Communities and Cultural Heritage

Global Issues, Local Values

Valerie Higgins, Diane Douglas, Valerie Higgins, Diane Douglas

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2020
• ISBN:
  9781000228854
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Art
• Subtopic: Museum Studies

Communities and Cultural Heritage explores the relationship between communities, their cultural heritage and the global forces that control most of the world's wealth and resources in today's world.

Bringing together scholars and heritage practitioners from nine countries, this book contributes to the ongoing dialogue on community heritage by analysing impediments to full community participation. The underminin of local communities comes at a high price. As the chapters in this book demonstrate, the knowledge embedded within traditional and Indigenous heritage creates communities that are more resilient to environmental and social stressors and more responsive to contemporary challenges such as climate change, environmental degradation, post-disaster recovery and relocation. Cultural heritage practices often fail to capitalise upon local knowledge and traditional skills and undervalue the potential contribution of local communities in finding creative and resourceful solutions to the issues they are confronting.

Arguing that the creation of successful community heritage project requires ongoing reflection on the aims, methods, financing and acceptable outcomes of projects, the volume also demonstrates that the decolonization of Western-focussed heritage practices is an ongoing process, by which subaltern groups are brought forward and given a space in the heritage narrative.

Reflecting on trends that impact communities and heritage sites across different geographical regions, Communities and Cultural Heritage will be of interest to academics, students and practitioners of cultural heritage, archaeology and anthropology around the world.

1 Introduction

Valerie Higgins and Diane Douglas

Introduction

This volume brings together practitioners and academics from many geographical regions, from diverse academic backgrounds and engaged with a wide variety of heritage sites. The unifying factor is a focus on working with communities in the safeguarding and promotion of their heritage. The need to involve local communities in decision-making has long been acknowledged by leading organisations such as the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) and the World Bank, but the reality often falls far short of the rhetoric. Small communities are vulnerable in the face of pressure from outside agencies or larger organisations. They find it difficult to defend their own interests and often lack the resources to influence decisions or even get their opinions heard. Time and again local communities are on the receiving end of a decision-making process that undermines their cultural integrity and materially disadvantages them. When examined on an individual basis this is usually explained by reference to local circumstances or regionally specific politics. But there are also broader power relations, international protocols and Western-derived business practices that confound well-intentioned efforts to involve local communities: geopolitical factors, definitions of community, loss of traditional knowledge and customs, funding and the role of outside consultants and experts are concerns that recur throughout the chapters in this book in many different contexts. Whilst each chapter presents heritage issues in a distinctive context, and responses to each issue may be uniquely adapted to the specific circumstances, the fundamental variables underpinning local problems are often similar, and it is these aspects that this book seeks to identify and analyse.

Defining terms: ‘local’, ‘community’ and ‘local communities’

An early problem encountered by the contributors to this volume was the definition of terms. The huge social and economic changes caused by globalisation and migration have transformed classifications that were previously regarded as fairly simple, into ones that are anything but straightforward. Cultural heritage in the 20th century developed a terminology based on notions of national and regional identity, tied to legally established boundaries, reinforced by stable residency patterns. In the middle of the 20th century there would have been little difficulty in discerning a ‘local community’, though probably also very little interest in doing so. The large-scale movements of population after the Second World War have complicated the picture: from lesser developed countries to developed countries; from colonies to the metropole; from rural to urban settlements; and from one part of a nation to another, large numbers of people have been moving. Most retain some sense of identity with their roots and, often, very practical ties of family and financial support. For many people, personal identity is no longer predicated solely on passport and residence. Increasingly, heritage can be claimed by a broader group whose members may be located anywhere (Hassan, Chapter 3). The binary division of being inside or outside a community has given way to more complex definitions that recognise different roles and degrees of affiliation. Members of a community are often described as ‘stakeholders’ but even this definition has its limitations as it assumes that each person has predominantly one role, that will remain largely unchanged, and that each stakeholder group will share a broadly common viewpoint. Whilst the concept of ‘stakeholder’ allows for degrees of affiliation and the recognition of different roles, it often fails to capture the dynamic, multivariant nature of social relations in the 21st century (Pyburn, Chapter 9). Sontum (Chapter 4) describes how immigrant groups in particular can see cultural identity as a protean characteristic, continually in flux. Patterns of movement have also led to more heterogeneity, particularly in urban areas, such that it is often more accurate to talk of ‘communities’ rather than ‘the community’ in a given area

Definitions of ‘local’ are as elusive as definitions of ‘community’ and there are good reasons for re-evaluating the term in light of global connectivity and the way that social media can keep even those physically distant in close contact with decision-making. Many of these arguments overlap with discussions of ‘community’. In this book, the term ‘local’ is used predominantly to describe the people who are situated geographically in the vicinity of the project under discussion and who are most directly affected by it. This is partly a pragmatic decision. Most of the authors are engaged in practical projects on the ground and there is a need to define who will be directly impacted on a daily basis. This is not to negate the very valid feelings of those who identify with the heritage and who may be a valuable part of the larger heritage community, but at certain moments their needs will not be the same as the people who live in the area.

