Thinking Deep. Acting on Top. Underground Built Heritage and Its Fringe as a Community Catalyst for Local Sustainable Development: Exploratory Cases from Poland and Greece

Abstract

Underground Built Heritage (UBH) is a distinct class of cultural heritage providing a focal point for community pride and engagement to become a springboard for local sustainable development (LSD). This research aims to articulate how local UBH and its fringe serve as a facilitator of communal identity to mobilize community care towards social and economic development with less involvement from the state and the market actors. For this purpose, local (and less-conspicuous) cases of UBH are employed in Warsaw, Poland, and Volos, Greece, indicating the power of UBH to connect and engage local communities with places, triggering a momentum for a truly bottom-up action that pays less attention to market considerations and state support. The studied UBH sites have been discussed according to an established common framework, dealing with five main issues: (a) general context and status, (b) history, (c) users and management, (d) ecosystem services, and (e) introduction of the paradigm of living labs. The analysis was based on a thorough literature review and complemented by field observations and interviews. The results provide evidence for UBH as a potential facilitator of social and economic development. The case studies in Poland and Greece showed that local actors were involved in activities and social networks of tacit knowledge, generating community building to reinforce bottom-up activities in contact with UBH.

Smart Thinking on Co-Creation and Engagement: Searchlight on Underground Built Heritage

“…The term UBH refers thus to the rich diversity of manmade inherited underground assets, such as houses, cisterns, burial places, galleries, etc. Some examples are explored in the outcomes of this Action [3][4][5]. The Action 'Underground4Value' also aims at providing a better understanding of UBH as a catalyst for sustainable local development, which calls for community engagement.…”

“…The Action 'Underground4Value' also aims at providing a better understanding of UBH as a catalyst for sustainable local development, which calls for community engagement. As Maksymiuk et al [4] rightly pose, activating a UBH asset starts by thinking from the depth and ends by acting on the surface. The interaction between the beneath and the surface can be the anchor for responsive heritage awareness and smart action in cities.…”

Cultural Revitalization of Tha Phae Road: An In-Depth Exploration of Contemporary Lanna Architectural Facades and Urban Identity

“…Efforts aimed at revitalizing Tha Phae Road must delicately balance the imperatives of preservation and development, extending beyond the scope of historic buildings to encompass the broader urban fabric and streetscape. This comprehensive framework for revitalization assumes paramount importance in preserving the timeless charm and allure of Tha Phae Road, enabling forthcoming generations to cherish its architectural heritage and appreciate the unique fusion of modern and traditional elements that it embodies (Giacobello et al, 2022;Pallares-Barbera et al, 2021).…”