PLURAL. History, Culture, Society

7-17

Authors: Anna Gaynutdinova

The article presents the retrospective of various initiatives of engaging local communities in heritage conservation and management taking place in Russia over the last decades. It gives the analysis of their sources, locations and developments in the light of contextual issues of the contemporary social and political circumstances and their influence to the conservation field. It also represents the summary of more than 50 years-long practice of local community engagement in the conservation of WH property “Cultural and Historic Ensemble of the Solovetsky Islands” from the period before it was designated till present.

30-44

Authors: Elena Belokurova, Dmitry Vorobyev

The paper reflects the experiences of the social movements, civic initiatives and NGOs in St. Petersburg and other cities of Russia as well as in some other post-Soviet countries, aimed at the promotion and raising awareness of local populations about the World Heritage value in their cities. These efforts are needed, because the outstanding universal values of the historic centres of St. Petersburg and other cities are threatened by illegal construction, misguided urban planning, neglect and a lack of public attention; churches and cultural landscapes suffer from poor restoration, development pressure and an unregulated tourism boom. These effects are often possible because the almost most local population has no knowledge about the UNESCO World Heritage status and its implications. As a result, they are not sufficiently able to speak out for the protection of their site, and do not know how the status of world cultural heritage can help them.

56-65

Authors: Stephan Doempke

The World Heritage Committee routinely receives information about the state of conservation of WH properties from State Parties or ICOMOS or IUCN mission reports. While State Party Reports are often incomplete, outdated or even incorrect, Advisory Missions suffer from being too short and understaffed in order to fully grasp the local situation. The author will show that the observations of civil society must be brought in as checks and balances to let the WH Committee have a full understanding of the dynamics that affect World Heritage Properties. For many years, UNESCO has been requiring the participation of local communities in all procedures of the World Heritage Convention - from tentative lists and nominations to management and monitoring. However, State Parties remain reluctant to implement this - both on the site level and on the Convention level. In response to this situation, World Heritage Watch has been founded as a global network of civil society actors whose goal is to contribute to the safeguarding of World Heritage Sites by bringing information to the attention of the WH Committee, and to strengthen the role of civil society in the proceedings of the World Heritage Convention. Based on practical experience from the field and four years of activity within the organization, the presentation will explain what civil society has achieved, suggest where the challenges are and how they can be met, and provide an unvarnished outlook on the future of the World Heritage Convention.

77-90

Authors: Alexandra Zbuchea

World Heritage Sites are justifiably considered as valuable cultural and economic resources of a place. Previous research was dedicated to identifying the impact of world heritage sites on local development, as well as their ability to interact with local communities and to attract tourists. The present analysis describes the social fabric around the World Heritage Sites, aiming to understand better how these sites connect with various actors for identifying lines of sustainable management for these heritage sites. The study pinpoints that social interactions are very important in this context and that there is a shift towards two-way relationships between heritage and local communities, public administration, resident businesses, and tourists as well. Heritage site management should consider increasingly more its social value, the local social fabric, communities’ ideals, and subjective well-being, locals’ and tourists’ stories, the voices, characteristics, and interests of multiple stakeholders.

103-119

Authors: Faidon Moudopoulos Athanasiou

The present article exposes a conflict regarding the management of natural and cultural values through time, using the example of woodland management in Zagori (NW Greece) from the late 19th century to the present day (2018). The central question is how a cultural landscape now interpreted as significant enough for potential World Heritage nomination (2014 tentative list), was managed through time by the Greek State in a top-down approach that led to a polarization between natural and cultural values. First, issues of commune woodland management and emic perceptions of values will be addressed, followed by an outline of state economic factors that shaped the national policies that replaced them. The local communities’ reactions during this transformation will be addressed. Finally, it is suggested that such case studies are valuable educational material for heritage professionals, since they offer insights into the processes of site valorization, revealing historical factors, economic stakes, and legislative biases, while also touching upon stakeholder issues.

131-141

Authors: Dumitru Rusu

The “Socialist Modernism” Project is part of an initiative by B.A.C.U. Association focused on protecting built heritage in the former socialist bloc. In that respect, we have launched a campaign for the preservation of buildings that are specific to the socialist modernist period (1955–1991). The architecture of the socialist period, more precisely the modernist tendencies in 1955–1991, is a specific trend in the evolution of architecture in the former socialist bloc. There is increasing international awareness for this trend, as indicated by the creation of scientific communities (the SocHeritage Platform, part of the ICOMOS International Scientific Committee for the 20th century). The chosen period in our study was set by historic events that led to this new architectural tendency. At the time, the approach was inspired by modernist architecture, which came to the capitalist states in Western Europe with a set of principles. In socialist countries, modernist trends first influenced the professional sphere, and through that influence, they were able to penetrate borders and the limits imposed by ideology.

147-150

Authors: Sergiu Musteata

Book review, ALEKSANDER BURSCHE, JOHN HINES, AND ANNA ZAPOLSKA (eds), The Migration Period between the Oder and the Vistula, BRILL: Leiden/Boston, 2020, 1052 pages, volume 1-2