The international histories of cultural heritage protection have been commonly focussed on the Eurocentric trajectories of heritage evolution in the twentieth century and trace the Western roots of ...cultural globalisation in the field of conservation and preservation of monuments. The current theme section offers the first examination of the contribution of socialist states, institutions and experts to the evolution of heritage concepts and policies in the postwar world. In what ways have socialist countries approached the conservation, handling and exhibition of cultural heritage differently to nonsocialist countries? How have tangible and intangible heritages been mobilised in support of socialist political agendas? What role did actors from socialist states play in the development of international heritage protection policies that proliferated in the wake of the Second World War? And to what extent did the Soviet Union and the wider Second World of the Cold War export and shape the development of socialist approaches to heritage in Third World? The collected articles in this themed section not only demonstrate the similarity of heritage policy formation in the so-called First and Second worlds but show the role that socialist states played in world geographies of cultural heritage.
We explore whether local planning culture influences the effectiveness of heritage impact assessment (HIA) and we discuss the legitimacy of ICOMOS, the international advisory body to UNESCO on ...cultural heritage. We examined the HIA processes for two proposed infrastructure projects that potentially could affect the Defence Line of Amsterdam World Heritage site in the Netherlands. We interviewed key stakeholders involved in decision-making about these projects, and found that the Dutch planning culture positively influenced the effectiveness of the HIA processes. The interviewees predominantly discussed the substantive and transactive effectiveness of the HIA processes in that they praised the practitioner for facilitating a clear, inclusive and transparent process and having a solution-oriented mindset, which is common practice in the Dutch planning culture. However, in contrast to the Dutch planning culture, the role of ICOMOS was perceived as opaque and a 'black box', although this did not decrease its legitimacy among the key stakeholders.
In many parts of the global South heritage is one of the major drivers for destination development. This case study builds upon the existing international scholarship on heritage as a driver for ...local economic development. The focus on the study is Mahikeng and the wider Ngaka Modiri Molema District in the North West province where there is a wealth of underutilised local cultural and heritage assets. This valuable asset base stems from the area’s history of multi-cultural interactions and with important historical events that occurred in the area relating to the colonial town of Mafeking; the Siege of Mafeking, the founding of the Boy Scout movement and the Anglo-Boer War (South African War); the life of David Livingstone; the life and experiences of prominent African leaders like Sol Plaatje and Dr (Ngaka) Modiri Molema; and, African cultural heritage. However, many heritage assets in the area are underutilised due to the peripheral location of the town, poor marketing and low visitor numbers, as well as, poor maintenance. Arguably, Mahikeng and its surrounds enjoys a rich heritage asset base which offers latent opportunities for a future expansion of heritage tourism and an expanded contribution of tourism for the local economy.
The article explores the relationship between corporate architecture and corporate heritage brand identity. It scrutinises the process by which architectural design enacts an idiosyncratic ...architectural style by mobilising resources from organisational, cultural and social heritage. In addition to desktop research, including interdisciplinary resources, an empirical case study of bank buildings in France is used to develop the argument. The data collection includes two personal interviews with bank managers and on-site guided visits of landmark buildings. The data are triangulated by supplemental company material and archival research. The notion of
architectural heritage conduits
is introduced to discuss the findings. The original contribution of the article consists in exploring the architectural features that materialise organisational identity, whilst drawing on social, cultural and artistic heritage. The implications for managers and practitioners suggest that the creation of a
sui generis
architectural style repertoire differentiates the corporate heritage brand in a competitive environment.
Climate change impacts on diverse cultural heritage is gaining scholarly and policy attention, yet little research has been conducted on how can diverse cultural heritage inform decisionmakers and ...policymakers in achieving climate change actions (i.e., climate change adaptation and mitigation). For this study, we conducted semi-structured interviews with Dutch cultural heritage and environmental or climate change experts (n = 52) and participant observations across the Netherlands to explore the importance of cultural heritage benefits and their relation to climate change actions. We also explored the perceptions of cultural heritage management over time, including the influence of climate policy on heritage practice in the Netherlands. Our findings show that experts perceived a multiplicity of heritage benefits as important in supporting and informing present and future climate change actions. The most salient benefits were informational benefits where diverse cultural heritage is perceived as an important source of knowledge about past societal, economic and environmental developments and changes. Further, heritage management was perceived as constantly changing over time, reflecting the transformative nature of diverse heritage types. Experts agreed that climate policy has already influenced cultural heritage practice in the Netherlands. Lastly, the interrelationships between heritage benefits and management were identified and characterised. This study informs both cultural heritage and climate change research agendas and helps leverage diverse cultural heritage into climate change adaptation and mitigation policies.
