World Heritage Cultural Landscapes a Handbook for Conservation and Management

World Heritage papers26 World Heritage Cultural Landscapes A Handbook for Conservation and Management World Heritage Cultural Landscapes A Handbook for Conservation and Management Nora Mitchell, Mechtild Rössler, Pierre-Marie Tricaud (Authors/Ed.) Drafting group Nora Mitchell, Mechtild Rössler, Pierre-Marie Tricaud Editorial Assistant Christine Delsol Contributors Carmen Añón Feliú Alessandro Balsamo* Francesco Bandarin* Disclaimer Henry Cleere The ideas and opinions expressed in this publication are those of Viera Dvoráková the authors and are not necessarily those of UNESCO and do not Peter Fowler commit the Organization. Eva Horsáková Jane Lennon The designations employed and the presentation of material in this Katri Lisitzin publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever Kerstin Manz* on the part of UNESCO concerning the legal status of any country, Nora Mitchell territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delim- Meryl Oliver itation of its frontiers or boundaries. Saúl Alcántara Onofre John Rodger Published in November 2009 by the UNESCO World Heritage Centre Mechtild Rossler* Anna Sidorenko* The publication of this volume was financed by the Netherlands Herbert Stovel Fund-in-Trust. Pierre-Marie Tricaud Herman van Hooff* Augusto Villalon World Heritage Centre Christopher Young UNESCO (* UNESCO staff) 7, place de Fontenoy 75352 Paris 07 SP France Coordination of the World Heritage Paper Series Tel. : 33 (0)1 45 68 15 71 Vesna Vujicic Lugassy Fax: 33 (0)1 45 68 55 70 Website: http://whc.unesco.org Graphic design Original layout by Recto Verso © UNESCO, 2009 Realization by Jean-Luc Thierry All rights reserved. Cover photo ISBN 978-92-3-104146-4 Sacred Mijikenda Kaya Forests (Kenya) © Bakonirina Rakotomamonjy Printed at UNESCO in December 2009 2 Preface World Heritage Cultural Landscapes, a category adopted by the World Heritage Committee in 1992, has been in a way the precursor of the considerations of the Global Strategy for a balanced and representative World Heritage List of 1994, and of the major considerations by expert groups and the World Heritage Committee in bringing nature and culture closer together in the implementation of the World Heritage Convention. Issues related to mixed cultural and natural heritage and the intrinsic links between communities and their natural environment have been discussed since the World Heritage Convention came into being with its adoption in 1972. In the early years the balance between natural and cultural heritage was discussed, as well as the “combined works of men and nature”. For years the Committee debated as to how this feature could be considered for inscription. The “break-through” came only in 1992 at the World Heritage Committee level – it was a crucial year, as the first “Earth Summit” took place, the UN Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro. This paved the way for a new thinking on human beings and their environment, linking culture and nature, with a vision of sustainable development. The awareness raised at the level of government, NGOs and civil society helped to accept “cultural landscapes” as a category of sites for nomination. The first such property was inscribed in 1993: Tongariro National Park (New Zealand), a natural site recognized for its associative cultural value, a sacred site and cultural landscape. This inscription, as well as the one of Uluru Kata Tjuta (Australia) in 1994, demonstrated at the same time that there was a major change taking place in the interpretation of this global conservation instrument that is the World Heritage Convention: an opening towards cultures in regions other than Europe (Pacific, Caribbean, sub- Saharan Africa), a recognition of the non-monumental character of the heritage of cultural landscapes, the acknowledgement of the links between cultural and biological diversity, specifically with sustainable land-use. Today 66 cultural landscapes have been inscribed on the World Heritage List, most of them living cultural landscapes, less relic and associative types. The trend has been confirmed over time that these categories provide an opening of the World Heritage Convention for cultures not or under-represented prior to 1992: the inscription of the Kaya Forest Systems in Kenya or the Chief Roi Mata’s Domain in Vanuatu, the Kuk Early Agricultural site in Papua New Guinea or the Tobacco production of Vinales Valley in Cuba. None of these sites would have had a chance prior to 1992 of being recognized as cultural heritage on a global scale. This is the major importance of the inclusion of the cultural landscape category in the operations of the Convention. 3 0 World Heritage Cultural Landscapes, a Handbook for Conservation and Management However these sites face major challenges: it is the work of properties, as well as with those for the preparation of local communities and indigenous people, the daily work World Heritage nominations. and lives which maintain these sites, often through their own protection measures, not by official legal provisions; The increasing number of cultural landscapes included in with the adoption of the cultural landscape categories the World Heritage List shows the interest of govern- customary law and management system have been ments, societies and the general public in the conservation accepted at a global level. This was another major step of their heritage, their interaction with their natural envi- forward, which was only later agreed to for natural ronment and their commitment to preserving the heritage heritage. There is however a major need to assist in site for generations to follow. management, in managing the complex interaction between people and nature which is considered to be of outstanding universal value, but also in maintaining the integrity of these places in a world of global socio- economic change and climate change. Francesco Bandarin Director Cultural landscapes have also opened a new avenue for UNESCO World Heritage Centre international collaboration: new projects with other UN agencies, including FAO on agricultural landscapes and UNEP on linkages between cultural and biological diversity were made possible. At the same time new cooperation among UNESCO’s cultural heritage Conventions has emerged and will further evolve, in particular with the 2003 Convention on the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage on the interaction between the tangible and intangible heritage. Furthermore, a new topic on the conservation of historic urban landscapes is currently under discussion in view of a future UNESCO standard setting instrument in this regard. During the past years the effective management of World Heritage properties was identified as an urgent need by the Periodic Reporting process for all regions of the world. The World Heritage Committee supported the preparation of a series of resource manuals to assist States Parties, national, regional and municipal authorities, World Heritage site managers and other stakeholders and partners in World Heritage management. This Handbook for World Heritage Cultural Landscapes, although not prepared within the Resource Manuals series, is neverthe- less closely connected. It should be read in conjunction with the manuals for the management of natural and cultural 4 Foreword Cultural landscapes are those where human interaction with natural systems has, over a long time, formed a distinctive landscape. These interactions arise from, and cause, cultural values to develop. Managing these values, with their material, physical evidence and non- material associations, so that they remain of outstanding universal value, is the particular challenge for World Heritage cultural landscape managers. To help in this task, this book presents ideas that should be considered, issues that should be addressed and processes that should be used. In support, it offers policies and case studies from different parts of the world. World Heritage Cultural Landscapes, A Handbook For Conservation and Management fulfils a need identified by the World Heritage Committee and many site managers. The requirement for such advice was evident during consideration of the 1993 Action Plan for Cultural Landscapes of Outstanding Universal Value, and has since been reinforced at many expert meetings, and at site level in the growing number of cultural landscapes included on the World Heritage List. With the adoption of the cultural landscape categories in 1992 and their incorporation into the Operational Guidelines, the way has been opened to include cultural landscapes in the World Heritage List. In the ensuing years, there have been many regional and international thematic expert meetings examining World Heritage cultural landscapes in all regions of the world. The advice in this publication is intended to help address issues involved in selecting representative examples of cultural landscapes of outstanding universal value for inscription on the World Heritage List, and more especially issues that arise in the on-the-ground management of cultural landscapes, many of which face challenging pressures from global change processes and trends in contemporary society. Many guidelines are available on managing national parks, archaeological sites, historic buildings and landscapes in general. There is over a century of excellent professional work in managing some of the world’s most outstanding scenic landscapes and historic gardens. However, no text specifically examines the particular issues involved in managing

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