Click through the PLOS taxonomy to find articles in your field.

For more information about PLOS Subject Areas, click here .

Loading metrics

Open Access

Peer-reviewed

Research Article

Exploring the relationships between heritage tourism, sustainable community development and host communities’ health and wellbeing: A systematic review

Roles Data curation, Formal analysis, Investigation, Methodology, Project administration, Writing – original draft, Writing – review & editing

Affiliation Translational Health Research Institute, School of Medicine, Western Sydney University, Sydney, Australia

ORCID logo

Roles Conceptualization, Formal analysis, Writing – original draft, Writing – review & editing

Affiliations School of Social Sciences, Western Sydney University, Sydney, Australia, Department of Archaeology, University of York, York, United Kingdom

* E-mail: [email protected]

Roles Conceptualization, Data curation, Formal analysis, Methodology, Supervision, Writing – original draft, Writing – review & editing

Affiliations Translational Health Research Institute, School of Medicine, Western Sydney University, Sydney, Australia, Maternal, Child and Adolescent Health Program, Burnet Institute, Melbourne, Australia

  • Cristy Brooks, 
  • Emma Waterton, 
  • Hayley Saul, 
  • Andre Renzaho

PLOS

  • Published: March 29, 2023
  • https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0282319
  • Reader Comments

Fig 1

Previous studies examining the impact of heritage tourism have focused on specific ecological, economic, political, or cultural impacts. Research focused on the extent to which heritage tourism fosters host communities’ participation and enhances their capacity to flourish and support long-term health and wellbeing is lacking. This systematic review assessed the impact of heritage tourism on sustainable community development, as well as the health and wellbeing of local communities. Studies were included if they: (i) were conducted in English; (ii) were published between January 2000 and March 2021; (iii) used qualitative and/or quantitative methods; (iv) analysed the impact of heritage tourism on sustainable community development and/or the health and wellbeing of local host communities; and (v) had a full-text copy available. The search identified 5292 articles, of which 102 articles met the inclusion criteria. The included studies covering six WHO regions (Western Pacific, African, Americas, South-East Asia, European, Eastern Mediterranean, and multiple regions). These studies show that heritage tourism had positive and negative impacts on social determinants of health. Positive impacts included economic gains, rejuvenation of culture, infrastructure development, and improved social services. However, heritage tourism also had deleterious effects on health, such as restrictions placed on local community participation and access to land, loss of livelihood, relocation and/or fragmentation of communities, increased outmigration, increases in crime, and erosion of culture. Thus, while heritage tourism may be a poverty-reducing strategy, its success depends on the inclusion of host communities in heritage tourism governance, decision-making processes, and access to resources and programs. Future policymakers are encouraged to adopt a holistic view of benefits along with detriments to sustainable heritage tourism development. Additional research should consider the health and wellbeing of local community groups engaged in heritage tourism. Protocol PROSPERO registration number: CRD42018114681.

Citation: Brooks C, Waterton E, Saul H, Renzaho A (2023) Exploring the relationships between heritage tourism, sustainable community development and host communities’ health and wellbeing: A systematic review. PLoS ONE 18(3): e0282319. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0282319

Editor: Tai Ming Wut, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, HONG KONG

Received: April 29, 2022; Accepted: February 14, 2023; Published: March 29, 2023

Copyright: © 2023 Brooks et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License , which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

Data Availability: All relevant data are within the paper.

Funding: The author(s) received no specific funding for this work.

Competing interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Introduction

Tourism, heritage, and sustainable development go hand in hand. Socio-economically, tourism is considered a vital means of sustainable human development worldwide, and remains one of the world’s top creators of employment and a lead income-generator, particularly for Global South countries [ 1 ]. For most low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), tourism is a key component of export earnings and export diversification, and a major source of foreign-currency income [ 1 ]. In 2019, prior to the international travel restrictions implemented to contain the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19), export revenues from international tourism were estimated at USD 1.7 trillion, the world’s third largest export category after fuels and chemicals with great economic impacts. Tourism remains a major part of gross domestic product, generating millions of direct and indirect jobs, and helping LMICs reduce trade deficits [ 1 ]. It accounts for 28 per cent of the world’s trade in services, 7 per cent of overall exports of goods and services and 1 out of 10 jobs in the world [ 1 ]. Given this, it is anticipated that tourism will play a strong role in achieving all of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), but particularly Goals 1 (No poverty), 8 (Decent work and economic growth), 12 (Responsible consumption and production), 13 (Climate action) and 14 (Life below water).

To ensure tourism’s continued contribution to sustainable development efforts, the World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) has established the T4SDG platform in order to “to make tourism matter on the journey to 2030” [ 2 ]. Likewise, in recognition of the relationship between heritage, tourism, and sustainable development, UNESCO launched the World Heritage and Sustainable Tourism Programme, which was adopted by the World Heritage Committee in 2012. This Programme encapsulates a framework that builds on dialogue and stakeholder cooperation to promote an integrated approach to planning for tourism and heritage management in host countries, to protect and value natural and cultural assets, and develop appropriate and sustainable tourism pathways [ 3 ].

The addition of ‘heritage’ creates an important sub-category within the tourism industry: heritage tourism. This study adopts a broad definition of ‘heritage’, which encompasses the intersecting forms of tangible heritage, such as buildings, monuments, and works of art, intangible or living heritage, including folklore, cultural memories, celebrations and traditions, and natural heritage, or culturally infused landscapes and places of significant biodiversity [ 4 ]. This encompassing definition captures ‘heritage’ as it is understood at the international level, as evidenced by two key UNESCO conventions: the 1972 Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage , which protects cultural, natural, and mixed heritage; and the 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage , which protects intangible heritage. Although the identification, conservation and management of heritage has traditionally been driven by national aspirations to preserve connections with history, ancestry, and national identity, the social and economic benefits of heritage tourism at community levels have also been documented [ 5 ].

Heritage tourism, as one of the oldest practices of travelling for leisure, is a significant sector of the tourism industry. It refers to the practice of visiting places because of their connections to cultural, natural, and intangible heritage and is oriented towards showcasing notable relationships to a shared past at a given tourism destination [ 4 ]. It contributes to global interchange and inter-cultural understanding [ 4 ]. Heritage tourism places economic and political value on recognised heritage resources and assets, providing additional reasons to conserve heritage further to the cultural imperatives for its maintenance [ 5 ]. By drawing on the cultural and historical capital of a community, heritage tourism can contribute to the flourishing of local communities and their positive sustainable development. However, as this systematic review will demonstrate, when applied uncritically and without meaningful engagement with the needs of local stakeholder, heritage tourism can also elicit damaging effects on community health and wellbeing.

First published in 1987, the classic report ‘ Our Common Future’ , more commonly known as the Brundtland Report, conceptualised sustainable development as “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs” [ 6 ]. Although this definition still works for many purposes, it emphasised the critical issues of environment and development whilst turning on the undefined implications of the word ‘needs’. In the report, the concept of sustainable development thus left unspecified the assumed importance of distinct cultural, political, economic, and ecological needs as well as health needs. Drawing on the work of globalization and cultural diversity scholar, Paul James [ 7 ], in this study we have defined ‘positive sustainable development’ as those “practices and meanings of human engagement that make for lifeworlds that project the ongoing probability of natural and social flourishing”, taking into account questions of vitality, relationality, productivity and sustainability.

Study rationale

For many years, the impact of heritage tourism has predominantly been viewed through ecological [ 8 , 9 ], economic and cultural [ 10 , 11 ] or political [ 12 ] lenses. For example, it has often been assumed that the conservation of historic, cultural, and natural resources, in combination with tourism, will naturally lead to sustainable local economies through increases in employment opportunities, provisioning of a platform for profitable new business opportunities, investment in infrastructure, improving public utilities and transport infrastructures, supporting the protection of natural resources, and, more recently, improving quality of life for local residents [ 13 – 15 ].

Similarly, the impact of heritage tourism on health and wellbeing has tended to focus on visitors’ wellbeing, including their health education and possible health trends, medical aspects of travel preparation, and health problems in returning tourists [ 16 – 18 ]. It has only been more recently that host communities’ health needs and wellbeing have been recognised as an intrinsic part of cultural heritage management and sustainable community development [ 19 ]. In this literature, it has been hypothesised that potential health implications of heritage tourism are either indirect or direct. Indirect effects are predominantly associated with health gains from heritage tourism-related economic, environmental, socio-cultural, and political impacts [ 20 ]. In contrast, health implications associated with direct impacts are closely associated with immediate encounters between tourism and people [ 20 ]. Yet, little is known of the overall generative effects of heritage tourism on sustainable community development, or the long-term health and wellbeing of local communities. For the first time, this systematic review identified and evaluated 102 published and unpublished studies in order to assess the extent to which heritage tourism fosters host communities’ participation and, consequently, their capacity to flourish, with emphasis placed on the long-term health impacts of this. The primary objective of the review was to determine: (1) what the impacts of heritage tourism are on sustainable community development; as well as (2) on the health and wellbeing of local host communities. Understanding the relationship between heritage tourism, sustainable community development and health is essential in influencing policies aimed at improving overall livelihood in local host communities, as well as informing intervention strategies and knowledge advancement.

This systematic review adhered to the guidelines and criteria set out in the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) 2020 statement [ 21 ]. A protocol for this review was registered with PROSPERO (CRD42018114681) and has been published [ 22 ].

Search strategy

In order to avoid replicating an already existing study on this topic, Cochrane library, Google Scholar and Scopus were searched to ensure there were no previous systematic reviews or meta-analyses on the impact of heritage tourism on sustainable community development and the health of local host communities. No such reviews or analyses were found. The search then sought to use a list of relevant text words and sub-headings of keywords and/or MeSH vocabulary according to each searched database. Derived from the above research question, the key search words were related to heritage tourism, sustainable community development, and health and wellbeing of local host communities. A trial search of our selected databases (see below) found that there are no MeSH words for heritage and tourism. Therefore, multiple keywords were included to identify relevant articles.

To obtain more focused and productive results, the keywords were linked using “AND” and “OR” and other relevant Boolean operators, where permitted by the databases. Subject heading truncations (*) were applied where appropriate. The search query was developed and tested in ProQuest Central on 22 November 2018. Following this search trial, the following combination of search terms and keywords, slightly modified to suit each database, was subsequently used:

(“Heritage tourism” OR tourism OR “world heritage site” OR ecotourism OR “heritage based tourism” OR “cultural tourism” OR “diaspora tourism” OR “cultural heritage tourism” OR “cultural resource management” OR “cultural heritage management” OR “historic site”)

(“Health status” [MeSH] OR “health equity” OR health OR community health OR welfare OR wellbeing)

(“sustainable development” [MeSH] OR sustainab* or “community development” or “local development” or “local community” or “indigenous community”)

The search covered the following bibliographic databases and electronic collections:

  • Academic Search Complete
  • Australian Heritage Bibliography (AHB)
  • Applied Social Sciences Index and Abstracts (ASSIA)
  • CAB Abstracts
  • ProQuest Central
  • Science And Geography Education (SAGE)
  • Tourism, Hospitality and Leisure

In addition, grey literature were also sourced from key organisation websites including the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), the International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM), the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), the International Council of Museums (ICOM), the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) and the Smithsonian Institution.

Where the full texts of included articles could not be accessed, corresponding authors were contacted via e-mail or other means of communication (e.g., ResearchGate) to obtain a copy. A further search of the bibliographical references of all retrieved articles and articles’ citation tracking using Google Scholar was conducted to capture relevant articles that might have been missed during the initial search but that meet the inclusion criteria. For the purposes of transparency and accountability, a search log was kept and constantly updated to ensure that newly published articles were captured. To maximise the accuracy of the search, two researchers with extensive knowledge of heritage tourism literature (EW and HS) and two research assistants with backgrounds in public health and social sciences implemented independently the search syntax across the databases and organisations’ websites to ensure no article was missed.

Inclusion and exclusion criteria

Criteria used in this systematic review focused on the types of beneficiaries of heritage tourism, outcomes of interest, as well as the intervention designs. The outcomes of interest were sustainable community development and evidence for the overall health and wellbeing of local host communities. In this systematic review, sustainable community development was defined in terms of its two components: ‘community sustainability’ and ‘development’. Community sustainability was conceptualised as the “long-term durability of a community as it negotiates changing practices and meanings across all the domains of culture, politics, economics and ecology” (pp. 21, 24) [ 23 ].

In contrast, development was conceptualised as “social change—with all its intended or unintended outcomes, good and bad—that brings about a significant and patterned shift in the technologies, techniques, infrastructure, and/or associated life-forms of a place or people” (p. 44) [ 7 ]. To this, we added the question of whether the development was positive or negative. Thus, going beyond the Brundtland definition introduced earlier and once again borrowing from the work of Paul James, positive sustainable development was defined as “practices and meanings of human engagement that make for lifeworlds that project the ongoing probability of natural and social flourishing”, including good health [ 23 ].

Health was defined, using the World Health Organisation (WHO) definition, as “overall well-being” and as including both physical, mental and social health [ 24 ]. While there is no consensus on what wellbeing actually means, there is a general agreement that wellbeing encompasses positive emotions and moods (e.g., contentment, happiness), the absence of negative emotions (e.g., depression, anxiety) as well as satisfaction with life and positive functioning [ 25 ]. Therefore, wellbeing in this systematic review was conceptualised according to Ryff’s multidimensional model of psychological wellbeing, which includes six factors: autonomy; self-acceptance, environmental mastery, positive relationships with others, purpose in life, and personal growth [ 26 ].

In terms of intervention and design, this systematic review included peer-reviewed and grey literature sources of evidence [ 27 , 28 ] from quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods studies. Intervention designs of interest were observational studies (e.g. longitudinal studies, case control and cross-sectional studies) as well as qualitative and mixed-methods studies. The following additional restrictions were used to ensure texts were included only if they were: (i) written in English; (ii) analysed the impact of heritage tourism on sustainable community development and health and/or wellbeing of local host communities; (iii) research papers, dissertations, books, book chapters, working papers, technical reports including project documents and evaluation reports, discussion papers, and conference papers; and (iv) published between January 2000 and March 2021. Studies were excluded if they were descriptive in nature and did not have community development or health and wellbeing indicators as outcome measures.

The year 2000 was selected as the baseline date due to the signing of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by Member States in September of that year. With the introduction of the MDGs, now superseded by the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), there was an increase in commitment from government and non-governmental organizations to promote the development of responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism [ 29 , 30 ]. Editorials, reviews, letter to editors, commentaries and opinion pieces were not considered. Where full text articles were not able to be retrieved despite exhausting all available methods (including contacting corresponding author/s), such studies were excluded from the review. Non-human studies were also excluded.

