Short reviews

Citation

(2014), "Short reviews", Journal of Cultural Heritage Management and Sustainable Development, Vol. 4 No. 1. https://doi.org/10.1108/JCHMSD-03-2014-0012

Short reviews

Article Type: Short reviews From: Journal of Cultural Heritage Management and Sustainable Development, Volume 4, Issue 1

New Books

Cultural Heritage Politics in China
Edited by Tami Blumenfield and Helaine Silverman
The book contains a selection of thematically organized case studies conducted by predominantly Northern-American and Asian authors on Chinese or China-related heritage sites. The book aims to provide a nuanced picture of the complex and tangled web of concerns and interests when it comes to cultural significance and the meaning of heritage on local, national and global levels. This is positioned within the discussion of “profit and pride”, or in other words, the integration or clash between protection and (socio-) economic development in China, which is highly relevant in the context of this rapidly changing nation and its great variety of local communities and ethnic minorities.

Architecture Re-assembled: The Use (and Abuse) of History
Author: Trevor Garnham
Review by Paloma Guzman
Garnham uses Nietzsche's crosscurrent interpretation to emphasize the importance of critical history for the “life” of a culture, as the starting point for his reflection on the practice of architectural design through historiography. He compares principles with practice, and tradition with innovation, and discusses the way in which western architects respond, by means of design, to the rise of changing ideas of modern history. Graham's point of view on architecture is that it has turned towards mechanical or technological conceptions. Therefore, he proposes that fundamental ground for architecture must acknowledge the significance of history, tradition and memory as they are fundamental for human experience. A chronological reflection on architectural design is presented in eleven chapters that range from the beginning of modernity up to contemporary architecture.

Understanding Heritage: Perspectives in Heritage Studies
Edited by Marie-Theres Albert, Roland Bernecker, Britta Rudolff
This book is the first of a new book series in Heritage Studies, which aims to further develop the field of heritage studies as an academic discipline by discussing the value of heritage and heritage studies for human development. This first volume is reflecting on existing and innovative paradigms in the field in order to establish a first stage for discussion and to (re)position heritage studies as an academic discipline. The book's content ranges from questions of sustainable protection and re-use, conservation as change management, and the role of tangible and intangible heritage, to the relation between memory and heritage, and the significance and meaning of heritage for mankind. Chapters address the fundamental questions but also show possible tools and approaches towards research and practice.

Past events

Conference/IAIA14 Impact Assessment for Social and Economic Development
8-11 April 2014, Viña del Mar, Chile
Report by Paloma Guzman
The International Association for Impact Assessment organized their 34rd Annual Conference, which gathered a large and varied group of participants, academics as well as policy makers and consultants, from all over the world. The conference debated future solutions for the increased pressures of climate change, socio-economic development and urban growth, and its (cumulative) impacts on natural, human and cultural resources. The conference included a great variety of parallel sessions, forums, discussions and speed mentoring sessions for the next generation, which were spread over full but rewarding days. During the days before and after the conference, a series of optional training courses and technical visits were organized.
Source: www.iaia.org

Workshop/Historic Urban Landscape (HUL) Workshop Ng’ambo
11-13 February 2014, Zanzibar, United Republic of Tanzania
Report by Ana Pereira Roders
The HUL workshop Ng’ambo, Zanzibar was a three-day international workshop and conference, joining around 100 people, including representatives of local communities and stakeholders, the UNESCO Field Office in Dar es Salaam, UNESCO's World Heritage Centre, ICOMOS, IFLA and BSLA, AAMatters, as well as several universities. AAMatters presented their fieldwork that included a background study, spatial and land use mapping, as well as a preliminary visioning on the future development of a part of the Ng’ambo area, while additional presentations on HUL shared the outcomes of relevant case studies worldwide. Together, these activities fostered a rich dialogue that yielded detailed comments and recommendations for the area. However, the fact that Zanzibar has been the object of research on several occasions already also generated some dissatisfaction among the stakeholders, as all those different studies lack coherence and interdependence, as well as concrete follow-up.
Source: www.aamatters.nl

Conference/ISDRC19, Just Transitions: A global perspective
1-3 July 2013, Stellenbosch, South Africa
Report by Johan J. Swart
The International Sustainable Development Research Society's 19th conference was held in the picturesque Stellenbosch wine district, outside of Cape Town, South Africa. The event successfully provided a platform for a diverse and international group to discuss the concept of sustainability and its implications on their respective fields. The conference theme, “just transitions: a global perspective”, generated papers and presentations that both analysed and produced ideas on how to manage the transitions that our natural and urban environments are going through, and discussed the transitions required to achieve sustainability through the way we design, manage and value the processes and products of development.
Source: http://isdrc19.co.za

Tools and web sites

Web/Arches
The Getty Conservation Institute and World Monuments Fund are developing an open-source, web-based, geospatial information system for cultural heritage inventory and management: Arches. The first publicly available version of the Arches source code was released in January 2013. It is available for interested information technology specialists to evaluate and provide feedback. By now, a more advanced version of the system has been released, ready for heritage organizations to customize and deploy. Arches incorporates internationally adopted standards for heritage inventory, semantic modelling and information technology. Arches has been accepted as one of the open-source projects in its 2014 Summer of Code programme by Google.
Source: http://archesproject.org

Web/HUL
In March 2014 the World Heritage Institute of Training and Research for the Asia-Pacific region (WHITRAP), under the auspices of UNESCO, launched a web site especially dedicated to the HUL. This is the new approach promoted by UNESCO to managing heritage resources in highly dynamic environments. The web site explains the WHAT, WHY and HOW of the HUL approach and aims to provide updated information on the various initiatives that are currently being undertaken, by WHITRAP and its partners, to implement HUL in several pilot cities in the Asia-Pacific region.
Source: www.historicurbanlandscape.com

App/Aga Khan Award for Architecture App
Aga Khan developed an Architecture App (free) for the Aga Khan Award for Architecture projects. The Award is offered every three years since 1977. The application contains the list of projects that have received the Award up to 2013, with detailed documentation, including photos, videos, drawings and descriptions. The award is meant for projects that set new standards of excellence in architecture, planning practices, historic preservation and landscape architecture. Projects can be anywhere in the world, as long as they successfully address the needs and aspirations of societies in which Muslims have a significant presence.
Source: www.akdn.org/architecture