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PurposeThe paper aims to provide an introduction to the new journal, its scope and papers in the inaugural issue.Design/methodology/approachThe paper introduces the new journal by exploring the normative foundations of cultural heritage management and how this can be used to construct a bridge to processes of sustainable development. In doing so, the rationale is explained for a journal with this specialism, like JCHMSD, including potential areas for research. All this then is linked to the theme and respective papers especially selected for the inaugural issue.FindingsIncreasingly the role of cultural heritage in processes of regeneration and sustainable development of cities and regions is being explored, while at the same time the international debate is intensifying as regards a re‐orientation of the concept of sustainability and to re‐emphasize its meaning in clear and unambiguous terms. In the build‐up to the review of the Millennium Development Goals in 2015, the international community by way of UNESCO is promoting the inclusion of culture in the development paradigm.Originality/valueIn providing an overview of the state of debate in the fields of cultural heritage management and sustainable development, the paper is useful to the readers of the journal who are interested but have limited knowledge in these fields. It clarifies the focus to those who wish to submit articles to the journal, as well as highlights some potential areas for research.

PurposeThis article aims to introduce the special issue of the journal Facilities on “World Heritage cities management”, together with the respective articles.Design/methodology/approachThis introduction addresses the topic of world Heritage cities management and its relevance to science and society. In so doing, it indirectly points to the emerging field of cultural heritage management within facilities management.FindingsEven though the management of cultural heritage assets is nothing new for facilities managers, cultural heritage management as a field of research can be considered at a younger stage of development than other related studies, such as the discipline of architectural conservation, which originated in the nineteenth century with the advent of modernity. The application of management practices to immovable cultural heritage assets emerged as recently as the 1990s. At a time in which the role of culture and heritage in processes of sustainable development is gaining more ground, this special issue can be seen as the first of more contributions to come, which aim to enhance the conservation and management of cultural heritage assets for the benefit of present and future generations.Originality/valueThis paper aims to make a contribution to the growing field of cultural heritage management and is of use to facilities managers, scholars and consultants who have responsibilities but limited knowledge in this field.

Purpose -This paper is an editorial to JCHMSD's Volume 2 Issue 1. Its purpose is to introduce the selection of papers in the issue. Design/methodology/approach -The paper discusses the increased focus of national and local authorities, as well as multilateral agencies, on historic cities in a search for a more sustainable process of urban development that integrates environmental, social and cultural concerns into the planning, design and implementation of urban management programmes and projects. The recent adoption of a new policy instrument by UNESCO, the 2011 Recommendation on the Historic Urban Landscape, is providing a set of general principles in support of sustainable urban heritage management and the paper further explains the first results of a field testing of the embedded Historic Urban Landscape approach in two different geo-cultural regions of the world (i.e. Central Asia and East Africa). It points to fields of further research, which are linked to the papers selected for this issue. Findings -The Historic Urban Landscape approach, as promoted in the new UNESCO Recommendation on the subject, facilitates a structuring and priority setting of the manifold needs and wishes in the broader urban development and heritage management process, thereby creating clarity and understanding in an often very complex process with competing demands. Originality/value -The new UNESCO Recommendation was adopted on 10 November 2011 and this research paper is the first to expound on an implementation of the approach embedded therein, explaining its merits and potential.

Purpose – This paper is an editorial to JCHMSD's Volume 4, Issue 1 and its selection of papers. The purpose of this paper is to reflect upon the first three years of editorship, reporting a critical self-assessment on the progress achieved today in relation to JCHMSD's initial aims and objectives, embedded in the state-of-the-art. Design/methodology/approach – The paper builds upon editorship observations exchanged among the editorial team over the last three years and a literature review on the 42 papers published in JCHMSD. The literature review focuses primarily on: purposes and design/methodology/approaches. The ways forward sets a research agenda, challenging those contributing to the unexplored questions with their research and/or practices, to join the JCHMSD community and enable a broader audience to, at least, learn from them. Findings – JCHMSD's three aims have been achieved. The journal is publishing innovative research and practices, relating cultural heritage management and sustainable development, developing both skills and knowledge, with contributions from authors worldwide. A global aim being targeted by a rich variety of disciplines and approaches, from factual economy to critical anthropology. Approaches so far have been primarily qualitative, exploring pilot projects or case studies. Unfortunately, some conclusions of the papers lacked self-reflection, contextualizing findings to the explored case study, methods and sources. Originality/value – More than providing answers or secret recipes, this paper aims to raise questions and draft a research agenda of relevance for JCHMSD's readership, reflecting on the state-of-the-art and selected papers in relation to their purposes and design/methodology/approaches. It also positions 2011 UNESCO Recommendation on the Historic Urban Landscape in this challenging discussion.

