Reusing heritage sites is no longer only a practice of maintaining the historic, built values of a heritage object, but increasingly also a practice of linking heritage buildings to other aims such as involving local (heritage) communities or integrating heritage in its urban context. However, working closely with local heritage communities and incorporating multiple aims and stakeholderseach with their own interests and understanding of heritagemakes projects of heritage reuse highly complex. To address and understand this complexity, various scholars argue for a coevolutionary perspective that sees heritage as a manifestation of interrelated and interdependent processes. This paper translates the concept of co-evolution into a conceptual model for analysing practices of heritage reuse. We apply this model in sixteen selected European projects of heritage reuse, to analyse how and why co-evolution manifests itself in projects of heritage reuse. This analysis demonstrates that the actions of initiators and other actors in the heritage reuse projects, as well as the social/ institutional system in which they operate, are conducive to whether or not a co-evolutionary heritage approach is enacted.
PurposeIn the field of critical heritage studies, it has often been argued that a more inclusive and participatory heritage management approach neutralises differences and can contribute to a more contemporary, plural, democratic and inclusive notion of heritage. Yet, the needs and aspirations of those assumed being excluded from heritage making are not always taken into account, because the analysis and critique often focussed on the dominant heritage discourses, organisations and institutions. This paper conceptualises heritage from below and explores and reconceptualises how subdominant notions of heritage relate to dominant, institutionalised conceptualisations of heritage.Design/methodology/approachBased on a case study of the Mobarak mosque in The Hague, the authors present the multiplicity of subdominant conceptualisations of heritage, the ways heritage is (expected to be) recognised and represented by the community and the complexity of issues of social inclusion/exclusion.FindingsThe authors conclude that inclusive and/or participatory heritage management practices are inclusive in name only when the needs and aspirations of those seemingly being “excluded” are not fully understood and taken into account.Originality/valueA binary heritage/non-heritage framework, the authors argue, is limited to understand matter that matters. Also the authors find that the assumption that there is a growing desire among local community groups to include their histories and related materialities as heritage in the dominant heritage discourse should be challenged.
PurposeHeritage reuse, in which the aesthetics of heritage play a leading role, often leads to extreme commodification of heritage, place branding, gentrification and the exclusion of many narratives and voices. In order to understand how such processes of erosion and estrangement between heritage and local communities can be countered, while still redeveloping heritage buildings for contemporary urban needs, this paper explores with what kind of practices and heritage approaches these tensions can be mitigated, learning from recent experiences in Praga district.Design/methodology/approachBased on qualitative semi-structured interviews in a case study of a living lab of ongoing heritage reuse practice in Praga district in the city of Warsaw, Poland, the authors identify practices and approaches that can help to overcome tensions between the ethics and aesthetics of heritage reuse.FindingsIn rapidly changing district like Praga, local communities and others are struggling to compete process of change that impact their heritage, and the engagement with it. Although the local community is quite active in addressing various urban challenges and preserving the character of Praga including heritage elements, the conditions under which these community-led heritage reuse practices operate are quite impactful, as it appears that cooperation with local institutions is vital in order to embed community-led heritage reuse practices to overcome the tensions between ethics and aesthetics of heritage reuse.Originality/valueThis paper presents an in-depth analysis of a living lab of community-led heritage reuse. As such, the paper highlights various practices of community organizations and citizen initiatives that address heritage reuse, as well as the conditions under which these initiatives operate.
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