Culture in a Global Village: Evaluating Issues of Preserving World Heritage Cities

Ref.: 182
Key theme: 02 Functional integrity of historic urban landscapes
Date of reception: 15/11/2008

AUTHORS (*Main author)

LAWLESS, Julie Williams * (United States of America) - University of Kansas

ABSTRACT

Communities with newly designated World Heritage sites generally celebrate newfound interest in their heritage and welcome international recognition. Newly designated communities expect increases in tourism and service-related development and must tackle the job of interpreting historic landscapes for an international audience while balancing the authenticity of historic landscapes with the needs of new construction. As a community becomes oriented to the attentions of international tourism generated by the listing, what happens to local culture within the community?
A variety of measurements and analysis techniques exist to assess the need for conservation programs and tourism's impacts on the local community. Among these techniques is the use of SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) as a qualitative measurement tool. Conceptually speaking, a SWOT analysis is easy to conduct and can be generalized to apply in most situations of contextual assessment.
The intent of this paper is to highlight the usefulness of SWOT analysis within a World Heritage City to generate a synthesis of design and policy and to assess the impact of tourism on local culture within the community. Its primary focus is a pilot study conducted in January 2009 as part of ongoing research in Melaka, Malaysia. In this intensive, one-day study, a SWOT analysis conducted within the designated heritage core and buffer areas scrutinized the historic context of the World Heritage City. The analysis sought to investigate local and tourist perceptions of the World Heritage listing and to assess potential design considerations for development compatible to the historic context of the City. The SWOT analysis focused on discerning the perceptions of the World Heritage listing with the reality of everyday living in the local community. For this study, the results of the analysis served three purposes: to provide a tool for contextual site assessment, a measurement of local perception of local and national planning policies, and to identify issues for further study within the framework of compatible development. Based on the pilot study, the use of SWOT analysis provided a simple, yet effective tool for measuring and evaluating the perceptions of local residents within the World Heritage City.

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