Geopolitical factors impacting local communities

Globalisation, disaster events and demographic changes are the dominant geopolitical factors recognised as influencing almost every geographical region in the world, but they also have a specific and disproportionately negative impact on cultural heritage at a local level. Lacking both the resources devoted to protecting national monuments and the interest generated by international tourism, they are amongst the most vulnerable elements of heritage. Frequently, the problems caused by geopolitical factors do not occur in isolation but work synergistically to amplify adverse effects. Thus, war or flooding can lead to mass migration; demographic changes can make the environmental impact of climate change worse; and globalisation can weaken a community so that it is unable to retain its traditions or respond effectively to an emergency. These interactions can lead to a confusing picture, obscuring the nature of the damaging mechanisms of the underlying factors.

Globalisation

The global interconnectivity that is encompassed by the term ‘globalisation’ has not been beneficial for local communities. It has amplified the power differential between local communities and larger geopolitical forces. Despite protestations that the internet can be a force for democratisation and can help remote communities to access new markets, the reality is that this works more for the benefit of Western societies than non-Western (Pyburn, Chapter 9). In addition, many groups, especially Indigenous communities, do not wish to share or commodify their culture for the benefit of others (Fleming, Chapter 11). The enforced connection with outside interests may represent a threat to their cultural integrity that far outweighs any potential benefit. Local communities can find themselves unwilling participants in economic development plans based on principles that form no part of their value system and that may catastrophically interrupt finely balanced local structures (Douglas, Chapter 15). In many non-Western cultures it is common for social support such as childcare or looking after the sick and elderly to be embedded in economic relations based on principles of reciprocity rather than monetary payment (Jigyasu, Chapter 16; Koohafkan and Price, Chapter 6). Any disruption has grave social, as well as economic and environmental, consequences.

Responding to disaster

Disasters easily overwhelm the resources of small groups often leading to outside intervention that permanently changes the community. Climate change has led to an increase in extreme weather events throughout the world, creating unprecedented risks for agriculture (Fleming, Chapter 11; Koohafkan and Price, Chapter 6). Inevitably the first response to a disaster has to be from the community itself and official policies recognise the value of keeping local communities involved in decision-making. However, as the situation develops, other priorities tend to become paramount and guidelines encouraging engagement with the local community are often ignored (Jigyasu, Chapter 16; Tandon, Chapter 17). Thus, the threat to the local community comes not only from the event itself but potentially also from the international response to it. The influx of large numbers of foreign military and/or aid workers can result in the local community being treated as victims who lack agency (Jigyasu, Chapter 16; Pyburn, Chapter 9; Tandon, Chapter 17). Decisions taken by outside organisations on their behalf, often in ignorance of traditional customs, can permanently undermine their cultural stability. In addition, disaster scenarios often displace the local population, which can all too easily turn into a permanent migration. For many vulnerable communities, a disaster situation – even a temporary one – can be a tipping point leading to permanent cultural decline. The damaging effects are not limited to the immediate situation.

Demographic changes

The global population is growing exponentially, and due to environmental, social, political and economic stressors, more people than ever before are migrating to live in new areas. Since 2007, for the first time in recorded history, more people are living in cities than in rural areas and this trend is predicted to increase over time (UNDESA, 2018). These new migrants bring with them their own cultural traditions and often form distinct communities within their adopted cities, creating new tensions and potential conflict. Several chapters in this volume address the problems faced by the growth of such communities (e.g. Hassan, Chapter 3; Sontum, Chapter 4; Watkins, Chapter 10). Rural areas are also adversely affected by population movements. As young people migrate from rural areas in search of work and educational opportunities, social and economic patterns are often undermined in their rural homelands. With the migration of a community’s youth, there is no one to pass on traditional knowledge and customs.

Traditional knowledge, cultural customs, social relations

As is clear from the above discussion, global geopolitical factors destroy not only the material culture of small communities but also the social structure and, with it, traditional knowledge and intangible cultural heritage (ICH). The disintegration of social networks has immediate effects on the well-being of the community, but also hidden, long-term effects on the transmission of knowledge embedded within social practices.

Underpopulated, rural communities struggle to find the manpower to work the land and pass on to future generations the close textured knowledge of the landscape essential for successful farming (Koohafkan and Price, Chapter 6). In areas frequently hit by extreme weather events or earthquakes, architectural styles have evolved to adapt to these events, but this often goes unrecognised by outside agencies. Local knowledge can be branded as obsolete because it is not scientific. Politicians and experts prefer techno-scientific solutions and view local communities as a barrier rather than a resource, failing to recognise the vital role that traditional building techniques can play in disaster risk reduction (Jigyasu, Chapter 16; Tandon, Chapter 17).

Whilst in rural and remote communities it is depopulation and neglect that is leading to a loss of knowledge and a weakening of social structures, paradoxically it is too many people and too much interest that threatens the traditional lifestyles of other communities. As well as an overall increase in global population, there has also been an unprecedented increase in travel and tourism (Staniscia, Chapter 14). In the face of the economic power of mass tourism, small communities, whose charm lies in their historic heritage, are easily overpowered. Once an area has been given over to tourism, it is very difficult for the local residents to regain control (Higgins, Chapter 5).

Funding community heritage

All...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Series Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Table of Contents
• List of illustrations
• List of contributors
• Acknowledgements
• List of Abbreviations
• Preface
• 1 Introduction
• Section 1 The power of living heritage
• Section 2 Vertical and horizontal management of resources
• Section 3 Managing heritage in disasters
• Epilogue: engaging global issues and local values – scales, culture, concepts and politics
• Index