Study selection and screening

Data retrieved from the various database searches were imported into an EndNote X9 library. A three-stage screening process was followed to assess each study’s eligibility for inclusion. In the EndNote library, stage one involved screening studies by titles to remove duplicates. In stage two, titles and abstracts were manually screened for eligibility and relevance. In the third and final screening stage, full texts of selected abstracts were further reviewed for eligibility. The full study selection process according to PRISMA is summarised in Fig 1 . A total of 5292 articles from 10 databases and multiple sources of grey literature were screened. After removal of duplicates, 4293 articles were retained.

thumbnail

  • PPT PowerPoint slide
  • PNG larger image
  • TIFF original image

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0282319.g001

Titles and abstracts were further screened for indications that articles contain empirical research on the relationship between heritage tourism, sustainable community development and the health and wellbeing of local host communities. This element of the screening process resulted in the exclusion of 2892 articles. The remaining 1401 articles were screened for eligibility: 1299 articles were further excluded, resulting in 102 articles that met our inclusion criteria and were retained for analysis. Study selection was led by two researchers (EW and HS) and one research assistant, who independently double-checked 40% of randomly selected articles (n = 53). Interrater agreement was calculated using a 3-point ordinal scale, with the scoring being ’yes, definitely in’ = 1, ’?’ for unsure = 2, and ’no, definitely out’ = 3. Weighted Kappa coefficients were calculated using quadratic weights. Kappa statistics and percentage of agreement were 0.76 (95%CI: 0.63, 0.90) and 0.90 (95%CI: 0.85, 0.96) respectively, suggesting excellent agreement.

Data extraction

Data extraction was completed using a piloted form and was performed and subsequently reviewed independently by three researchers (AR, EW and HS), all of whom are authors. The extracted data included: study details (author, year of publication, country of research), study aims and objectives, study characteristics and methodological approach (study design, sample size, outcome measures, intervention), major findings, and limitations.

Quality assessment

To account for the diversity in design and dissemination strategies (peer-reviewed vs non-peer-reviewed) of included studies, the (JBI) Joanna Briggs Institute’s Critical Review Tool for qualitative and quantitative studies [ 31 ], mixed methods appraisal Tool (MMAT) for mixed methods [ 32 ], and the AACODS (Authority, Accuracy, Coverage, Objectivity, Date, Significance) checklist for grey literature [ 33 ] were used to assess the quality of included studies. The quality assessment of included studies was led by one researcher (CB), but 40% of the studies were randomly selected and scored by three senior researchers (AR, EM, and HS) to check the accuracy of the scoring. Cohen’s kappa statistic was used to assess the agreement between quality assessment scorers. Kappa statistics and percentage of agreement were 0.80 (95%CI: 0.64, 0.96) and 0.96 (95%CI: 0.93, 0.99) respectively, suggesting excellent interrater agreement. The quality assessment scales used different numbers of questions and different ranges, hence they were all rescaled/normalised to a 100 point scale, from 0 (poor quality) to 100 (high quality) using the min-max scaling approach. Scores were stratified by tertiles, being high quality (>75), moderate quality (50–74), or poor quality (<50).

Data synthesis

Due to the heterogeneity and variation of the studies reviewed (study methods, measurements, and outcomes), a meta-analysis was not possible. Campbell and colleagues (2020) [ 34 ] recognise that not all data extracted for a systematic review are amenable to meta-analysis, but highlight a serious gap in the literature: the authors’ lack of or poor description of alternative synthesis methods. The authors described an array of alternative methods to meta-analysis. In our study we used a meta-ethnography approach to articulate the complex but diverse outcomes reported in included studies [ 35 ]. Increasingly common and influential [ 36 ], meta-ethnography is an explicitly interpretative approach to the synthesis of evidence [ 36 , 37 ] that aims to develop new explanatory theories or conceptualisations of a given body of work on the basis of reviewer interpretation [ 37 ]. It draws out similarities and differences at the conceptual level between the findings of included studies [ 37 ], with the foundational premise being the juxtaposition and relative examination of ideas between study findings [ 37 ]. Resulting novel interpretations are then considered to transcend individual study findings [ 36 ].

Originating with sociologists Noblit and Hare [ 36 , 38 ], and adopted and expanded upon by other researchers [ 36 , 37 ], meta-ethnography involves a 7-stage process of evidence synthesis and concludes with the translation and synthesis of studies [ 38 ]. The approach centres around the emergence of concepts and themes from included studies that are examined in relation to each other and used to synthesise and communicate primary research findings. In meta-ethnography, the diversity of studies such as the heterogeneity and variation of included studies in the present review, is considered an asset opposed to an issue in synthesis or translation of research findings [ 37 ].

Common threads, themes and trends were identified and extracted from both qualitative and quantitative narratives to generate insight on the impact of heritage tourism on sustainable community development and health. In order to increase reproducibility and transparency of our methods and the conclusions drawn from the studies, the narrative synthesis adhered to the “Improving Conduct and Reporting of Narrative Synthesis of Quantitative Data” protocol for mixed methods studies [ 39 ]. One of the primary researchers (CB) summarised the study findings and narrated the emerging themes and subthemes. The emerging themes were discussed with all authors for appropriateness of the content as well as for consistency. All studies were included in the synthesis of evidence and emergence of themes. The meta-ethnographic approach involved the following processes:

Identifying metaphors and themes.

Included studies were read and reviewed multiple times to gain familiarity and understanding with the data and identify themes and patterns in each study. As noted above, data was extracted from each study using a piloted template to remain consistent across all studies. The aims and/or objectives of each study was revisited regularly to validate any extracted data and remain familiar with the purpose of the study. Themes and, where relevant, sub-themes were identified, usually in the results and discussion section of included studies.

Determining how the studies were related.

Studies were grouped according to WHO regions (see Table 1 ). Thematic analysis was compared across all included studies regardless of region to identify common themes and/or sub-themes to determine how studies were related to one another. Although this review included a widely varied and large number of studies (n = 102), the findings of each study nonetheless had a common underpinning theme of heritage-based tourism. This enabled the identification of communal categories across the studies indicating their relatedness. For example, there were common themes of socio-cultural, socio-economic, community health, wellbeing, and empowerment factors and so on.

thumbnail

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0282319.t001

Translation and synthesis of studies.

Themes and, where relevant, sub-themes within each study were considered and compared to the next study in a process repeated for all included studies. Such translation of studies compares and matches themes across a corpus of material, and usually involves one or more of three main types of synthesis: reciprocal translation, refutational translation, and line of argument [ 37 ]. Themes were condensed and streamlined into main thematic areas, in addition to outlining common topics within those thematic areas. The primary researcher (CB) undertook this process with discussion, validation and confirmation of themes and topics from three other researchers (EW, HS and AR). Translation between studies and the resulting synthesis of research findings followed the process of the emergence of new interpretations and conceptualisation of research themes. A line of argument was also developed, and a conceptual model produced to describe the research findings, which is shown in Fig 2 . Both the line of argument and conceptual model were agreed upon by all authors.

thumbnail

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0282319.g002

A total of 102 studies were included in the analysis. Of these, 25 studies were conducted in the Western Pacific region, 23 in the African region, 20 in the Region of the Americas, 17 in the South-East Asia region, 12 in the European region, and 1 in the Eastern Mediterranean region. The remaining 4 studies reported on multiple regions. This may at first seem surprising given the prominence of European cultural heritage on registers such as the World Heritage List, which includes 469 cultural sites located Europe (equivalent to 47.19% of all World Heritage Properties that are recognised for their cultural values). However, any studies focusing on Europe that did not also examine sustainable community development and the overall health and wellbeing of local host communities were screened out of this systematic review in accordance with the abovementioned inclusion and exclusion criteria. Results of the data extraction and quality assessment across all included studies are presented in Table 1 . Of the included studies, 24 used a mixed methods design, 22 studies were qualitative, 36 were quantitative and 20 were grey literature (see Table 1 for more detail regarding the type of methods employed). Of these, 48 studies were assessed as high quality (>75), 32 as moderate quality (50–74) and 22 as poor quality (<50).

The major health and wellbeing determinant themes emerging from the included studies were grouped according to social, cultural, economic, and ecological health determinants. Fig 3 presents the proportion of included studies that investigated each of the four health determinants when assessed by WHO region. A large proportion of economic studies was shown across all regions, although this focus was surpassed by the social health determinant in the South-East Asia region ( Fig 3 ). Studies on the social health determinant also yielded a strong proportion of studies across most other regions, although notably not in the African region. This was closely followed by an ecological focus among the Americas, South-East Asia and Western Pacific regions. The Americas had the highest proportion of cultural studies, with the European region being the lowest proportionally ( Fig 3 ).

thumbnail

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0282319.g003

More specifically, for studies focused on Africa, 100% of the publications included in this review explicitly investigated the economic benefits of tourism on wellbeing (74% of them exclusively), with European-focused studies reflecting a similarly high interest in economic wellbeing (91% of publications). Across the Americas, economic determinants of wellbeing were investigated in 86% of publications and in the Western Pacific, methods to investigate this variable were built into 80% of included studies. By comparison, this research demonstrates that only just over two thirds of articles reporting on the South-East Asia region shared this focus on economic determinants (65% of publications). Instead, social determinants of wellbeing form a stronger component of the research agenda in this region, with 76% of publications investigating this theme in studies that also tended to consider multiple drivers of health. For example, in 47% of publications reporting on the South-East Asia context, at least three themes were integrated into each study, with particular synergies emerging between social, economic and ecological drivers of wellbeing and their complex relationships.

Similarly, 47% of publication reporting on the Americas also included at least three health determinants. Research outputs from these two regions demonstrated the most consistently holistic approach to understanding wellbeing compared to other regions. In Africa, only 13% of the papers reviewed incorporated three or more themes; in the Western Pacific, this figure is 32% and in Europe only 8% of research outputs attempted to incorporate three or more themes. It seems unlikely that the multidimensional relationship between socio-economic and ecological sustainability that is always in tension could be adequately explored given the trend towards one-dimensional research in Africa, the Western Pacific and particularly Europe.

The associated positive and negative impacts of heritage tourism on each of the health and wellbeing determinants are then presented in Table 2 , along with the considered policy implications. Some of the identified positive impacts included improved access to education and social services, greater opportunities for skill development and employment prospects, preservation of culture and traditions, increased community livelihood and greater awareness of environmental conservation efforts. Negative impacts of tourism on host communities included forced displacement from homes, environmental degradation and over-usage of natural resources, barriers to tourism employment and reliance on tourism industry for income generation and economic stability, dilution and loss of cultural values and practices, civil unrest and loss of social stability, increased rates of crime and disease and lack of direct benefit to local communities. Both positive and negative impacts across each health and wellbeing determinant had acknowledged implications on policy development, many of which revolved around governance and ownership of tourist activities, participation of the local community in tourism sectors and active management of environmental protection programs. Such themes are shown in Table 2 .

thumbnail

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0282319.t002

Recent thematic trends can be observed in Table 3 , whereby the percentage of research outputs that investigate economic drivers of health and wellbeing produced since 2019 are shown. In Africa, Europe and the Americas, the proportion of outputs investigating economic health determinants since 2019 is the smallest ( Table 3 ), being 17% in Africa and the Americas, and 36% in Europe, respectively. On the contrary, 50% of Western Pacific region studies since 2019 had research focused on the economic drivers of wellbeing in relation to heritage tourism. Moreover, 65% of studies included economy-focused research in South-East Asia, with more than half of those outputs produced in the last two years ( Table 3 ).

thumbnail

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0282319.t003

The proportion of research outputs where local community members were asked to give their opinions as participants is presented in Table 4 , where they were invited to co-lead the research but were excluded from data production. In the Western Pacific region, there was a relative lack of participation (either as researchers or stakeholders) by local communities in the studies included in this review. Meaningful modes of community participation in the South-East Asian region can be calculated to 65%, more closely in line with Africa, Europe and the Americas ( Table 4 ).

thumbnail

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0282319.t004

This systematic review is the first of its kind to explicitly consider the relationships between heritage tourism and host communities; specifically, the impact of tourism on host communities’ capacity to flourish and support long-term health and wellbeing. Such impacts were found to be both positive and negative, with either direct or indirect consequences on the development of local governance policies. Our synthesis revealed that there are important regional variations in the way that determinants of health–social, cultural, economic or ecological–drive tourism research agendas. They commonly included considerations of social dynamics, access and health of the local community, empowerment and participation of host communities in tourism-based activities and governance, employment opportunities, preservation or erosion of culture, and environmental influences due to tourism promotion or activity.

Economic impacts represented the strongest focus of the studies include in this review, often to the detriment of other cultural or environmental considerations. With the exception of South-East Asia, studies focused on all other WHO regions (Africa, Europe, the Americas and the Western Pacific) were overwhelmingly built around attempts to understand economic variables as determinants of health and wellbeing, and in some instances were likely to focus on economic variables in lieu of any other theme. Given the steady growth of an interest in economic variables in South-East Asia since 2019, it is plausible that this will soon represent the largest concentration of studies in that region, too.

This trend towards emphasis on economic influences is problematic given that some of the emerging impacts from tourism-related practices identified in this review were found to be common across multiple determinants of health and thus not limited to economic health alone. For example, the limitation placed on access to prime grazing land for cattle belonging to local residents was perceived to be a negative impact both ecologically and economically [ 60 , 141 ]. This may be considered detrimental from an environmental standpoint due to the alteration of the local ecosystem and destruction of natural resources and wildlife habitat, such as the building of infrastructure to support the development of tourist accommodation, transport, and experiences.

Economically, the loss of grazing land results in reduced food sources for cattle and consequently a potential reliance on alternative food sources (which may or may not be accessible or affordable), or in the worst-case scenario death of cattle [ 92 ]. In turn, this loss of cattle has an adverse impact on the financial livelihood of host communities, who may rely on their cattle as a sole or combined source of income. Considered in isolation or combination, this single negative impact of tourism–reduced grazing access–has flow-on effects to multiple health determinants. Therefore, it is important to consider the possible multifactorial impacts of tourism, heritage or otherwise, on the host communities involved (or at least affected) given they may have a profound and lasting impact, whether favourable or not.

The potential interrelationships and multifactorial nature of heritage tourism on the health and wellbeing of host communities were also identified among a number of other studies included in this review. For example, a study from the Western Pacific Region explored connections between the analysis of tourism impacts, wellbeing of the host community and the ‘mobilities’ approach, acknowledging the three areas were different in essence but converging areas in relation to tourism sustainability [ 125 ]. That said, the cross-over between social determinants was not always observed or presented as many studies primarily focused on a single health domain [ 43 – 51 , 53 , 55 – 57 , 59 , 61 , 71 , 74 , 86 – 90 , 103 , 104 , 108 – 110 , 118 , 130 , 134 – 136 , 138 – 140 ]. Some studies, for instance, focused on poverty reduction and/or alleviation [ 134 , 135 ], while others focused solely on cultural sustainability or sociocultural factors [ 109 , 110 , 118 ], and others delved only into the ecological or environmental impacts of tourism [ 86 , 89 ]. As noted above, the majority of studies that focused on a single health determinant considered economic factors.

A common theme that spanned multiple health domains was the threat of relocation. Here, local communities represented in the reviewed studies were often at risk of being forced to relocate from their ancestral lands for tourism and/or nature conservation purposes [ 41 , 60 , 80 , 131 ]. This risk not only threatens their way of life and livelihood from an economic perspective, but will also have social implications, jeopardising the sustainability and longevity of their cultural traditions and practices on the land to which they belong [ 41 , 60 , 80 , 131 ]. Moreover, it may have ongoing implications for the displacement of family structures and segregation of local communities.

