The evolution and conservation of Taiwan's aboriginal art heritage

This thesis synthesises perspectives from heritage, museum studies, anthropology and contemporary art to provide a dynamic account of the role of art among the Aboriginal peoples of Taiwan. It proposes that the continuing practice of contemporary Aboriginal art in Taiwan is an important instrument for maintaining Aboriginal groups' cultural vitality.

Heritage and dialogue : using heritage conservation to strengthen the defences of peace

The Preamble to UNESCO's 1945 Constitution asserted that wars are created in the minds of men and that it is in the minds of men that the defences of peace must be built. Exploring this proposition was vital in the post World-War II years, but it is equally critical in the 21st century when world efforts towards peace continue to be undermined by intense forms of nationalism and ethnic rivalries that commonly use cultural differences as a justification for conflict.

However, while strengthening intercultural dialogue underlies the creation of UNESCO, its flagship World Heritage program under the 1972 World Heritage Convention seems to be losing touch with this motivating principle. In this paper I explore the politicization of the program and argue that a re-focus is needed if the program is to serve in improving intercultural dialogue, understanding and tolerance, and ultimately peace.

To this end it is suggested that ways in which the World Heritage program might provide a stronger focus on dialogue-creation should be prioritized. These include giving priority to new transnational inscriptions and developing new stratagies for interpreting sites in more cross-culturally sensitive ways.

The evolution of national level historic district registration and conservation in China: the Beijing Yandaixiejie and Beijing Guozijian districts in Beijing, China

From the 1980s, Chinese experts from some mainland universities, such as Tongji Universtiy in Shanghai and Tsinghua University in Beijing, commenced research into heritage management and historic architectural conservation in China. With the announcement of the First and Second Lists of 10 Chinese Historic and Cultural Districts in 2009 and 2010, the conservation of historic districts was generally received and elevated in agreements from state-level government to local level governments. This paper considers literature about international and Chinese regulations and presents the evolution of historic district conservation in China. The paper explores the effective and ineffective results of the “Selection Contest of Chinese Top 10 Historic and Cultural Districts” in two cases selected from the First and Second Lists of 10 Chinese Historical and Cultural Districts during upon recent research and investigations. In each example, the paper provides a detailed examination of public awareness and their evaluation of conservation effectiveness through questionnaires.

Making the most of world natural heritage - linking conservation and sustainable regional development?

Today, more than 1000 World Heritage (WH) sites are inscribed on UNESCO’s list, 228 of which are natural and mixed heritage sites. Once focused primarily on conservation, World Natural Heritage (WNH) sites are increasingly seen as promoters of sustainable regional development. Sustainability-oriented regions, it is assumed, are safeguards for conservation and positively influence local conservation goals. Within UNESCO, discussions regarding the integration of sustainable development in official policies have recently gained momentum. In this article, we investigate the extent to which WNH sites trigger sustainability-oriented approaches in surrounding regions, and how such approaches in turn influence the WNH site and its protection. The results of the study are on the one hand based on a global survey with more than 60% of the WNH sites listed in 2011, and on the other hand on a complementary literature research. Furthermore, we analyze the policy framework necessary to support WNH sites in this endeavor. We conclude that a regional approach to WNH management is necessary to ensure that WNH sites support sustainable regional development effectively, but that the core focus of WNH status must remain environmental conservation.

Normalización del análisis de la piedra y conservación del patrimonio cultural. The Standardization of Stone Analysis and Conservation of Cultural Heritage

La normalización de los métodos de análisis y de los principales aspectos relacionados con la conservación de los bienes culturales ha empezado en 2004 con la creación del comité europeo de normalización, CEN/TC 346 Conservation of Cultural Property, que tiene la responsabilidad no solamente de redactar protocolos de ensayos en laboratorio, sino también proponer las recomendaciones más adecuadas para designarlos de forma consensual y conservarlos de la forma más apropiada. Se comentan los aspectos relacionados con el origen de estas normas, el trabajo desarrollado y que muchas de ellas, aunque no estén dirigidas específicamente a la piedra, tienen en cuenta la presencia de este material en objetos arqueológicos, obras de arte, estructuras de fábricas y elementos ornamentales.

Community, connection and conservation: Intangible cultural values in natural heritage - the case of Shirakami-sanchi World Heritage area

Intangible cultural heritage, according to a UNESCO definition, is 'the practices, representations, expressions as well as the knowledge and skills that communities, groups and in some cases individuals recognise as part of their cultural heritage'. Using a case study of Shirakami-sanchi World Heritage Area, this paper illustrates how the local community's conservation commitment was formed through their long-term everyday interactions with nature. Such connectivity is vital to maintaining the authentic integrity of a place that does not exclude humans. An examination of the formation of the community's conservation commitment for Shirakami reveals that it is the community's spiritual connection and place-based identity that have supported conservation, leading to the World Heritage nomination, and it is argued that the recognition of such intangible cultural heritage is vital in conservation. The challenge, then, is how to communicate such spiritual heritage today. Forms of community involvement are discussed in an attempt to answer this question.