PurposeThis article is an editorial to JCHMSD's Volume 3, Issue 1 and aims to provide an overview to its selection of papers.Design/methodology/approachThe article builds upon a previous editorial on the implementation of the new UNESCO Recommendation on the Historic Urban Landscape (HUL). It discusses a research and training programme under development by the World Heritage Institute of Training and Research in Asia and the Pacific (WHITRAP) and Tongji University's Advanced Research Institute for Architecture and Urban Planning, in Shanghai, China, to help determining a strategy for the application of the HUL approach in China.FindingsThe HUL approach facilitates a structuring and priority setting of competing needs and demands for the integration of urban development and heritage management processes, which is perhaps most pressing in the current Chinese context of rapid and large‐scale urbanization. However, its precise meaning, and therefore its merit, is still poorly understood in China due to confusing conceptual foundations and interpretations, primarily related to the terminology of “cultural landscape”.Originality/valueThis research paper outlines a series of pertinent issues and questions as part of a critical path –a “road map”– for the application of the HUL approach, as promoted by UNESCO, in China and it outlines key areas for further research, in particular as concerns the development of a toolkit.

Purpose – This paper is an editorial to JCHMSD's Volume 4 Issue 2 and its selection of papers. Design/methodology/approach – The paper presents some of the ongoing discussions at the international level on the establishment of new United Nations global objectives for development, known as the Sustainable Development Goals, which should guide progress in the world for the next 15 years. Two agendas for wise heritage management are discussed, one for the protection of nature and the other for better use of culture, which taken together could make a significant difference in stewarding the world's precious resources. Findings – While the previous Millennium Development Goals, established in 2000 as a set of eight goals with 19 targets, have been criticised as too broad, the current proposed Sustainable Development Goals, containing 17 goals and 169 targets to measure progress, are perhaps too many and too detailed and thereby risk failure of implementation. It also illustrates the ambition and the challenges of a pluralistic world with widely divergent priorities, reinforcing the idea of context-specificity of heritage conservation and resources management. Originality/value – This editorial further extends on the discussion that was started in the inaugural Editorial, of 2011, which stated that “the international debate is expected to intensify as regards a re-orientation of the concept of sustainability and to re-emphasise its meaning in clear and unambiguous terms” (JCHMSD, 1.1:9).

PurposeThe purpose of this article is to introduce the papers selected for the current issue. Furthermore, it provides a common background in presenting and discussing the role of heritage impact assessments, considering the projected growth of their implementation not exclusive to World Heritage properties and their potential role in bringing cultural heritage management and sustainable development closer together.Design/methodology/approachFrom a brief introduction to the background and state‐of‐the‐art on heritage impact assessments, this article describes and explains the ten guidelines recently published to assist cultural heritage managers on the application of heritage impact assessments for World Heritage properties. After this, the role of heritage impact assessments in bridging cultural heritage management and sustainable development will be discussed and new doors opened for further research within the field.FindingsTen recommendations to structure and classify heritage impact assessments have been identified throughout the ICOMOS guidance on Heritage Impact Assessments for World Heritage properties. Yet, only further research and opportunities to implement them will validate their contribution to the efficiency of World Heritage site management.Originality/valueIn providing an overview of heritage impact assessments, this paper is useful to the readers of the journal interested in guidelines on heritage impact assessments for World Heritage properties, and in the wider ramifications of the management of properties designated as cultural heritage. It introduces the state‐of‐the‐art on heritage impact assessments and reveals areas where research has been lacking, which can be taken up by researchers working on this aspect, or even to highlight the relevance of their ongoing research.