Importantly, this systematic review revealed that cultural determinants of health and wellbeing were the least explored in every region and were in many instances entirely omitted. This is at odds with the increasingly prevalent advice found in wider heritage and tourism academic debates, where it is argued that cultural institutions such as museums and their objects, for example, may contribute to health and wellbeing in the following ways: promoting relaxation; providing interventions that affect positive changes in physiology and/or emotions; supporting introspection; encouraging public health advocacy; and enhancing healthcare environments [ 142 – 144 ]. Likewise, Riordan and Schofield have considered the cultural significance of traditional medicine, citing its profound importance to the health and wellbeing of the communities who practice it as well as positioning it as a core element of both local and national economies [ 145 ].

Of greater concern is the finding of this review that of the relatively small number of papers investigating cultural health determinants, many recorded profoundly negative and traumatising outcomes of tourism development, such as a rise of ethnoreligious conflict, loss of ancestral land, a dilution of cultural practices to meet tourist demands, and a loss of cultural authenticity [ 41 ]. Consequently, comparative studies that focus on cultural determinants, in addition to economic and environmental determinants, are currently lacking and should therefore be prioritised in future research. In fact, only one fifth of those papers included in this review adopted the qualitative approach needed to probe the socio-cultural dimensions of health. Novel qualitative research methods to investigate community health are therefore a major research lacuna.

Just as solely equating community health and wellbeing with economic flourishing is problematic, so too is assuming that health is reducible only to clinical care and disease [ 146 ], given that "[i]deas about health … are cultural” [ 146 ]. Early indications of an acceptance that culture and heritage might be central to community health and wellbeing can be found in UNESCO’s 1995 report, Our Creative Diversity : Report of the World Commission on Culture and Development [ 147 ]. More recently, this notion is evidenced in the 2019 Operational Guidelines for the Implementation of the World Heritage Convention [ 148 ] and the 2020 Operational Directives for UNESCO’s Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage [ 149 ], both of which indicate the need for a major shift in research foci towards cultural determinants of health and wellbeing if research is to keep pace with assumptions now operating within international policy [ 148 , 149 ].

Although Africa, Europe and the Americas are the three regions with the highest proportion of papers investigating the economic benefits of tourism on health and wellbeing, these regions are also the most responsive to the above recommended changes in policy and debate (see Table 3 ). In these three regions, the proportion of outputs investigating economic health determinants since 2019 is the smallest, demonstrating a recent decline in research that is persuaded by the a priori assumption that economic wellbeing automatically equates to cultural wellbeing. Despite demonstrating the most holistic approach to understanding health and wellbeing across all the themes, an upwards trend in economy-focused research was identified in South-East Asia, since more than half of the economic outputs were produced in the last two years. Such a trend is potentially problematic for this region because it may reinforce the notion that the main benefits of tourism are direct and financial, rather than refocusing on the tension created by indirect effects of tourism on quality of life and community wellbeing.

Conversely, this review demonstrates that the Western Pacific region has persisted with research focused on the economic drivers of wellbeing in relation to heritage tourism (see Table 3 ). This persistence may be explained by the relative lack of participation (either as researchers or stakeholders) by local communities in any of the studies included in this review (see Table 4 ). Indeed, the Western Pacific had the lowest occurrence of community participation and/or consultation in establishing indicators of wellbeing and health and/or opinions about the role of tourism in promoting these.

On the contrary, while seemingly demonstrating the second highest proportion of exclusionary research methods as discussed above, South-East Asia remains the only region where any attempts were made to ensure community members were invited to design and co-lead research (see Table 4 ). Nonetheless, meaningful modes of participation in this region were found to be more closely in line with the deficits found in Africa, Europe, and the Americas. This lack of approaches aimed at including affected communities as researchers in all but one instance in South-East Asia is an important research gap in tourism studies’ engagement with health and wellbeing debates.

Importantly, this failure to adequately engage with affected communities is at odds with the depth of research emanating from a range of health disciplines, such as disability studies, occupational therapy, public health, and midwifery, where the slogan ‘nothing about us without us’, which emerged in the 1980s, remains prominent. Coupled with a lack of focus on cultural determinants of health, this lack of participation and community direction strongly indicates that research studies are being approached with an a priori notion about what ‘wellbeing’ means to local communities, and risks limiting the relevance and accuracy of the research that is being undertaken. Problematically, therefore, there is a tendency to envisage a ‘package’ of wellbeing and health benefits that tourism can potentially bring to a community (regardless of cultural background), with research focusing on identifying the presence or absence of elements of this assumed, overarching ‘package’.

Interestingly, along with the paucity of full and meaningful collaboration with local community hosts in tourism research, there were no instances across the systematic review where a longitudinal approach was adopted. This observation reinforces the point that long-term, collaborative explorations of culturally specific concepts including such things as ‘welfare’, ‘benefit’, ‘healthfulness’ and ‘flourishing’, or combinations of these, are lacking across all regions. To bring tourism research more in line with broader debates and international policy directions about wellbeing, it is important for future research that the qualities of health and wellbeing in a particular cultural setting are investigated as a starting point, and culturally suitable approaches are designed (with local researchers) to best examine the effects of tourism on these contingent notions of wellbeing.

Importantly, a lack of longitudinal research will lead to a gap in our understanding about whether the negative impacts of tourism increase or compound over time. Adopting these ethnographies of health and wellbeing hinges upon long-term community partnerships that will serve to redress a research gap into the longevity of heritage tourism impacts. Furthermore, of those papers that asked local community members about their perceptions of heritage tourism across all regions, a common finding was the desire for greater decision-making and management of the enterprises as stakeholders. It seems ironic, therefore, that research into heritage tourism perceptions itself commonly invites the bare minimum of collaboration to establish the parameters of that research.

In a small number of papers that invited community opinions, local stakeholders considered that the tourism ‘benefits package’ myth should be dispelled, and that responsible tourism development should only happen as part of a wider suite of livelihood options, such as agriculture, so that economic diversity is maintained. Such a multi-livelihood framework would also promote the accessibility of benefits for more of the community, and this poses a significant new direction for tourism research. For example, an outcome of the review was the observation that infrastructure development is often directed towards privileged tourism livelihood options [ 150 ], but a more holistic framework would distribute these sorts of benefits to also co-develop other livelihoods.

Although there is a clear interest in understanding the relationship between heritage, tourism, health and wellbeing, future research that explores the intersections of heritage tourism with multiple health domains, in particular social and cultural domains, is critical. Indeed, the frequency with which the negative impacts of heritage tourism were reported in the small number of studies that engaged local community participants suggests that studies co-designed with community participants are a necessary future direction in order for academics, policymakers and professionals working in the field of heritage tourism to more adequately address the scarce knowledge about its socio-cultural impacts. The accepted importance of community researchers in cognate fields underscores that the knowledge, presence and skills of affected communities are vital and points to the need for similar studies in heritage tourism.

Conclusions

There are five main findings of this systematic review, each of which is a critical gap in research that should be addressed to support the health and wellbeing in local communities at tourism destinations. Firstly, whilst one of the primary findings of this systematic review was the increase in employment opportunities resulting from tourism, this disclosure arose because of a strong–in many cases, exclusive–methodological focus on economic indicators of health and wellbeing. Such research reveals that heritage tourism may significantly reduce poverty and may be used as a poverty-reducing strategy in low-income countries. However, the assumption underlying this focus on the economic benefits of tourism for health and wellbeing is that economic benefits are a proxy for other determinants of health, e.g., cultural, social, environmental, etc., which are otherwise less systematically explored. In particular, the ways in which combinations of environmental, social, cultural, and economic determinants on wellbeing interact is an area requires considerable future research.

Secondly, whilst economic drivers of wellbeing were the most common area of research across all regions, the impacts of tourism on cultural wellbeing were the least explored. Moreover, in many publications culture was entirely omitted. This is perhaps one of the most troubling outcomes of this systematic review, because in the relatively small number of papers that did investigate the cultural impacts of tourism, many reported traumatising consequences for local communities, the documentation of which would not be recorded in the majority of papers where cultural wellbeing was absent. Tourism’s profoundly damaging consequences included reports of a rise in ethnoreligious violence, loss of ancestral land and the threat of forced relocation, not to mentioned extensive reports of cultural atrophy.

Linked to this lack of understanding about the cultural impacts of tourism on wellbeing, the third finding of this review is that there are far fewer studies that incorporate qualitative data, more suited to document intangible cultural changes, whether positive or negative. Furthermore, more longitudinal research is also needed to address the subtle impacts of tourism acting over longer timescales. The systematic review revealed a lack of understanding about how both the negative and positive outcomes of heritage tourism change over time, whether by increasing, ameliorating, or compounding.

The fourth finding of this research is that, to a degree and in certain regions of the world, research is responding to international policy. This review has illustrated that, historically, Africa, Europe and the Americas prioritised research that measured the economic effects of tourism on health and wellbeing. However, after 2019 a shift occurred towards a growing but still under-represented interest in social-cultural wellbeing. We propose that this shift aligns with recommendations from UNESCO’s 2019 Operational Guidelines for the Implementation of the World Heritage Convention [ 148 ] and the 2020 Operational Directives for UNESCO’s Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage [ 149 ]. The exception to this shift is the Western Pacific region, where the economic impacts of tourism are increasingly prioritised as the main indicator of wellbeing. Given the overall efficacy of policy for steering towards ethical and culturally-grounded evaluations of the impacts of tourism, we would urge heritage policymakers to take account of our recommendations ( Table 2 ).

The policy implications emerging from this review are the fifth finding and can be distilled into a few key propositions. There is a need for meaningful decolonising approaches to heritage tourism. More than half of the negative consequences of heritage tourism for health and wellbeing could be mitigated with policy guidance, contingent cultural protocols and anti-colonial methods that foreground the rights of local (including Indigenous) communities to design, govern, lead, and establish the terms of tourism in their local area. Although ‘participation’ has become a popular term that invokes an idea of power symmetries in tourism enterprises, it is clear from this systematic review that the term leaves too much latitude for the creep of poor-practice [ 151 ] that ultimately erodes community autonomy and self-determination. Participation is not enough if it means that there is scope for governments and foreign investors to superficially engage with community wellbeing needs and concerns.

Furthermore, calls for ‘capacity-building’ that effectively re-engineer the knowledges of local communities are fundamentally problematic because they presuppose a missing competency or knowledge. This is at odds with impassioned anti-colonial advocacy [ 152 ] which recognises that communities hold a range of knowledges and cultural assets that they may, and should be legally protected to, deploy (or not) as a culturally-suitable foundation that steers the design of locally-governed tourism enterprises. In short, to maximise and extend the benefits of heritage tourism and address major social determinants of health, host communities’ presence in heritage tourism governance, decision making processes, and control of and access to the resultant community resources and programs must be a priority. Future policymakers are encouraged to make guidance more explicit, enforceable and provision avenues for feedback from local communities that offers the protections of transparency. It is also imperative that researchers involve and empower local community groups as part of studies conducted in relation to their health and wellbeing. If current practices remain unchanged, the primary benefit of tourism could easily be rendered inaccessible through lack of education and/or appropriate training which was frequently identified as a barrier to community participation.

Supporting information

S1 checklist. prisma 2009 checklist..

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0282319.s001

Acknowledgments

We wish to acknowledge Della Maneze (DM) and Nidhi Wali (NW) for their contributions to the literature search and initial data extraction.

Declarations

The authors hereby declare that the work included in this paper is original and is the outcome of research carried out by the authors listed.

