This session will reflect on innovative practices in heritage economics. Since the beginning of modern conservation, the protection and preservation of tangible heritage still justifies itself on the basis of cultural values considered as intrinsic values (values that things have inherently, for what they are, or as an end). But during its evolution, heritage conservation has faced more challenges, partly because of the successful addition of heritage sites, monuments, and buildings that require additional financial means, partly because of the threatening environment of urbanization, rural exodus, and climate change. These challenges have been so great that protection and preservation of cultural heritage today cannot be justified anymore on the sole basis of intrinsic cultural values. As a consequence, intrinsic values may become one means among other cultural values that may be intermediary values to achieve overarching goals. A new paradigm of conservation based not only on what heritage stands for, but on what heritage contributes to achieve.

This session aims to reflect on that new paradigm, and to the contribution of heritage economics to it, by showing evidence for innovative practices. Synchronizing values and goals, cultural significance and sustainable development, means and ends of conservation, requires to activate pluri-disciplinary techniques at every step of the conservation process (documenting, planning, restoring, monitoring), and to do so with the help of innovative models in terms of governance, partnership, financing and decision-making.

MODERATOR Ruba Saleh (Palestine/Italy)

SPEAKERS

Alessio Re (Italy) – Topic: Innovative schemes for economic investment on cultural heritage

Christer Gustafson (Sweden) – Topic: Cultural heritage and innovation – smart heritage-based development strategies

Donovan Rypkema (USA) – Topic: Beyond tourism: the other economic impacts of heritage conservation

Luigi Fusco Girard (Italy) – Topic: Towards impacts assessment framework for circular “human-centered” adaptive reuse of cultural heritage