Negotiating Heritage and Energy Conservation: An Ethnography of Domestic Renovation

Abstract

What is the relationship between energy efficiency and old buildings? While a large body of research exists on the buildings science and technology of retro-fit, relatively little attention has focused on the social practices and assumptions that shape how and whether these technologies are practically applied. The paper presents findings from an ethnographic study of building professionals, planners and home-owners involved in the renovation and retrofit of buildings of attributed historic value. These perspectives highlight how the value of the past is negotiated in a range of socially specific ways, in relation to ideas about climate change and energy efficiency. It is argued that people's understandings of the past shape specific understandings of 'acceptable change' and that the meaning and value of old buildings is itself transformed in relation to these concerns.

Mitigating Climate Change in the Cultural Built Heritage Sector

“…Yarrow [48] investigated the perspectives of building professionals, planners and home owners in relation to not only the issue of climate change mitigation when refurbishing historical buildings, but also on the challenges involved in relation to the impact of energy efficiency improvements on the historical significance of heritage buildings. On the one hand, there is pressure to preserve the authenticity of the historic built environment, but, on the other hand, there is pressure to mitigate climate change.…”

“…Webb [43] further stressed that energy retrofitting of historical buildings can be an opportunity to help preserve them for future generations. There is an inherent complexity in balancing the drivers and constraints of mitigation-related energy retrofitting of historical buildings [48]. There is a desire to improve internal comfort and to reduce operating costs, while the need to preserve heritage values can constrain mitigation actions; for example, Cornaro et al [10] discounted the potential for interior wall insulation due to the presence of frescoes.…”

“…Answering those questions is essential for the development of mitigation measures and for the identification of future research directions. To date, most studies have used quantitative methods, except for Yarrow [48] who followed a qualitative approach. The current study uses a qualitative methodology involving interviews with experts, and the above literature review was conducted to provide background information for the interpretation of the interviewees' responses.…”

How conservation matters: Ethnographic explorations of historic building renovation

“…Among the many interests enjoined through renovation, considerations of energy performance have become increasingly central, driven by pragmatic concerns to reduce costs as energy prices rise, as well as by environmental concerns linked to climate change (see Yarrow, 2016). These concerns are situated through contexts of renovation in a range of ways.…”

“…Cathy and her husband, both accountants, still live in London but plan to retire here. She, in particular, stresses the appeal of the 'character' of the building, deploying a term with wide currency amongst middle-class home owners in the UK (Shove et al, 2007;Yarrow, 2016) and other Euro-American contexts (e.g. Lawrence-Zuniga, 2016).…”