  • 1. World Tourism Organization. International Tourism Highlights, 2020 Edition. UNWTO, Madrid. 2021. https://doi.org/10.18111/9789284422456.2021
  • 2. World Tourism Organization. The T4SDG Platform Madrid, Spain. 2022 [cited 2022 October 11]. Available from: https://tourism4sdgs.org/the-platform/ .
  • 3. UNESCO World Heritage Centre. Sustainable Tourism: UNESCO World Heritage and Sustainable Tourism Programme. 2021 [cited 2021 June 20]. Available from: https://whc.unesco.org/en/tourism/ .
  • View Article
  • Google Scholar
  • 5. Leaver B. Delivering the social and economic benefits of heritage tourism. 2012 [cited 2021 June 28]. Available from: https://www.environment.gov.au/system/files/pages/f4d5ba7d-e4eb-4ced-9c0e-104471634fbb/files/essay-benefits-leaver.pdf .
  • 7. James P. Creating capacities for human flourishing: an alternative approach to human development. In: Spinozzi P, Mazzanti M, editors. Cultures of Sustainability and Wellbeing: Theories, Histories and Policies; 2018. p. 23–45.
  • 9. Paul-Andrews L. Tourism’s impact on the environment: a systematic review of energy and water interventions [Thesis]. Christchurch: University of Canterbury; 2017. Available from: https://ir.canterbury.ac.nz/handle/10092/13416 .
  • PubMed/NCBI
  • 31. Joanna Briggs Institute. Joanna Briggs Institute reviewers’ manual: 2014 edition. The Joanna Briggs Institute [Internet]. 2014. Available from: https://nursing.lsuhsc.edu/JBI/docs/ReviewersManuals/Economic.pdf .
  • 33. Tyndall J. AACODS checklist. Flinders University [Internet]. 2010. Available from: http://dspace.flinders.edu.au/dspace/ .
  • 38. Noblit GW, Hare RD, Hare RD. Meta-ethnography: Synthesizing qualitative studies: Sage; 1988.
  • 52. Emptaz-Collomb J-GJ. Linking tourism, human wellbeing and conservation in the Caprivi strip (Namibia) [Ph.D Thesis]: University of Florida; 2009. Available from: https://www.proquest.com/docview/848632295?pq-origsite=gscholar&fromopenview=true .
  • 56. Lepp AP. Tourism in a rural Ugandan village: Impacts, local meaning and implications for development [Ph.D. Thesis]: University of Florida; 2004. Available from: https://search.proquest.com/docview/305181950?accountid=36155 , https://ap01.alma.exlibrisgroup.com/view/uresolver/61UWSTSYD_INST/openurl?frbrVersion=2&ctx_enc=info:ofi/enc:UTF-8&ctx_id=10_1&ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&url_ctx_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:ctx&url_ver=Z39.88-2004&rfr_id=info:sid/primo.exlibrisgroup.com&req_id=&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:&rft.genre=article&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournalrft.issn=&rft.title=&rft.atitle=&rft.volume=&rft.issue=&rft.spage=&rft.date=2004 .
  • 58. Mosetlhi BBT. The influence of Chobe National Park on people’s livelihoods and conservation behaviors [Ph.D. Thesis]: University of Florida; 2012. Available from: https://search.proquest.com/docview/1370246098?accountid=36155 , https://ap01.alma.exlibrisgroup.com/view/uresolver/61UWSTSYD_INST/openurl?frbrVersion=2&ctx_enc=info:ofi/enc:UTF-8&ctx_id=10_1&ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&url_ctx_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:ctx&url_ver=Z39.88-2004&rfr_id=info:sid/primo.exlibrisgroup.com&req_id=&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:&rft.genre=article&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournalrft.issn=&rft.title=&rft.atitle=&rft.volume=&rft.issue=&rft.spage=&rft.date=2012 .
  • 60. Stone MT. Protected Areas, Tourism and Rural Community Livelihoods in Botswana [Ph.D. Thesis]: Arizona State University; 2013. Available from: https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/79567367.pdf .
  • 61. Lyon A. Tourism and sustainable development: active stakeholder discourses in the waterberg biosphere reserve, South Africa [Ph.D. Thesis]: The University of Liverpool; 2013. Available from: https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/14953/4/LyonAnd_Dec2013_14953.pdf .
  • 62. DeLuca LM. Tourism, conservation, and *development among the Maasai of Ngorongoro District, Tanzania: Implications for political ecology and sustainable livelihoods [Ph.D. Thesis]: University of Colorado; 2002. Available from: https://search.library.wisc.edu/catalog/999942945102121 .
  • 69. Chazapi K, Sdrali D. Residents perceptions of tourism impacts on Andros Island, Greece. SUSTAINABLE TOURISM 2006: WIT Press; 2006. p. 10.
  • 70. Ehinger LT. Kyrgyzstan’s community-based tourism industry: A model method for sustainable development and environmental management? [M.A. Thesis]: University of Wyoming; 2016. Available from: https://search.proquest.com/docview/1842421616?accountid=36155 , https://ap01.alma.exlibrisgroup.com/view/uresolver/61UWSTSYD_INST/openurl?frbrVersion=2&ctx_enc=info:ofi/enc:UTF-8&ctx_id=10_1&ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&url_ctx_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:ctx&url_ver=Z39.88-2004&rfr_id=info:sid/primo.exlibrisgroup.com&req_id=&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:&rft.genre=article&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournalrft.issn=&rft.title=&rft.atitle=&rft.volume=&rft.issue=&rft.spage=&rft.date=2016 .
  • 74. Labadi S. Evaluating the socio-economic impacts of selected regenerated heritage sites in Europe: European Cultural Foundation; 2011. 129 p.
  • 75. McDonough R. Seeing the people through the trees: Conservation, communities and ethno-ecotourism in the Bolivian Amazon Basin [Thesis]: Georgetown University 2009. Available from: https://repository.library.georgetown.edu/bitstream/handle/10822/558153/McDonough_georgetown_0076M_10335.pdf;sequence=1 .
  • 81. Slinger VAV. Ecotourism in a small Caribbean island: Lessons learned for economic development and nature preservation [Ph.D. Thesis]: University of Florida; 2002. Available from: https://www.proquest.com/docview/304798500?pq-origsite=gscholar&fromopenview=true .
  • 86. Barthel DJ. Ecotourism’s Effects on Deforestation in Colombia [M.A. Thesis]: Northeastern Illinois University; 2016. Available from: https://www.proquest.com/docview/1793940414?pq-origsite=gscholar&fromopenview=true .
  • 89. Lottig KJ. Modeling resident attitudes on the environmental impacts of tourism: A case study of O’ahu, Hawai’i [M.S. Thesis]: University of Hawai’i; 2007. Available from: https://search.proquest.com/docview/304847568?accountid=36155 , https://ap01.alma.exlibrisgroup.com/view/uresolver/61UWSTSYD_INST/openurl?frbrVersion=2&ctx_enc=info:ofi/enc:UTF-8&ctx_id=10_1&ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&url_ctx_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:ctx&url_ver=Z39.88-2004&rfr_id=info:sid/primo.exlibrisgroup.com&req_id=&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:&rft.genre=article&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournalrft.issn=&rft.title=&rft.atitle=&rft.volume=&rft.issue=&rft.spage=&rft.date=2007 .
  • 91. Raschke BJ. Is Whale Watching a Win-Win for People and Nature? An Analysis of the Economic, Environmental, and Social Impacts of Whale Watching in the Caribbean [Ph.D. Thesis]: Arizona State University; 2017. Available from: https://keep.lib.asu.edu/_flysystem/fedora/c7/187430/Raschke_asu_0010E_17442.pdf .
  • 94. Bennett N. Conservation, community benefit, capacity building and the social economy: A case study of Łutsël K’e and the proposed national park [M.E.S. Thesis]: Lakehead University (Canada); 2009. Available from: https://search.proquest.com/docview/725870968?accountid=36155 , https://ap01.alma.exlibrisgroup.com/view/uresolver/61UWSTSYD_INST/openurl?frbrVersion=2&ctx_enc=info:ofi/enc:UTF-8&ctx_id=10_1&ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&url_ctx_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:ctx&url_ver=Z39.88-2004&rfr_id=info:sid/primo.exlibrisgroup.com&req_id=&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:&rft.genre=article&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournalrft.issn=&rft.title=&rft.atitle=&rft.volume=&rft.issue=&rft.spage=&rft.date=2009 .
  • 104. Rahman M. Exploring the socio-economic impacts of tourism: a study of cox’s bazar, bangladesh [Ph.D. Thesis]: Cardiff Metropolitan University; 2010. Available from: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/344518546_Exploring_the_Socio-economic_Impacts_of_Tourism_A_Study_of_Cox’s_Bazar_Bangladesh .
  • 109. Anggraini LM. Place Attachment, Place Identity and Tourism in Jimbaran and Kuta, Bali [Ph.D. Thesis]: University of Western Sydney; 2015. Available from: https://researchdirect.westernsydney.edu.au/islandora/object/uws:32139 .
  • 111. Vajirakachorn T. Determinants of success for community-based tourism: The case of floating markets in Thailand [Ph.D. Thesis]: Texas A&M University; 2011. Available from: https://oaktrust.library.tamu.edu/handle/1969.1/ETD-TAMU-2011-08-9922 .
  • 118. Suntikul W. Linkages between heritage policy, tourism and business. ICOMOS 17th General Assembly; Paris, France 2011. p. 1069–76.
  • 119. Suntikul W. The Impact of Tourism on the Monks of Luang Prabang. 16th ICOMOS General Assembly and International Symposium: ‘Finding the spirit of place–between the tangible and the intangible’; Quebec, Canada 2008. p. 1–14.
  • 127. Murray AE. Footprints in Paradise: Ethnography of Ecotourism, Local Knowledge, and Nature Therapies in Okinawa: Berghahn Books; 2012. 186 p.
  • 132. Yang JYC, Chen YM. Nature -based tourism impacts in I -Lan, Taiwan: Business managers’ perceptions [Ph.D. Thesis]: University of Florida; 2006. Available from: https://search.proquest.com/docview/305330231?accountid=36155 , https://ap01.alma.exlibrisgroup.com/view/uresolver/61UWSTSYD_INST/openurl?frbrVersion=2&ctx_enc=info:ofi/enc:UTF-8&ctx_id=10_1&ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&url_ctx_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:ctx&url_ver=Z39.88-2004&rfr_id=info:sid/primo.exlibrisgroup.com&req_id=&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:&rft.genre=article&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournalrft.issn=&rft.title=&rft.atitle=&rft.volume=&rft.issue=&rft.spage=&rft.date=2006 .
  • 137. Refaat H, Mohamed M. Rural tourism and sustainable development: the case of Tunis village’s handicrafts, Egypt". X International Agriculture Symposium "AGROSYM 2019"; 3–6 October 2019; Bosnia and Herzegovina 2019. p. 1670–8.
  • 141. Thinley P. Empowering People, Enhancing Livelihood, and Conserving Nature: Community Based Ecotourism in JSWNP, Bhutan and TMNP, Canada [M.Phil. Thesis]: University of New Brunswick; 2010. Available from: https://search.proquest.com/docview/1027149064?accountid=36155 , https://ap01.alma.exlibrisgroup.com/view/uresolver/61UWSTSYD_INST/openurl?frbrVersion=2&ctx_enc=info:ofi/enc:UTF-8&ctx_id=10_1&ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&url_ctx_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:ctx&url_ver=Z39.88-2004&rfr_id=info:sid/primo.exlibrisgroup.com&req_id=&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:&rft.genre=article&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournalrft.issn=&rft.title=&rft.atitle=&rft.volume=&rft.issue=&rft.spage=&rft.date=2010 .
  • 147. World Commission on Culture and Development. Our creative diversity: report of the World Commission on Culture and Development. Paris: UNESCO: 1995.
  • 148. UNESCO World Heritage Centre. Operational Guidelines for the Implementation of the World Heritage Convention. Paris: UNESCO: 2019.
  • 149. UNESCO. Operational Directives for the Implementation of the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage. Paris: UNESCO: 2020.

Turning tourism into development: Mitigating risks and leveraging heritage assets

If done right, tourism can actually bolster and preserve cultural heritage, while also helping to develop economies.

If done right, tourism can actually bolster and preserve cultural heritage, while also helping to develop economies. Image:  REUTERS/David Loh

.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo{-webkit-transition:all 0.15s ease-out;transition:all 0.15s ease-out;cursor:pointer;-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;outline:none;color:inherit;}.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo:hover,.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo[data-hover]{-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;}.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo:focus,.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo[data-focus]{box-shadow:0 0 0 3px rgba(168,203,251,0.5);} Abeer Al Akel

Maimunah mohd sharif.

heritage tourism local development

.chakra .wef-9dduvl{margin-top:16px;margin-bottom:16px;line-height:1.388;font-size:1.25rem;}@media screen and (min-width:56.5rem){.chakra .wef-9dduvl{font-size:1.125rem;}} Explore and monitor how .chakra .wef-15eoq1r{margin-top:16px;margin-bottom:16px;line-height:1.388;font-size:1.25rem;color:#F7DB5E;}@media screen and (min-width:56.5rem){.chakra .wef-15eoq1r{font-size:1.125rem;}} Travel and Tourism is affecting economies, industries and global issues

A hand holding a looking glass by a lake

.chakra .wef-1nk5u5d{margin-top:16px;margin-bottom:16px;line-height:1.388;color:#2846F8;font-size:1.25rem;}@media screen and (min-width:56.5rem){.chakra .wef-1nk5u5d{font-size:1.125rem;}} Get involved with our crowdsourced digital platform to deliver impact at scale

Stay up to date:, travel and tourism.

  • Cultural and historical travel accounts for 40% of all tourism globally.
  • 73% of millennials report being interested in cultural and historic places.
  • Protecting local culture and heritage requires a robust plan to mitigate negative impacts and policies to ensure prosperity is shared.

Culture and heritage tourism has the potential to create significant employment opportunities and stimulate economic transformation.

However, communities worldwide often grapple with the challenges posed by the magnetic appeal of heritage sites and the promise of economic prosperity. Property values can increase, displacing local residents and permanently altering the character of their neighbourhoods.

But capitalizing on tourism's potential while preserving and enhancing history and culture is possible — and it is already being done in sites around the world. From Malaysia to Saudi Arabia, many are already demonstrating the ability to balance economic development with socially and environmentally sustainable transformations.

Below are five common features that those sustainable approaches embrace.

Have you read?

This is how to leverage community-led sustainable tourism for people and biodiversity, are we finally turning the tide towards sustainable tourism, how the middle east is striving to lead the way in sustainable tourism, translating a vision into an area-based plan.

Urban planning and regeneration require a holistic approach, coordinating interventions across various sectors and providing guidance for investments. A holistic plan would include spatial and policy measures that are supported by regulatory measures, particularly those focusing on affordability and social cohesion. UN-Habitat prioritizes measures which promote mixed-use and social-economically diverse development to mitigate gentrification.

In George Town, Malaysia, the Special Area Plan and its Comprehensive Management Plan function as the key reference for inclusive strategic policies, regulations and guidelines for conservation, economic activities and intangible heritage. The plan, which balances economic development and conservation, included affordability measures such as supporting local owners restoring their houses, enabling adaptive reuse for small businesses, and supporting renters, thus protecting a share of historic buildings from tourism-induced redevelopment.

In Saudi Arabia’s AlUla, home to 40,000 residents and leading cultural assets including Hegra and Jabal Ikma — which was recently added to UNESCO’s Memory of the World International Register — a similar vision is unfolding. The Path to Prosperity masterplan makes provisions for new housing, creates new economic opportunities and establishes new schools, mosques and healthcare facilities for the community with affordability as the guiding principle. An expanded public realm will create district and neighbourhood parks with green spaces, playgrounds, outdoor gyms and bicycle trails. A network of scenic routes, low-impact public transportation and non-vehicular options will facilitate mobility.

A diversified economic base

To avoid over-reliance on a single economic driver, planners must make space for a range of alternative livelihoods. In AlUla, The Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU), which is responsible for the city’s development into a tourism hub, is drawing on its rich local heritage to create a global destination while diversifying the local economy. Investment in native industries such as agriculture has resulted in a revived high-yielding and higher-value farming sector, while new sectors such as the creation of film and logistics industries are creating new jobs and providing increased revenue for residents.

Saudi Arabia's AlUla offers clues as to how to balance economic development with the preservation of cultural heritage.

The UN-Habitat Parya Sampada project in the Kathmandu Valley undertook earthquake reconstruction of the heritage settlements in urban areas using a holistic approach of physical reconstruction and economic recovery. It focused on the reconstruction of public heritage infrastructure supported by tourism enterprises run by women and youth.

Nurturing living heritage and local knowledge

Maintaining the character of a place is critical to its future and creates valuable economic assets. Maintenance and preservation animate the built environment, while the recovery of building techniques and crafts of traditional cultural activities creates jobs and maintains skills.

UN-Habitat’s work in Beirut demonstrates this approach, supporting several hundred jobs. Through the Beirut Housing Rehabilitation and Cultural and Creative Industries project, led by UN-Habitat, UNESCO supervises the allocation of small grants to local artisans. The regeneration of the historical train station in Mar Mikhael and adjacent areas will focus on traditional building techniques to reactivate cultural markets and businesses.

In AlUla, the Hammayah training programme is empowering thousands to work as guardians of natural heritage and culture. In Myanmar the nationwide Community-Based Tourism initiative is operated and managed by local vulnerable communities to provide genuine experiences to world travelers.

Share the value created by tourism

Addressing the negative externalities of tourism requires the assessment and compensation of its real impacts, which can be done through sustainable tourism planning and community participation. The pressure on services, increased congestion and the cost of living need to be addressed through specific investments, funded through the taxation of tourism-related revenues redirected towards the local community, especially for the most vulnerable groups.

Examples include the Balearic Island of Mallorca, which has introduced a sustainable tourism tax to support conservation of the island. Meanwhile Kyoto, Japan has implemented several measures to control the number of tourists at popular sites and establish visitor codes of conduct.

Human-centered local development

Empowering the local community to actively engage with its rich culture while minimizing conflict with the natural environment can increase the resilience of residents and reduce the pressures of gentrification. Participation in decision-making is critical to shape visions and plans that achieve these goals.

The UN-Habitat Participatory Strategy in Mexico’s San Nicolas de los Garza showcases how collaboration with the local community throughout the design and implementation process can ensure solutions capture the culture, skills and needs of the neighborhoods. The 2030 City Vision provides a participatory action plan for the integration of culture, heritage and tourism within the currently prevalent urban economic sectors.

In Saudi Arabia such approaches are embedded in Vision 2030, a blueprint for economic diversification. RCU deploys short- and long-term support to the community through scholarship, upskilling and support for SMEs to enhance access to jobs and entrepreneurship in hospitality and tourism.

While development always introduces complex dynamics and transformations, mitigating gentrification in tourist areas is crucial to achieving sustainable local development for the benefit of all and preserving the unique character of these places.

These measures advocate a proactive approach to ensure that economic growth remains inclusive for the entire community, and that tourism is promoted for the benefit of local residents as well as visitors.

Don't miss any update on this topic

Create a free account and access your personalized content collection with our latest publications and analyses.