•Cultural heritage can support climate change actions in the Netherlands.•The most salient benefits are informational benefits, followed by social benefits.•Cultural heritage management has been changing and continuously evolving.•Heritage practice has changed and may further change due to climate policy.•Interrelationships between heritage benefits and management are identified.
The article provides a comprehensive comparative analysis of the acoustics of wooden Catholic and Orthodox churches in Poland, all of which are UNESCO World Heritage sites. Using data collected as ...part of the “Multisensory UNESCO” digitalization project, evaluation of acoustic parameters such as reverberation time, speech and music clarity and others in each church was provided. The findings reveal that Catholic churches exhibit more acoustic diversity than Orthodox ones, and the acoustic characteristics of these spaces reflect not only their physical attributes but also their cultural and liturgical contexts. The research underscores the importance of preserving these unique acoustic environments, which contribute significantly to the historical and cultural value of these churches.
•Echoes of faith: acoustic Differences In UNESCO wooden churches of Southern Poland.•Hearing the past: acoustic study of Orthodox and catholic wooden churches in Poland.•Soundscapes of heritage: a study of acoustics in Southern Poland's wooden churches.•Orthodox vs catholic: A sound comparison in Poland's UNESCO wooden churches.
The emotions perceived by tourists and their effects in the tourism context are increasingly highlighted in tourism studies. In the cultural heritage tourism context, tourists’ emotional experience ...comes from their cognitive evaluation of the natural environment and the humanistic environment and triggers deep cognitive processing and prosocial behavior, further building tourists’ identity with culture and enhancing their awareness and heritage conservation behavior. Based on the theory of emotional evaluation and positive emotional expansion and construction, this study constructed the research model of emotional arousal—positive emotional experience—tourists’ cultural identity—heritage protection behavior. Three hundred and ninety-seven tourists’ data were empirically tested using the World Heritage Site, the Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes, as a case site. The study found that in the cultural heritage tourism context, the cognitive evaluation of the natural and humanistic environment has the effect of inducing positive emotional experience among tourists; positive emotional experience positively influences tourists’ cultural identity and heritage conservation behavior; and they are part of the mediating variables of tourists’ emotion elicitation and cultural identity. The results of this study will further enrich the theoretical research on emotions in the cultural heritage tourism context and also help the relevant departments of cultural heritage tourism further enhance tourists’ cultural identity and heritage conservation behaviors from the perspective of tourists’ emotional experience. The future research could focus on investigating the emotional triggers’ impact on tourists’ cultural identity and heritage conservation behavior in relation to a particular cultural experience activity.
Tourism interpretation is an important approach to assisting tourists to obtain the authentic values of heritage destinations so that the effectiveness of tourism interpretation in delivering natural ...and cultural values becomes of significance. Nevertheless, existing studies have drawn inconsistent conclusions on the effectiveness of interpersonal and non-personal interpretation. Therefore, this study aims to compare perceived heritage values when they are subjected to interpersonal and non-personal interpretations. Further, the study seeks to examine whether interpretive information and interpretive principles affect perceived heritage values. An empirical study was carried out in the World Heritage destination of Wulingyuan in Hunan province, China. Results indicate that interpersonal interpretation outperforms non-personal interpretation in delivering heritage values. Moreover, tourists focus more on the contents of the interpretation than the media the interpretation through which it is delivered. The cultural values of heritage are better interpreted by tour guides. This study is useful to instruct heritage destination managers, as well as to enhance the experience and knowledge of tourists.
•Perception of heritage values is influenced by interpretive information and interpretive principles.•Tourists with a tour guide perceived higher heritage values than those without.•Tourists emphasized the connotation of interpretation instead of expressions and patterns of interpretive manifestation.•The cultural values of heritage could be better interpreted by tour guides.
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