourage members to share best practices “to promote creative industries, strengthen participation in cultural life, and integrate culture into sustainable urban development policies,” according to a statement announcing the new members.

“Being a member of the U.C.C.N. is the starting point of a long journey to which Unesco invites all cities wherever they may be, provided they share the vision of working together to stimulate culture and creativity as motors for sustainable urban development,” Emmanuelle Robert, Project Manager for the Unesco Creative Cities Network, wrote in an email.

Unlike Unesco’s World Heritage Center, which singles out cultural and natural landmarks like the Great Wall of China or the Great Barrier Reef for their universal value to humanity, the Creative City designation is looser and more dispersed.