License and Republishing

World Economic Forum articles may be republished in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Public License, and in accordance with our Terms of Use.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone and not the World Economic Forum.

The Agenda .chakra .wef-n7bacu{margin-top:16px;margin-bottom:16px;line-height:1.388;font-weight:400;} Weekly

A weekly update of the most important issues driving the global agenda

.chakra .wef-1dtnjt5{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-align-items:center;-webkit-box-align:center;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;-webkit-flex-wrap:wrap;-ms-flex-wrap:wrap;flex-wrap:wrap;} More on Travel and Tourism .chakra .wef-17xejub{-webkit-flex:1;-ms-flex:1;flex:1;justify-self:stretch;-webkit-align-self:stretch;-ms-flex-item-align:stretch;align-self:stretch;} .chakra .wef-nr1rr4{display:-webkit-inline-box;display:-webkit-inline-flex;display:-ms-inline-flexbox;display:inline-flex;white-space:normal;vertical-align:middle;text-transform:uppercase;font-size:0.75rem;border-radius:0.25rem;font-weight:700;-webkit-align-items:center;-webkit-box-align:center;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;line-height:1.2;-webkit-letter-spacing:1.25px;-moz-letter-spacing:1.25px;-ms-letter-spacing:1.25px;letter-spacing:1.25px;background:none;padding:0px;color:#B3B3B3;-webkit-box-decoration-break:clone;box-decoration-break:clone;-webkit-box-decoration-break:clone;}@media screen and (min-width:37.5rem){.chakra .wef-nr1rr4{font-size:0.875rem;}}@media screen and (min-width:56.5rem){.chakra .wef-nr1rr4{font-size:1rem;}} See all

heritage tourism local development

How Japan is attracting digital nomads to shape local economies and innovation

Naoko Tochibayashi and Naoko Kutty

March 28, 2024

heritage tourism local development

Buses are key to fuelling Indian women's economic success. Here's why

Priya Singh

February 8, 2024

heritage tourism local development

These are the world’s most powerful passports to have in 2024

Thea de Gallier

January 31, 2024

heritage tourism local development

These are the world’s 9 most powerful passports in 2024

heritage tourism local development

South Korea is launching a special visa for K-pop lovers

heritage tourism local development

What is travel and tourism’s role in future global prosperity?

Maksim Soshkin and Marion Karl

January 12, 2024

  • Research article
  • Open access
  • Published: 15 August 2023

People’s perspectives on heritage conservation and tourism development: a case study of Varanasi

  • Ananya Pati 1 &
  • Mujahid Husain 2  

Built Heritage volume  7 , Article number:  17 ( 2023 ) Cite this article

2395 Accesses

1 Altmetric

Metrics details

The conservation of heritage and heritage-based tourism are interrelated activities in which the development in one can lead to the growth of the other and vice versa. In recent years, people have become increasingly aware of the importance of heritage and the necessity of its conservation. People’s knowledge and preservation of their roots and emotional attachments to traditions and places are beneficial for heritage conservation activities. Heritage places are also considered a growth point for the tourism industry that supports small- and medium-scale industries as well as numerous cottage industries. However, with the development of tourism and related industries in heritage areas, the local community may face difficulties in performing their day-to-day activities in the area. In many cases, local communities need to relocate and people must leave their residences due to the demand for tourism development. A case study of Varanasi City was conducted to obtain a detailed understanding of the impact of a recent tourism development programme (the Kashi Vishwanath Corridor Project) and people’s perception of it through a review of newspaper articles. It was found that people had mixed reactions regarding the development programme. The immediate residents of the area who were directly affected by the process in terms of emotional, economic and social loss were opposed to the project, while tourists and other residents of the city were pleased with the development activities. This paper attempts to identify the changes that occurred in the area due to the project and to capture people’s perspectives regarding the corridor project of Varanasi.

1 Introduction

The heritage of a country is a symbol of its national pride and produces cohesiveness and unity among the people. The importance of heritage and culture has increased significantly in recent years, particularly in the tourism sector. According to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), ‘Cultural heritage is, in its broadest sense, both a product and a process, which provides societies with a wealth of resources that are inherited from the past, created in the present and bestowed for the benefit of future generations’ (UNESCO 2014 ). Most importantly, it includes not only tangible but also natural and intangible heritage. As Our Creative Diversity notes, however, these resources are a ‘fragile wealth’. As such, they require policies and development models that preserve and respect their diversity and uniqueness since they are ‘nonrenewable’ once lost. Modernisation and urbanisation spread rapidly worldwide during the past century, but people are now leaning towards their heritage to maintain the individuality and uniqueness of their communities and to present this uniqueness to the otherwise modern and developed world (Napravishta 2018 ). People have recognised the enormous potential of heritage and culture in the tourism industry and for economic and social development. Numerous industries consider heritage and culture to be a significant growth point for development and economic benefits (Xing et al. 2013 ). Although the growth of tourism may be considered beneficial for selected groups, in many cases, development and changes made with the goal of tourism development create significant negative effects on the host community, its culture and the heritage itself (Erbas  2018 ). The concept of heritage is based on its historical architecture and monuments, but it is also the heritage values and culture of the residents that have become part of their daily life. This combination of tangible and intangible heritage, called ‘fields of heritage’, is considered a capital stock worthy of conservation (Al-hagla 2010 ). In several cases, excessive tourist influx forces the local community to change its way of life and disrupts the day-to-day activities of the community. In other cases, a complete change of landscape due tourism development creates environmental and cultural degradation. One of the problems of tourism development is that it fails to maintain a balance between the goal of achieving an increased number of tourists and its impact on the existing heritage and the community (Erbas  2018 ). In planning for heritage cities, urban development dynamics and tourism development are equally important factors. In areas with historical backgrounds, the conservation of the existing environment must be the primary concern (Erbas  2018 ).

1.1 Aim and objective

This paper conducts a study of the Kashi Vishwanath Temple Corridor project using an analysis of culture-led tourism and heritage conservation. The Kashi Vishwanath temple corridor project is considered a perfect case study to analyse conflicts between the host community (local dwellers) of the city and the development programme aimed towards the betterment of the pilgrims and tourists who come to the heritage city. The main objective of the study is to assess the perspective of the local community on tourism-led development. A second objective is to understand the pros and cons of tourism-led developments in a heritage city.

While the case study in this paper is based on a recent occurrence, there has been little research on the effects of the Kashi Vishwanath Corridor Project. Although this development project affects only a small portion of the city, the area is heavily populated; therefore, the effects on the locals are significant. This situation must be addressed from the perspectives of the diverse groups who benefited or were harmed by the development initiative.

1.2 The project details

The project of the Kashi Vishwanath temple corridor aimed to connect the Vishwanath Temple with the Ghats of Ganges. The pathway would connect the Manikarnika and Lalita ghat to the temple (Fig.  1 ), and the temple would be visible from the river front (Singh 2018 ). The temple, which is located 400 m from the ghats, was accessible to visitors only by narrow lanes (gali) through a crowded neighbourhood. The project mainly focused on building a wider and cleaner road and stairs with bright lights from the ghats to the temple. Because tourists and pilgrims come to Varanasi mainly to visit the older part of the city (i.e., the ghats of Ganges and the Vishwanath Temple), a connecting corridor would be of great use to them. By making the temple accessible to pilgrims and tourists through waterways, tourists could reach the temple ghat from the Khidkiya ghat and Raj ghat via a boat ride. The project also aimed to build stairways and escalators to reach the temple (Pandey and Jain 2021 ). This major makeover of the Vishwanath temple was the first since 1780. The Maratha queen of Indore, Ahilyabai Holker, renovated the Vishwanath temple and its surroundings, but no major changes have occurred in this area since then.

figure 1

Kashi Vishwanath Corridor after Completion, 12 December 2021 (Source: NDTV.com)

The project was launched in 2018, and the work was initiated in March 2019. The project known as Kashi Vishwanath Mandir Vistarikaran-Sundarayakaran Yojana (Kashi Vishwanath Temple extension and beautification plan) was estimated at Rs. 400 crore. According to the plan for redevelopment, an area of 43,636 sq. m was cleared by demolishing all the construction between the river and the ancient shrine (Ghosh 2018 ). A development board was created to accomplish the plan. To create this huge space, 314 properties were bought and demolished by the board. A total of Rs. 390 crore was spent to acquire the properties that were selected for the project in the area. Of this Rs. 390 crore, a sum of Rs. 70 crore was allotted for the rehabilitation of the 1,400 people living in this area, who were mainly encroachers, vendors and shopkeepers (Tiwari 2021 ).

The narrow lanes and the surroundings that were demolished for the project were known as Lahoritola, Neelkanth and Brahamanal (Singh 2018 ). The neighbourhood of Lahoritola is one of the oldest parts of Varanasi City. The first settlers migrated to this place from Lahore during the reign of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. Currently, the sixth generation of the original settlers are living in this area, but as the area was cleared for the project, they had no other option but to settle somewhere else (Ghosh 2018 ). The project has specific planning for people affected by it. According to the authorities, rehabilitation houses are to be built at Ramnagar on eight acres of government land. Shopkeepers affected by the process are to be allotted shops near the temple after the completion of the project (Singh 2018 ).

The project aims not only to create a wide corridor connecting the temple to the ghat but also to develop several buildings for various tourism purposes. The Kashi Vishwanath temple complex will have 23 new structures after the completion of the plan. Along with the construction of a new temple chowk, these structures will include a tourist information centre, salvation house, city gallery, guest house, multipurpose hall, locker room, bhog shala, tourist facilitation centre, Mumukshu Bhaban, vedic kendra, city museum, food court, viewing gallery, and restroom (Tiwari 2021 ). The Ganga View gallery will provide a clear panoramic view for tourists. According to officials, the Mandir Chawk will be a place for pilgrims to relax and meditate (Pandey and Jain 2021 ). After the completion of the corridor and other proposed buildings, the temple complex will have 50,000 sq. ft. of space, which is approximately 200 times larger than the previous area of the temple complex. According to authorities, the space of the entire temple complex will be able to manage 50,000 to 75,000 pilgrims at a time, compared to a few hundred previously. The project has also considered the importance of green cover, and it was decided that 70% of the total 5.50 lakh sq. ft. will be green (Tiwari 2021 ). With the completion of the project, it is believed that there will be a boost in tourism, and the attraction of the heritage of the city will increase substantially.

2 Literature review

Since the 1980s, sustainable development has become an important concept worldwide. In the case of heritage tourism, Sustainable Tourism Development (STD) has become an important issue. STD includes developmental policies and the protection of the local environment. The common dilemma faced by all interested parties in tourism development is finding a sustainable tourism development plan that will conserve heritage while influencing the positive growth of tourism and tourism-related economic activities (Xing et al. 2013 ). When discussing sustainable tourism, the main focus is economic and environmental sustainability. The issue of social sustainability is overlooked, although it should be considered with equal importance. Exponential growth in a tourism location does not ensure the betterment of the local community, the prevention of community migration, or tangible benefits from tourism (Sirima and Backman 2013 ).

The tourism development process has both negative and positive impacts on heritage cities. While the negative impacts regarding the conservation of the area are concerning, the positive impacts of tourism cannot be ignored. The present-day commodification of heritage assets poses a serious question regarding the extent to which the development and modification of heritage areas is sustainable. Increased tourism activities and an influx of national and international tourists may expand the economy of the area and create job opportunities, but in the commodification of tourism, the heritage site may lose its aesthetic value and become artificial, and its originality may fade (Al-hagla 2010 ). In many cases, the benefits received by heritage locations through increased tourism activities may eventually be overshadowed by the negative long-term effects of the process (Benur and Bramwell 2015 ). To ensure that future generations inherit a resource base that is sufficient to fulfil their needs and wants, sustainability necessitates that such assets be prudently managed. The goal of this paper is to investigate how sustainability principles might be used most effectively in the context of heritage tourism with a focus on the administration of historic homes and gardens (Fyall and Garrod 1998 ).

‘Over tourism’ is defined as ‘destinations where hosts or guests, locals or visitors, feel that there are too many visitors and that the quality of life in the area or the quality of the experience has deteriorated unacceptably’. The condition of ‘over tourism’ is the opposite of the expected condition of ‘responsible tourism’. Responsible tourism is a tourism practice by which the tourism destination ascends to a better condition that benefits both the host and the tourists (Goodwin 2017 ). When tourism-related changes are introduced by persons external to the local community, the possibility of social conflict arises because of the fluctuating relationship between the stakeholder authorities and the host community (Yang et al. 2013 ).

Studies on the entangled relationships between stakeholders are just as important as studies ofthe growth of historic tourism, which have also been the subject of research. Conflicts of interest arise when the local community participates in the tourism development process without being guaranteed equitable involvement by the stakeholders. These complex scenarios must be studied to fully comprehend the implications of heritage site development initiatives (Li et al. 2020 ). The aim of using a cultural heritage space in a consumer-dominant space may lead to the complete commercialisation or ‘touristification’ of the area (Nasser 2003 ). This term is used to describe the particular forms and functions that take place due to the increased growth of tourism activity. The effect of ‘touristification’ is particularly prominent in the parts of historical cities that tourists use most (historic tourist cities) (Hernández et al. 2017 ). Developmental activities in heritage cities may lead to conflicts regarding land acquisition if the local community does not participate in planning (Porter and Salazar 2005 ). To prevent potential conflicts, it is imperative to focus on the interests, needs, and concerns of the local community at all phases of decision-making (Erbas  2018 ). The host community of the location must be included in planning for tourism development; otherwise, it will lead to ‘zoo syndrome’, where the local community is negatively affected by the development plans (De Ascaniis et al. 2018 ). Bill Bramwell and Bernard Lane ( 1993 ) attempted to explain the connection between the interpretation and sustainable development of natural and heritage sites of the world. According to these authors, the host community’s involvement in interpreting and promoting cultural heritage is beneficial for sustainable tourism development. The paper also suggests that ‘historic and natural features [are] to be retained wherever possible, not swept away by new developments’. Tourism in urban areas has started to create different types of problems in local communities (Hernández et al. 2017 ).

The influx of tourists has recently increased at a spectacular rate, particularly in urban tourist destinations. A study by María García-Hernández noted that historic urban landscapes are more affected by being tourism destinations (García-Hernández et al. 2017 ). Tourism development in these places is only sustainable when socioeconomic, physical and cultural characteristics are unharmed in the tourism process. The tourism development planning of a historic city must be based on the ‘historic urban landscape approach’. To address community aspects, the development needs to be comprehensive and must address different perspectives with sincerity and humanity. In addition to the physical conservation and protection of the heritage, the social and economic aspects of the preservation and conservation area are equally important (Al-hagla 2010 ). An essential component of the growth of the tourism industry is the preservation of a heritage site's aesthetic value. A site's high aesthetic value may be a major factor in the growth of the tourism business, particularly in developing nations, and the tourism sector can convert this aesthetic value into economic benefit. In contrast, a site's deteriorating aesthetic value will worsen the quality of life for the people who live there. At the Rio meeting, more than 20 nations agreed that maintaining heritage sites’ aesthetic value is crucial for sustainable development (Zhang et al. 2023 ). Because the locations were regarded as the core or centre of the cultural area, contemporary developments were prevented in several areas of the old heritage towns. For millennia, the unique social structures, customary pastimes, and street layouts of these areas remained unaltered. The heart of the cultural areas consists of a uniform collection of tangible and intangible assets. Several cities throughout North Africa and the Middle East have such examples. These ancient cities have not changed since the Arab civilisation's Middle Ages. These cultural centres, which include religious structures, paths, and gathering places, frequently serve as a main attraction for tourists, gathering places for pilgrims, and a source of revenue for nearby businesses (Bigio and Licciardi 2010 ).

