World Heritage cities management

Abstract

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.

Towards a Heritage-Led Sustainable Post-Conflict Reconciliation: A Policy-Led Perspective

“…The initial analysis adopts keywords that are based on pre-defined set of terms including values, reconstruction, reconciliation and sustainability. These were based on a review of previous similar studies, (see [3,26,27]). During the analysis conducted for this paper, three overlapping steps were followed:…”

“…Clear strategies for manging the sustainability of these assets, to optimize their value, while concurrently safeguarding their cultural significance, have not yet been fully effective in peacetime [3]. However, the challenge of reconstruction in post-conflict situations, where the cultural heritage asset and its values have been partially or totally lost, has been even more controversial.…”

Mega-events and the Preservation of Urban Heritage: Literature Gaps, Potential Overlaps, and a Call for Further Research

“…Chinese historic cities have recently witnessed a significant trend in this direction (Zhang 2008). Beyond the issue of authenticity, the values associated with heritage are becoming increasingly pluralistic (Avrami, Mason, and Some of the expanding expected functions of heritage have been as a tool to address social problems or encourage development (Matero 2011;Pereira Roders and van Oers 2011). Scholars (Pendlebury, Townshend, and Gilroy 2004;Townshend and Pendlebury 1999) and international institutions have called for increased public engagement and inclusion of local citizens within the planning processes of heritage conservation.…”

Captain, where can we find the attributes?

“…Next, it will describe the fieldwork as conducted by a group of students during an eight week research seminar (TU/e), and finally it will relate those two each other and position the results in the perspective of local management practices. Over the past five years, several WH cities have been researched as in-depth case studies with the research program OUV, WH cities and Sustainability led by Pereira Roders (TU/e) and Van Oers (UNESCO; WHITRAP) (Pereira Roders & van Oers, 2010a). This research is part of, and builds on their achievements.…”