The influence of rock fabric in the durability of two sandstones used in the Andalusian Architectural Heritage (Montoro and Ronda, Spain)

Natural stone has been a popular and reliable building material throughout history appearing in many historic monuments and in more recent buildings. Research into the intrinsic properties of specific stones is important because it gives us a greater understanding of the factors that limit and act on them. This can help prevent serious problems from occurring in our buildings bringing both esthetic benefits and financial savings. To this end, the main objective of this research has been to study the influence of the fabric and the mineral composition of two types of sandstone on their durability. The first is a red continental sandstone from the Buntsandstein Age called “Molinaza Roja”, which is quarried in Montoro (Cordoba). The second is quarried in Ronda (Malaga) and is sold under the trade name of “Arenisca Ronda”. It is a light pink-whitish calcarenite deposited during the Late Tortonian to Late Messinian. We characterized their petrological and petrophysical properties by studying their rock fabrics, porous systems and mechanical properties. In order to obtain a complete vision of the behavior of their rock fabrics, we also carried out two decay tests, the salt crystallization and the freeze–thaw tests. We then measured the effects on the textures of the altered samples during and after the decay tests and we evaluated the changes in the porous system. By comparing the results between intact and altered samples, we found that Arenisca Ronda is less durable because it has a high quantity of expandable clays (smectites) and a high percentage of pores in the 0.1–1 μm range, in which the pressure produced by salt crystallization is strongest. In Molinaza Roja the decay agents caused significant sanding due to loss of cohesion between the clasts, especially during the salt crystallization test. In both stones, the anisotropies (oriented textures) have an important role in their hydric and dynamic behavior and also affect their mechanical properties (especially in the compression resistance). No changes in color were detected.

Sustainability of Medicinal Plants in Kerala Economic Considerations in Domestication and Conservation of Forest Resources

The present study on the sustainability of medicinal plants in Kerala economic considerations in domestication and conservation of forest resources. There is worldwide consensus on the fact that medicinal plants are important not only in the local health support systems but in rural income and foreign exchange earnings. Sustainability of medicinal plants is important for the survival of forest dwellers, the forest ecosystem, conserving a heritage of human knowledge and overall development through linkages. More equitable sharing of the benefits from commercial utilization of the medicinal plants was found essential for the sustainability of the plants. Cultivation is very crucial for the sustainability of the sector. Through a direct tie-up with the industry, the societies can earn more income and repatriate better collection charges to its members. Cultivation should be carried out in wastelands, tiger reserves and in plantation forests. In short, the various players in the in the sector could find solution to their specific problems through co-operation and networking among them. They should rely on self-help rather than urging the government to take care of their needs. As far as the government is concerned, the forest department through checking over- exploitation of wild plants and the Agriculture Dept. through encouraging cultivation could contribute to the sustainable development of the medicinal plant sector.

Dien Bien Phu: development and conservation in a Vietnamese cultural landscape

It has been possible to nominate places for their cultural landscape values to the World Heritage List since December 1992. The Operational Guidelines (2005) define cultural landscapes as cultural properties that ‘represent the “combined works of nature and man” designated in Article 1 of the Convention’. They are illustrative of the evolution of human society and settlement over time, under the influence of the physical constraints and/or opportunities presented by their natural environment and of successive social, economic and cultural forces, both internal and external’ (Para 47). Refining this further, the World Heritage system recognises three categories of cultural landscapes:

1. Clearly defined landscapes designed and intentionally created by man;

2. Organically evolved landscapes of two subtypes:
·  Relict or fossil landscapes in which an evolutionary process has come to an end but where its distinguishing features are still visible;
·  Continuing landscapes which retain an active social role in contemporary society associated with a traditional way of life and in which the evolutionary process is still in progress and where it exhibits significant material evidence of its evolution over time;

3. Associative cultural landscapes where the outstanding universal value relates to the powerful religious, artistic, or cultural associations of the natural elements rather than the evidence of material culture.

Moral rights, heritage and Australian contemporary architecture : thoughts & designs of Peter Muller

Peter Muller is one of the most unique Australian architects of the 20th century possessing a passion for organic architecture realised in several significant Australian and Indonesian design exemplars. His inquiry in the organic style of architecture stylistically mirrors that of Frank Lloyd Wright whom wrote to Muller expressing his pleasure in his successful pursuit of this style in Australia.3 This paper considers the position of moral rights under the Australian Copyright Act 19684 having regard to the Australian exemplars of Muller. It considers recent Australian debates about moral rights and projects that implicate several architectural and landscape architecture projects, the interpretations the legal fraternity are taking in approaching this topic, and positions the ideas, values, and attitudes of Muller in this context. Muller’s personal opinion is expressed providing an insight into the thoughts of one senior contemporary Australia architect as to 'their' architecture and ‘heritage’.

Heritage and globalisation

This volume analyzes the politics, policy and practice of cultural heritage at the global level, identifying the major directions in which international heritage practice is moving, and exploring the key issues likely to shape the cultural heritage field well into the twenty-first century. It examines the tensions between the universal claims of much heritage practice, particularly that associated with the World Heritage system, and national and local perspectives. It explores the international legal framework developed since World War Two to protect heritage, particularly at times of war, and from theft, showing how contemporary global problems of conflict and illicit trade continue to challenge the international legal system.