At the UNESCO world heritage site Hampi in India, conflicts between the local community and the authorities pose challenges to the overall growth of the tourist site. A lack of communication between the government and locals, negligence in community involvement and participation and inequality in power distribution hinder the social sustainability of the heritage site (Nair et al. 2022 ). Similar features can be found in the older parts of Varanasi, where the ghat area, narrow alleys and surroundings of the Kashi Vishwanath Temple have remained unchanged for centuries. Thus, sudden reconstruction in the long-unchanged part of the city will have a significant impact on the neighbourhood.

Several regions of the world have conducted heritage reconstruction projects similar to the corridor project. The ancient town of Skopje in Macedonia, also known as the Old Bazaar, which consists of small stores, streets, independent businesses, and historic cultural establishments, has descended into social instability and dire economic conditions. To improve the condition of the area, a project was started in 2010. The project's primary goal was to implement better amenities and commercial development, which would in turn contribute to improved citizen livelihoods and improved tourism activity. According to the study, since the beginning of the project, the number of business establishments in the Old Bazaar has increased by 50% and its daily revenue has grown by 80%. Furthermore, the daily number of tourists increased by approximately 90% in the city. Jordan offers another illustration of this sort. The artistic mosaic creations have made Madaba, an ancient city with a rich heritage and culture, particularly well known. To address the city’s physical deterioration, population growth and encroachment, and poor maintenance, the World Bank launched a redevelopment project in the city of Madaba. After the project was finished, the city saw a significant rise in tourists within a period of two to three years (Throsby 2015 ).

The physical and socioeconomic regeneration of urban areas is prominent after tourism development. The assimilation of the local community in the process, as a source of heritage value and the inheritors of the heritage space, can result in sustainable tourism development.

2.1 Methodology

Each historically significant building has value or cultural heritage significance, and different stakeholders have varied perspectives on what those values are. Currently, determining the historical relevance of a site depends not only on professionals but also on the public at large. The need for public participation in cultural conservation initiatives is widely acknowledged in the literature (Bakri et al. 2015 ). The information for this study was gathered from newspaper articles published between 2018 and 2022 during the demolition of houses and the construction of new structures according to the Kashi Vishwanath Temple Corridor Project plans. The newspapers used for this study were in English and were published in digital media. The source of the newspapers was reliable national news agencies. Thirteen such articles were used for this study, and nine of them are cited in this article.

In addition to news articles, Google Earth Pro software was used to evaluate change detection within the study area. Google Earth Pro software has very fine resolution and is regularly used in research papers on urban development. To show the urban sprawl and changes over time, Google Earth Time Series Images were used, and area delineation was performed using the polygon tool in ArcMap software (Boussema et al. 2020 ).

In this paper, the polygon creation method was used to demarcate the study area within which the demolition of old structures and development of new structures have occurred. A landscape change analysis was performed using Google Earth images from three different years. The Google Earth images of different stages of the project provide a visual understanding of the changes that occurred in only 5 years. This paper includes images of the area before the commencement of the project (2018), during the project (2019) and after the completion of the project (2022). Following flow chart explains the various materials and methodology used in the present study (Fig.  2 ).

figure 2

Research Methodology Flow Chart (Source: the author)

2.2 The heritage of Varanasi

The city of Varanasi, popularly known as Varanasi or Kashi, is situated on the left bank of the mighty Ganges in the district of Uttar Pradesh. The city has been a centre of religious practices and devotion and a pilgrimage site. Varanasi or Kashi is one of the oldest living cities in the world. Varanasi recorded its first human settlement in approximately 1000 BCE (before the Christian Era), although the city mainly developed during the 18th century. Other ancient cities worldwide have hardly survived after imperial and colonial forays, whereas the city of Varanasi continued to thrive through the ages. The city has successfully retained its ancient charms and rich culture even in the era of modernisation. During the 8th century, Adi Shankara started the worship of Shiva in this place. Later, in 1780, the temple of Kashi Vishwanath was built by queen Ahilyabai Holkar of Indore. This is also known as the golden temple and is one of the most famous temples of Varanasi.

The main iconic attraction of Varanasi City is its riverbanks and ghats with stairways. The riverfront heritage area spreads approximately 200 m inwards from the river and 6.8 km along the Ganges River. This heritage part of the Ganges Riverbank has a crescent shape and is located between the confluence of Ashi Nala in the south and Varana River in the north. A total of 84 ghats are located within this inherited river front. The ghats are overlooked by enormous old buildings, shrines and temples built mainly under the patronage of kings and lords between the 18th and 20th centuries. The ghats of Varanasi hold a special significance as they connect heritage with everyday life. Centuries-old ghats and neighbouring monuments are part of the everyday life of local residents as well as tourists and pilgrims. The river front also serves as an intangible part of cultural heritage as it is a necessary part of every ritual and festival of the city. All rituals start at the ghats with a sacred bath in the Ganges River. Although the city of Varanasi is not yet inscribed as a world heritage site, ‘ The Riverfront and Old City Heritage Zone of Varanasi ’ is being presented to UNESCO as a potential world heritage site (Singh and Rana 2015 ). Another creative proposal has recently been revealed for the renovation and rebuilding of the Kashi ghats, known as the River Front Development Project. The riverfronts and ghat areas are projected to undergo significant modification as a result of this project. On the other side of the river from the ghats, the project includes a four-lane elevated road that will be eight kilometres long. According to the project, three additional bridges will be constructed. It is anticipated that after this project is finished, tourism will flourish (Seth 2022 ).

2.3 The landscape change

As discussed earlier, an area of 43,636 sq. m. was selected, and the existing properties were demolished. The clearance of the area was planned to make space for building up the new structures decided according to the project. This particular area has experienced a significant change in landscape within a couple of years. From being a congested agglomeration of houses, shops and unplanned built-ups to narrow lanes filled with tourists, pilgrims and locals, it turned into a clean modern wide-spaced corridor. Modern construction also contains new buildings to facilitate tourists.

Google Earth images were taken in different years to compare the landscape changes that took place in the area of the project. Three images were selected: November 2018 (Fig.  3 ), November 2019 (Fig.  4 ), and January 2022 (Fig.  5 ).

figure 3

The original settlement pattern around the temple, November 2018 (Source: Google Earth)

figure 4

a The project area (cyan colour boundary) after demolishing the settlements, November 2019 (Source: Google Earth). b Demolition work in full swing for the Kashi Vishwanath Temple Project, 20 January 2019 (Source: the Hindu). c Properties being demolished for the project, 8 March 2019 (Source: the wire). d Temples amidst destruction, 13 May 2021 (Source: the Print)

figure 5

The project area (orange colour boundary) after the construction of new structures, January 2022 (Source: Google Earth)

The first figure (Fig.  3 ) was selected from the time when the area was unchanged, and all the existing built-ups were intact. It is clear from the image that the Kashi Vishwanath Temple was surrounded by closely spaced compact settlements, and the only way to access the temple was through narrow alleys. Varanasi is particularly famous for these old narrow alleys, through which one could reach the ghats of Ganges and the Vishwanath Temple. Some of these alleyways were also market areas with numerous shops. The range of goods sold in those areas ranges from religious goods and decorative items to food stalls. This area, known as Lahori Tola, is a residential area with numerous shops and businesses.

The figure (Fig.  4 ) was selected from 2019, when the whole area under project was cleared by demolishing the properties. The barren land in the image clearly shows the parts where complete demolition has been done. The space between the Vishwanath Temple and the Ghat of Ganges appeared to be unhindered and waiting to be transformed into a tourism-based landscape.

In the third and final figure of 2022 (Fig.  5 ), the new constructions are visible, which were built according to the Kashi Vishwanath Temple extension and beautification plan. The whole area has changed from a compact residential space to a space for tourists and pilgrims within a couple of years. The existing properties were mostly private properties, temples, and shops. Although the private properties were demolished, the temples remained unharmed.

2.4 People’s perspectives

2.4.1 perspective of the residents.

The opinion of the public regarding the project is divided. Despite the restoration of religious glory and decongestion of the surroundings of the Kashi Vishwanath Temple, the situation of the locals who have lost their homes is painful and devastating. The locals of the area have discussed their loss and destruction with news reporters (Press Trust of India- PTI 2021 ). The people who were living in the area have clearly expressed their anguish about losing their homes and businesses. People have voiced their disagreement regarding the amount of compensation paid to them and have stated that the close proximity of their homes to the temple was an additional advantage that they lost due to this project. The locals stated that this tourism project has significantly affected them, not only economically but also emotionally (Ghosh 2018 ). Many people who had homes in the area selected for the corridor project recalled memories of their homes and the old neighbourhood. While many of the residents of Varanasi were enthusiastic about the ambitious project of redevelopment, many others grieved the loss of their family homes, where their families had lived for more than a hundred years. Many stated that extended families living in these old houses were broken up after the property was demolished. Family members became segregated and began living separately in different places in Varanasi (PTI 2021 ).

2.4.2 Perspective of shop owners

All the businesses operating in the area have been closed (Ghosh 2018 ). Many people who had shops in the area face the loss of their businesses due to complete demolition and relocation as shifting shops does not shift customers to new locations (PTI 2021 ). Several residents of the area had shops on the ground floor of the houses, and they lost their shops along with their residential properties during the demolition.

2.4.3 Perspective of the authorities

In an interview with the chief executive officer (CEO) of Shri Kashi Viswanath Temple Trust, Vishal Singh, who was in charge of implementing the project on the ground, the perspective of the stockholders was showcased more clearly. When he was asked about the disruption caused by the corridor project and how the people’s displeasure was handled, he replied that the clearance of the temple area was envisaged for 10 − 15 years, but the plan was implemented very recently. The problems faced by pilgrims were the key consideration in planning. Providing ‘Suraksha aur Suvidha’ (security and facilities) to pilgrims is the main focus of the corridor project. When asked about the residents of the area who had to leave due to the project and how they were compensated, he said, ‘We have paid every family, every household living here, including tenants. We have paid every single person who has been shifted out of this place’ (Basu 2019 ).

According to the authorities, the main reason behind the planning of the expansion of the temple complex was to provide facilities to tourists and pilgrims. On special occasions, the temple expects 4–5 lakh visitors in a day, and pilgrims must wait in a long queue, sometimes for more than a day. The aim of developing an extended temple complex was to provide basic amenities such as toilets, drinking water, first aid and medical care to visitors in need (Basu 2019 ). The authorities of the project applied a positive perspective to the situation and confirmed that every problem associated with the evacuation of the area was treated with a humanitarian approach (Basu 2019 ). According to the authorities, rehabilitation and compensation were not only for real owners of the area; other permanent settlers, such as tenants and people living illegally, were also included in the planning (Tiwari 2021 ).

Many people stated their opinions in support of the development project. Many supported the decision to remove the temple area encroachment. In some people’s opinions, most of the rightful owners of the neighbourhood in question did not live there. The people who were displaced due to the project were mostly tenants or had unauthorised occupancy (Ghosh 2018 ). According to the authorities, the process of purchasing property from the owners was the most difficult task. The real owners of the area were descendants of the kings or wealthy people of the past. Most of the properties were given to the shebait or caretakers, who looked after the property and temples. The shebait of the properties started to expand the buildings using every kind of construction, some of which were illegal and unsafe. Shebait began renting the rooms to tenants. Finally, when the properties were bought and vacated, the authorities had to compensate the real owners of the property, the shebait who looked after the property, the tenants and some illegal encroachers (Basu 2019 ).

Despite all the disputes regarding the acquisition of the properties, there is no pending case in the court (Tiwari 2021 ). The CEO of Shri Kashi Vishwanath Temple Trust has confirmed that Rs. 262 crore was paid to the owners of the property, and another Rs. 16.54 crore was paid to the tenants, including illegal encroachers (Basu 2019 ).

2.4.4 Perspective of the Tourists

The experiences of the tourists and pilgrims who visited Vishwanath Temple in its previous condition were not very positive. Slow-moving traffic around the temple and a long queue to enter the temple were regular affairs. Due to overcrowding, people could obtain only a glimpse of the deity before being forced to move ahead even after waiting in the queue for hours or days. It is expected that after the completion of the project, this situation will improve (Pandey and Jain 2021 ). Tourists visiting Kashi again after several years are surprised by the changed landscape of the temple. A visitor from Kolkata who was visiting Kashi after seven years was astonished by the wide space at the entrance of the temple instead of narrow and cramped lanes. The visitor shared his experience from his last visit when he had a ‘tough time’ reaching the temple through a narrow, crowded lane (Pandey 2019 ). The tour companies shared great joy in the news reports about the completion of the corridor project as they predicted an enormous increase in tourism business in Kashi. According to the president of a tour company, they had already witnessed a 10% increase in travellers interested in travelling Kashi. According to another president of a renowned tour company, along with the increased interest in visiting the Kashi temple, tourists show interest in visiting Sarnath Temple and river cruises (Bhuniya 2022 ). It can be inferred that with the rejuvenation of the Vishwanath temple, other surrounding attractions of Kashi will also benefit from the tourism business.

2.4.5 Other perspectives

According to historians, some parts of the neighbouring area of the temple that were demolished for the new construction were as old as the temple itself (Ghosh 2018 ). Families have stated that they had their own temples at their family homes that were also old and had beautiful carvings, but those too were demolished along with the remaining property. Structures that were demolished for the project, such as old family temples, houses and dharamshalas, were 250–300 years old. The locals stated that these structures were equally important parts of the heritage of the old city, but they are now lost due to the tourism development project. A police officer who chose to remain anonymous shared his grief regarding the destruction of heritage buildings for the project. According to this officer, some of the iconic buildings of the area were destroyed in the process. Although he admitted that the new structure looked beautiful, the loss of old stone carvings and structures was absolutely tragic. He stated that development at the cost of heritage is never acceptable (PTI 2021 ). Demolition for the Kashi Vishwanath corridor has disrupted the balanced harmony that existed between the Vishwanath Temple and the Gayan Vapi Mosque: ‘Such exposure, and particularly the haunting sight of the object remains – detritus, scraps of the city’s fabric and broken deities – led to protest and debates…’. The residents of the area have also stated their powerlessness in fighting the government project and saving the neighbourhood from destruction (Lazzaretti 2021 ) .

3 Implication: rediscovering the ancient temples

Conservation of the ancient temples can be considered one of the positive aspects of the corridor project (Singh 2018 ). While clearing the settlements for the projected corridor, more than 40 ancient temples were rediscovered. These temples were surrounded by dense settlements; in some cases, they were completely engulfed and new settlements were built around them, covering the ancient temples. The Archaeological Survey of India has confirmed that none of the temples that were found during the destruction of personal and commercial properties along the project site were older than the 17th century (PTI 2021 ). According to the architect of the project, the goal was to increase facilities for tourists by connecting the temple with the ghat of Ganges without changing the existing formation of the temple. The architect also stated that the aim was not to tamper with the original structure of the temple and to maintain it as it was. According to Atul Tripathi of Banaras Hindu University, ‘The corridor will give glimpses of the sculptural art and architectural history of temples over 300 years because the 41 temples, which were found among the buildings purchased and demolished, have been preserved’ (Indo-Asian News Service—(IANS), 2023 ).

Rediscovering the ancient temples on which illegal construction was performed has become one of the important reasons for many people to support the project (Ghosh 2018 ). During the demolition of houses in the area, numerous old temples were found inside the properties. Religious sentiment was given priority in this case, and the temples were not demolished. The plan of the project was revised due to the discovery of the old temples. The location of the guest house and the Vedic centre were changed to accommodate these temples within the temple complex. All the temples were incorporated into the plan and restored to their former glory (Tiwari 2021 ).

4 Discussion and conclusion

A limitation of this study is that a field survey would have enhanced the quality of the work. Unfortunately, when the project was in progress, there were several restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the chance of possible health risks from a field survey were also considered. There is future potential to continue this work by interviewing the affected residents and obtaining a broader perspective of how their lives changed after the completion of the project.

The case study of Varanasi City with regard to the newly developed Kashi Vishwanath Corridor Project provides a clear view of the existing conflicts between heritage conservation planning and the affected community. The opinions of the people are clearly divided based on their gains or losses from the development project. Temple-centric tourism development, increased facilities and amenities for tourists and pilgrims have pleased a great number of devotees. Larger space around the temple, less congestion, and the elimination of long queues to visit the deity have created a positive effect, especially for pilgrims and tourists as well as many other residents of Varanasi. For visitors, this development project will help to provide a better experience while visiting the holy temple, but outsiders will not realise the actual effect resulting from the redevelopment of the area. The complete demolition of private properties and the loss of businesses and means of income will no doubt cause socioeconomic damage to the people of the area. Although the people received compensation for their loss, several reports have confirmed the locals’ disappointment as the sum was not sufficient to compensate what they lost. In addition to the socioeconomic damage, the loss of heritage that took place in the process is undeniable. The area was one of the oldest parts of Varanasi and was part and parcel of the Kashi Vishwanath Temple. The locals, along with many others around the country, have revealed their anguish about losing heritage in the name of tourism development. Some damages are measurable in terms of economic value, whereas some damages are completely unfathomable. The emotional and sentimental loss suffered by the residents due to their attachment to this area cannot be compensated.

Varanasi, now known as Kashi, is a city of incredible heritage value and is one of the oldest living cities in the world. The importance of heritage in Kashi cannot be confined to heritage structures; it spreads to the people, culture, and values of the place. The area that was demolished was considered a residential area, and the properties were not declared heritage buildings or may not have contained significant heritage monuments or architecture, but the heritage value of the space was undeniable. Areas with various historical, architectural, local, artistic and aesthetic characteristics incorporated into natural urban landscapes, when taken collectively, are more valuable than their individual values. The clustering of various aspects of tangible and intangible heritage value existing in the area that was lost in the process of tourism development is the only drawback for the otherwise ambitious project.

Availability of data and materials

Not applicable.

Abbreviations

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation

Sustainable Tourism Development

Before the Christian Era

Press Trust of India

Chief Executive Officer

Indo-Asian News Service

Al-hagla, K.S. 2010. Sustainable urban development in historical areas using the tourist trail approach: A case study of the Cultural Heritage and Urban Development (CHUD) project in Saida. Lebanon. Cities 27 (4): 234–248.

Article   Google Scholar  

Bakri, A. F., N. Ibrahim, S. S. Ahmad, and N. Q. Zaman. 2015. Public perception on the cultural significance of heritage buildings in Kuala Lumpur. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences 202: 294–302.

Basu, J. 2019. Vishwanath Corridor will be ready by June 2021: CEO of Kashi Temple Trust. e-paper The Sunday Guardian .

Benur, A. M., and B. Bramwell. 2015. Tourism product development and product diversification in destinations. Tourism Management 50: 213–224. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tourman.2015.02.005 .

Bhuniya, A. 2022. Tourists flock to Kashi Vishwanath Corridor . New Delhi: The Media India.

Google Scholar  

Bigio, A. G., and G. Licciardi. 2010. The urban rehabilitation of medinas: the World Bank experience in the Middle East and North Africa . Washington: The World Bank.  https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/server/api/core/bitstreams/21285a69-9361-5d55-8a31-bc9e2e8b810c/content .

Boussema, S. B. F., F. K. Allouche, A. Bekaoui, Y. Khalifa, and H. M’Sadak. 2020. Using Google Earth™ And Geographical Information System data as method to detect Urban Sprawl and Green Spaces for better wellbeing case of a coastal landscape. International Journal of Research 8 (9): 266–276.

De Ascaniis, S., M. Gravari-Barbas, and L. Cantoni. 2018. Tourism Management at UNESCO world heritage sites. ISBN 978-88-6101-018-5

Erbas, A. E. 2018. Cultural Heritage Conservation And Culture-Led Tourism Conflict Within The Historic Site In Beyoğlu, Istanbul. WIT Transactions on Ecology and the Environment  217: 647–659. https://doi.org/10.2495/SDP180551 .

Fyall, A., and B. Garrod. 1998. Heritage tourism: At what price? Managing Leisure 3 (4): 213–228.

García-Hernández, María, Manuel De la Calle-Vaquero, and Claudia Yubero. 2017. Cultural Heritage and Urban Tourism: Historic City Centres under Pressure. Sustainability 9 (8): 1346. https://doi.org/10.3390/su9081346 .

Ghosh, B. 2018. Beautification plan destroys oldest neighbourhoods in Varanasi. The Hindu , December 9.

Goodwin, H. 2017. The challenge of overtourism. Responsible Tourism Partnership 4: 1–19.

IANS. 2023. Varanasi's corridor of change seamlessly merges past with future. Indo-Asian News Service. https://ians.in/index.php/iansin/d2J0bg .

Lane, B. B. 1993. Interpretation and Sustainable Tourism: The Potential and the Pitfalls. Journal of Sustainable Tourism 1: 2.

Lazzaretti, V. 2021. The boundary within: Demolitions, dream projects and the negotiation of Hinduness in Banaras. In  Spaces of Religion in Urban South Asia ,edited by István Keul. London: Routledge.

Li, Y., C. Lau, and P. Su. 2020. Heritage tourism stakeholder conflict: A case of a World Heritage Site in China. Journal of Tourism and Cultural Change 18: 267–287. https://doi.org/10.1080/14766825.2020.1722141 .

Nair, B. B., S. Sinha, M. R. Dileep. 2023. Who Owns the Heritage? Power and Politics of Heritage Site Management in Tourism, Hampi, India. Archaeologies 19: 276–298. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11759-022-09459-w .

Napravishta, F. 2018. The Fragility of Cultural Heritage in the Era of Globalization: Skanderbeg Square Modernization. Paper presented at IFAU 2018 - 2nd International Forum on Architecture and Urbanism, Pescara, Italy, November 8–10.

Nasser, N. 2003. Planning for Urban Heritage Places: Reconciling Conservation, Tourism, and Sustainable Development. Journal of Planning Literature 17 (4): 467–479.

Pandey, N. and J. Parveen. 2021. Kashi Vishwanath makeover races to meet Nov Dadeline, blending heritage with the modern. The Print .

Pandey, S. 2019. Corridor for Kashi tourists proves a bane for locals . Varanashi: The Deccan Herald.

Porter, B. W., and N. B. Salazar. 2005. Heritage Tourism, Conflicts and the Public Interest : An Introduction. International Journal of Heritage Studies 11: 361–370.  https://doi.org/10.1080/13527250500337397 .

PTI. 2021. Kashi corridor: Section of locals unhappy over 'lost homes', demolition of iconic buildings e-paper. The Indian Express . https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/lucknow/ .

Seth, M. 2022. An 8-km elevated road, 3 ‘finger bridges’ to ghats: UP govt comes up with plan to transform Ganga riverfront . Lucknow: The Indian Express.

Singh, R. P. 2015. Varanasi, the Cultural Capital of India: Visioning Cultural Heritage and Planning. SANDHI, A Journal of Interfacing Science-Heritage and Technology-Tradition of India IIT Kharagpur, India 1 (1): 100–122.

Singh, S. 2018. Kashi Vishwanath Pathway: over 100 houses to be demolished, rehabilitation in Ramnagar. The Economic Times .

Sirima, A., and K. F. Backman. 2013. Communities’ displacement from national park and tourism development in the Usangu Plains.  Current Issues in Tourism  16 (7–8): 719–735. https://doi.org/10.1080/13683500.2013.785484 .

Throsby, D. 2015. Investment in urban heritage conservation in developing countries: Concepts, methods and data , 1–6. City: Culture and Society.

Tiwari, O. M. 2021. Marvel of Kashi Vishwanath Corridor: 314 buildings acquired, Rs 390 crore paid to owners, but zero litigation. News Nine .

UNESCO. 2014. UNESCO Culture for Development Indicators: Methodology Manual . Paris: UNSCO. www.unesco.org/creativity/cdis .

Xing, H., A. Marzuki, and A.A. Razak. 2013. Conceptualizing a Sustainable Development Model For Cultural Heritage Tourism in Asia. Theoretical and Empirical Researches in Urban Management 8 (1): 51–66.

Yang, J., C. Ryan, and L. Zhang. 2013. Social conflict in communities impacted by tourism. Tourism Management 35: 82–93. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tourman.2012.06.002 .

Zhang, S., K. Xiong, G. Fei, H. Zhang, and Y. Chen. 2023. Aesthetic value protection and tourism development of the world natural heritage sites: A literature review and implications for the world heritage karst sites. Heritage Science  11: 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40494-023-00872-0 .

Download references

Acknowledgements

Authors are very thankful to the Google Earth Pro for providing the open access to download the real time satellite imageries.

No fund received during this research work.

Author information

Authors and affiliations.

Department of Geography, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, 110025, India

Ananya Pati

BIM Plus Plus Project Consultants L.L.C, Lynx Tower, Dubai Silicon Oasis, 341041, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Mujahid Husain

You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

Contributions

First author’s contribution: writing Abstract, Literature review, Discussion and conclusion. Second Author’s contribution: Modification/Rewrite Abstract and literature review. News agencies’ reporting photos of study area. Study area Google Earth Pro work, Study area delineation and calculation in ArcMap software. Common work: Throughout the communication with the editor of the Journal Built Heritage . Both authors did revision of manuscript with discussion and common understanding in every suggestion that were received from the reviewers. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Mujahid Husain .

Ethics declarations

Competing interests.

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Additional information

Publisher’s note.

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article's Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article's Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ .

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article.

Pati, A., Husain, M. People’s perspectives on heritage conservation and tourism development: a case study of Varanasi. Built Heritage 7 , 17 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1186/s43238-023-00098-w

Download citation

Received : 25 November 2022

Accepted : 23 July 2023

Published : 15 August 2023

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1186/s43238-023-00098-w

Share this article

Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content:

Sorry, a shareable link is not currently available for this article.

Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative

  • Conservation
  • Development

heritage tourism local development

Take advantage of the search to browse through the World Heritage Centre information.

World Heritage and Sustainable Development

heritage tourism local development

Heritage was long absent from the mainstream sustainable development debate despite its crucial importance to societies and the wide acknowledgment of its great potential to contribute to social, economic and environmental goals.

Based on a strong appeal from national and local stakeholders, the 2030 Agenda adopted by the UN General Assembly integrates, for the first time, the role of culture, through cultural heritage and creativity, as an enabler of sustainable development across the Sustainable Development Goals. World Heritage may provide a platform to develop and test new approaches that demonstrate the relevance of heritage for sustainable development.

On 19 November 2015, the 20th General Assembly of the States Parties to the World Heritage Convention adopted a Policy on the integration of a sustainable development perspective into the processes of the World Heritage Convention . The overall goal of the policy is to assist States Parties, practitioners, institutions, communities and networks, through appropriate guidance, to harness the potential of World Heritage properties and heritage in general, to contribute to sustainable development and therefore increase the effectiveness and relevance of the Convention whilst respecting its primary purpose and mandate of protecting the Outstanding Universal value of World Heritage properties. Its adoption represents a significant shift in the implementation of the Convention and an important step in its history.

heritage tourism local development

Policy for the Integration of a Sustainable Development Perspective into the Processes of the World Heritage Convention

English French

The Contribution of World Heritage to Sustainable Development

Outside the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) N. 7, on environmental sustainability, which addresses in part the need to protect biodiversity and natural resources, the MDGs adopted by the international community in 2000 made no specific reference to heritage or even to culture in general. Yet, the contribution of heritage to a sustainable human development is major.

Certainly, the protection of exceptional heritage properties cherished by people all over the world – such as great natural sceneries and landmark monuments - can be considered as an intrinsic contribution to human wellbeing. It would be hard to imagine our countries, cities and landscapes without the familiar remnants of our past, a witness to continuity through the passing of time, and the presence of nature, to inspire us with a profound sense of wonder and joy.

But in addition to its intrinsic value for present and future generations, World Heritage – and heritage in general – can make also an important instrumental contribution to sustainable development across its various dimensions.

Through a variety of goods and services and as a storehouse of knowledge, a well-protected World Heritage property may contribute directly to alleviating poverty and inequalities by providing basic goods and services, such as security and health, through shelter, access to clean air, water, food and other key resources.

Preserving natural resources, including outstanding sites containing some of the richest combinations of terrestrial and marine biodiversity, is obviously a fundamental contribution to environmental sustainability. Most of these sites, on the other hand, have developed over time through mutual adaptation between humans and the environment, and thus demonstrate how, rather than existing in separate and parallel realms, biological and cultural diversities interact with and affect one another in complex ways in a sort of co-evolutionary process.

Very often, World Heritage is also an important asset for economic development, by attracting investments and ensuring green, locally-based, stable and decent jobs, only some of which may be related to tourism. Activities associated to the stewardship of cultural and natural heritage, indeed, are local by definition (i.e. cannot be de-localised) and green “by design” since they embody an intrinsically more sustainable pattern of land use, consumption and production, developed over centuries if not millennia of slow adaptation between the communities and their environment. This is true for natural protected areas rich in biodiversity, of course, but also for cultural landscapes and historic cities.

World Heritage, of course, is also essential to the spiritual wellbeing of people for its powerful symbolic and aesthetic dimensions. The acknowledgment and conservation of the diversity of the cultural and natural heritage, fair access to it and the equitable sharing of the benefits deriving from its use, enhance the feeling of place and belonging, mutual respect for others and a sense of purpose and ability to maintain a common good, which contribute to the social cohesion of a community as well as to individual and collective freedom of choice and action. The ability to access, enjoy and care for one’s heritage is essential for what the Nobel prize winner Amartya Sen calls the “capability of individuals to live and to be what they choose”, that is a fundamental component of human development.

A well-maintained heritage is also very important in addressing risks related to natural and human-made disasters. Experience has shown how the degradation of natural resources, neglected rural areas, urban sprawl and poorly engineered new constructions increase the vulnerability of communities to disaster risks, especially in poorer countries. On the other hand, a well-conserved natural and historic environment, based on traditional knowledge and skills, considerably reduces underlying disaster risks’ factors, strengthens the resilience of communities and saves lives.

At times of crisis, moreover, access to and care for the heritage may help vulnerable people recover a sense of continuity, dignity and empowerment. In conflict and post-conflict situations, in particular, the acknowledgment and conservation of heritage, based on shared values and interests, may foster mutual recognition, tolerance and respect among different communities, which is a precondition for a society’s peaceful development.

All of the above concerned potential positive contributions that an appropriate WH conservation and management could make to sustainable development.

Sustainable development within the World Heritage Convention

The text of the Convention, adopted in 1972, does not make any specific mention of the term “sustainable development”. It has been argued, however, that the World Heritage Convention “carries in itself the spirit and promise of sustainability, …in its insistence that culture and nature form a single, closed continuum of the planet’s resources, the integrated stewardship of which is essential to successful long-term sustainable development – and indeed to the future of life on the Earth as we know it” (Richard Engelhardt).

This idea is enshrined in particular in Articles 4 and 5 of the Convention, recognizing that States Parties have the duty “of ensuring the identification, protection, conservation, presentation and transmission to future generations (emphasis added) of the cultural and natural heritage”, as well as “to adopt a general policy which aims to give the cultural and natural heritage a function in the life of the community and to integrate the protection of that heritage into comprehensive planning programmes”. In these articles, moreover, the scope of action of the Convention seems to go beyond the sites included in its List of World Heritage properties, to encompass national heritage policies and wider development strategies.

The notion of sustainability entered the Operational Guidelines in 1994, with reference to the “sustainable use” of cultural landscapes, then introduced for the first time as a new category of heritage properties. At its 26th Session (Budapest, 2002), the World Heritage Committee adopted the so-called “Budapest Declaration”, which stressed the need to “ensure an appropriate and equitable balance between conservation, sustainability and development, so that World Heritage properties can be protected through appropriate activities contributing to the social and economic development and the quality of life of our communities”.

In 2005, furthermore, the notion of sustainable development was taken into account in the introductory part of the Operational Guidelines, which notes that “The protection and conservation of the natural and cultural heritage are a significant contribution to sustainable development” (paragraph 6). The Operational Guidelines further recognize (paragraph 119) that World Heritage properties “may support a variety of on-going and proposed uses that are ecologically and culturally sustainable”.

At its 31st Session (Christchurch 2007), the World Heritage Committee decided to add “Communities” to the previous four strategic objectives, “to enhance the role of communities in the implementation of the World Heritage Convention” (Decision 31 COM 13B).

At its 35th Session (Paris, 2011), the World Heritage Committee made a number of additions to the Operational Guidelines which refer to sustainable development, notably in paragraphs 112, 119, 132, as well as in Annex 5, points 4.b and 5.e. These amendments are aimed on one hand at ensuring that any use of World Heritage properties be sustainable with respect to the imperative of maintaining their Outstanding Universal Value (OUV), and on the other hand to affirm the idea that management systems of World Heritage properties “should integrate sustainable development principles”. Various paragraphs of the Operational Guidelines, moreover, call for a full participatory approach in the identification, protection and management of World Heritage properties (e.g. paragraphs 64, 111 and 123).

The recent “ Strategic Action Plan for the Implementation of the Convention, 2012-2022 ”, adopted by the 18th General Assembly (Paris, 2011), also integrates a concern for sustainable development, notably in its “Vision for 2022”, which calls for the World Heritage Convention to “contribute to the sustainable development of the world’s communities and cultures”, as well as through its Goal N.3 which reads: “Heritage protection and conservation considers present and future environmental, societal and economic needs”, which is to be achieved particularly through “connecting conservation to communities”.

All of these developments should be seen in the larger context of UNESCO’s initiative to integrate culture within the international sustainable development agenda (see: https://en.unesco.org/themes/culture-sustainable-development ). In this context, World Heritage sites could provide the testing ground where innovative approaches could be applied.

The Need for a Policy

Despite these advances, contributing to sustainable development is not an explicit policy in the framework of the implementation of the Convention, as this continues to focus primarily on protecting Outstanding Universal Value (OUV), which justifies the inscription of properties on the World Heritage List.

The current procedures and guidelines for the implementation of the World Heritage Convention, indeed, do not currently include specific recommendations, checks and controls that would enable governments to fully harness the potential of World Heritage for sustainable development, on one hand, and to ensure that their heritage conservation and management policies and programmes are aligned with broader sustainable development goals, on the other hand.

This means that many opportunities could be missed in the implementation of the Convention simply because those responsible may not consider them or may not know how to translate them in concrete sustainable development gains. Conversely, the current procedures of the Convention offer no clear means to encourage heritage conservation and management to better align its activities with important sustainable development objectives, such as the respect of human rights, addressing basic needs of local communities or non-depletion of natural resources.

All the ideas and recommendations formulated in the context of the 40 th Anniversary, in fact,  have not yet found their way into the policies of the World Heritage Convention, and thus have not become mainstream practice for nearly 1000 of the most outstanding heritage properties around the planet and, even more significantly, within the national heritage policies that – in many countries – are inspired by the standards set by the 1972 Convention.

For all these reasons, at its 36th Session (Saint Petersburg, 2012), the World Heritage Committee considered that the integration of sustainable development into the processes of the Convention should be promoted through a specific policy.

Policy to integrate a sustainable development perspective within the processes of the World Heritage Convention

To make a real impact on nearly a thousand sites around the world, the outcomes of expert meetings and other consultations on World Heritage and sustainable development need to be translated into actual policy for the implementation of the Convention.

Recognizing this, at its 36th session (St. Petersburg, 2012), the World Heritage Committee requested in Decision 36 COM 5C   that the World Heritage Centre, with the support of the Advisory Bodies, convene a small expert working group to develop, within a year, a policy for the integration of sustainable development into the processes of the World Heritage Convention, for possible inclusion in the future Policy Guidance document.

On 19 November 2015, the 20th General Assembly of the States Parties to the World Heritage Convention adopted a Policy on the integration of a sustainable development perspective into the processes of the Convention.The overall goal of the policy is to assist States Parties, practitioners, institutions, communities and networks, through appropriate guidance, to harness the potential of World Heritage properties and heritage in general, to contribute to sustainable development and therefore increase the effectiveness and relevance of the Convention whilst respecting its primary purpose and mandate of protecting the Outstanding Universal value of World Heritage properties. In line with the “2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development”, adopted last September by the UN General Assembly, this new policy revolves around the three dimensions of sustainable development, namely environmental sustainability, inclusive social development and inclusive economic development, complemented by the fostering of peace and security. Its adoption represents a significant shift in the implementation of the Convention and an important step in its history.

Following the adoption of the policy, relevant changes will have to be introduced within the Operational Guidelines for the Implementation of the World Heritage Convention , so as to translate its principles into actual procedures. The concrete implementation of the policy will no doubt require the building of necessary capacities among practitioners, institutions, concerned communities and networks, across a wide interdisciplinary and inter-sectorial spectrum. The necessary tools and programmes will therefore have to be developed, and appropriate indicators defined, to monitor progress in the implementation of the policy. Ongoing consultation with States Parties and other relevant stakeholders will be also established with a view to enriching the policy in the future.

Paraty Meeting on the Relationship between the World Heritage Convention, Conservation and Sustainable Development (29-31 March 2010)

The Paraty meeting’s conclusions recognized the important contribution of World Heritage to sustainable development while noting that securing sustainable development is – almost by definition - an essential condition to guarantee the conservation of the heritage. The results of the Paraty Meeting included an Action Plan (see Annex I). By its Decision 34 COM 5D, the World Heritage Committe agreed “that it would be desirable to further consider, in the implementation of the Convention, policies and procedures that maintain the Outstanding Universal value of properties, and also contribute to sustainable development”.

A brief summary of the outcomes of the Paraty Meeting is provided in Document 34 COM 5D . See:  https://whc.unesco.org/en/events/665/

Ouro Preto Meeting on World Heritage and Sustainable Development (5 to 8 February 2012)

The Meeting acknowledged that, in the current context of changing demographics, growing inequalities and diminishing resources, heritage institutions would need to view conservation objectives within a larger system of social and environmental values and needs encompassed in the sustainable development concept. « Ultimately - the participants in the meeting noted - if the heritage sector does not fully embrace sustainable development and harness the reciprocal benefits for heritage and society, it will find itself a victim of, rather than a catalyst for wider change ».

A brief summary of the outcomes of the Ouro Preto Meeting is provided in Document 36 COM 5C . The full proceedings are accessible. See: whc.unesco.org/en/events/794/

40th Anniversary Events

The year 2012 marked the 40th anniversary of the World Heritage Convention . Significantly, the choice of theme for the anniversary was “World Heritage and Sustainable Development: the role of local communities”. Over 100 meetings and conferences were held to mark the occasion, culminating in the final event of Kyoto  and the resulting declaration called “Kyoto Vision” . These events produced a wealth of reflections, principles and recommendations concerning ways to integrate local community concerns in World Heritage.

An analytical summary of the events associated to the 40th Anniversary was prepared by the World Heritage Centre, focusing on the specific outcomes that are relevant to the debate on World Heritage and sustainable development. This analysis is accessible here .

Toyama Meeting on “World Heritage and Sustainable Development: from principles to Practice” (3-5 November 2012)

The Toyama meeting took place immediately before the conclusive event of the 40 th Anniversary (Kyoto, 6-8 November 2012), to prepare and nourish its deliberations.

Its outcome document, the “Toyama Proposal on World Heritage and Sustainable Development”, reiterates the importance of mainstreaming heritage in the current and future international policies on sustainable development, but also stresses the need to mainstream sustainable development in heritage policies and practice, starting from the World Heritage Convention.  The document also recommends placing emphasis on capacity-building for local development actors, drawing in particular from various successful models and practices and to consider all the above in the drafting of the policy that the World Heritage Committee has asked the Centre and the Advisory Bodies to draft.

Working Document for the Toyama Meeting Toyama Proposal on World Heritage and Sustainable Development See:  https://whc.unesco.org/en/events/930/

Hangzhou Congress

The International Congress "Culture: Key to Sustainable Development" was held in Hangzhou (China) from 15 May to 17 May 2013. This event was the first International Congress specifically focusing on the linkages between culture and sustainable development organized by UNESCO since the Stockholm Conference in 1998.  As such, the Congress provided the very first global forum to discuss the role of culture in sustainable development in view of the post-2015 development framework, with participation of the global community and the major international stakeholders.

Heritage and its contribution to sustainable development was a key consideration within the Congress (a specific session was devoted to this theme) and was strongly reflected in the final outcome of the event, the Hangzhou Declaration.

Background Paper:  “Introducing Cultural Heritage into the Sustainable Development Agenda” Watch the video of the Session on Cultural Heritage The Hangzhou Declaration

The Vilm workshop on World Heritage and Sustainable development – From Policy to Action (14–16 November 2016)

To operationalize the Policy for the integration of a sustainable development perspective into the processes of the World Heritage Convention , the participants of the Vilm workshop elaborated an action plan, which was produced as an aspirational set of activities and timescales for the implementation of the policy, aiming to engage all the stakeholders of the Convention, at international, regional, and local levels. The meeting was organised jointly by the German Federal Agency for Nature Conservation (BfN) with its International Academy for Nature Conservation, IUCN, ICCROM and ICOMOS, in cooperation with the World Heritage Centre.

The proceedings of the Vilm expert workshop

  • UN Conference on Environment and Development (Earth Summit) – (Rio 1992)
  • United Nations Millennium Declaration (New York, 2000)
  • Johannesburg World Summit on SD (Johannesburg, 2002)
  • UN MDG Summit – (New York, September 2010) 
  • Paraty Meeting Outcome and Action Plan –Decision 34 COM 5D – (Paraty and Paris, June 2010)
  • Ouro Preto Meeting – Brazil (February 5-8, 2012)
  • Rio+20 Conference – (Rio, June 2012)
  • Kyoto Vision – (Kyoto, November 2012)
  • Hangzhou Declaration: Placing Culture at the Heart of Sustainable Development Policies – (Hangzhou, May 2013)
  • The World Heritage Review n°65 - Sustainable Development
  • The publication: “World Heritage: Benefits Beyond Borders

Related Themes and Programmes

heritage tourism local development

UNESCO and Sustainable Development Goals

heritage tourism local development

Climate Change

heritage tourism local development

Cultural Landscapes

heritage tourism local development

World Heritage Sustainable Tourism Programme

Economic impact of World Heritage Listing

heritage tourism local development

World Heritage and Indigenous Peoples

heritage tourism local development

World Heritage Marine Programme

heritage tourism local development

Synergies to protect Global Heritage

World Heritage and Ramsar Convention on Wetlands

heritage tourism local development

Small Island Developing States Programme

heritage tourism local development

World Heritage Education Programme

heritage tourism local development

UNESCO @UN Oceans Conference

heritage tourism local development

World Heritage Cities Programme

heritage tourism local development

World Heritage and Gender Equality

Publications.

  • Brochure UNESCO moving forward the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development
  • UNESCO Global Report on Culture for Sustainable Cities, Culture: Urban Future
  • UNESCO global priority: gender equality - tools and resources 2014 UNESCO Report on Gender Equality and Culture
  • World Heritage: Benefits Beyond Borders
  • World Heritage Review n°65- Sustainable Development
  • World Heritage Review n°82 - African Heritage and its sustainable development
  • Exhibition- African World Heritage: a pathway for development

heritage tourism local development

Decisions / Resolutions (8)

The World Heritage Committee,

  • Having examined Document WHC/17/41.COM/5C,
  • Recalling Decisions 36 COM 5C , 38 COM 5D , and 39 COM 5D , and 40 COM 5C , adopted respectively at its 36th (Saint Petersburg, 2012), 38th (Doha, 2014) and 39th (Bonn, 2015) and 40th (Istanbul/UNESCO, 2016) sessions, as well as Resolution 20 GA 13 , adopted by the General Assembly at its 20th session (UNESCO, 2015),
  • Welcomes the follow-up activities and the progress made by the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies in disseminating the “Policy Document for the integration of a sustainable development perspective into the processes of the World Heritage Convention ” and mainstreaming it into statutory processes, international policies and operational activities and requests that this effort be pursued;
  • Reiterates the need to achieve the right balance between environmental, social and economic sustainability, while fully respecting and protecting the Outstanding Universal Value of World Heritage properties;
  • Underscores the important role and the contribution of the Convention towards achieving Sustainable Development Goal, Target 11.4: “Strengthen efforts to protect and safeguard the world’s cultural and natural heritage”;
  • Takes note of the support provided by the World Heritage Centre and Advisory Bodies to Members States in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and of the further work anticipated on developing indicators in this regard;
  • Also welcomes the work by the UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS) for monitoring the Sustainable Development Goal, Target 11.4. through an indicator that reflects the total amount per capita each country spends to protect their cultural and natural heritage, and invites UNESCO and all parties to identify and make visible the many ways in which the implementation of the World Heritage Convention contributes to achieving the SDGs, in particular SDG 11 for cultural sites and SDGs 14 and 15 for natural sites;
  • Calls upon States Parties to ensure that sustainable development principles are mainstreamed into their national processes related to World Heritage, in full respect of the Outstanding Universal Value of World Heritage properties;
  • Further calls on States Parties to support capacity-building programmes and activities aimed at providing methodologies and tools for integrating heritage conservation into sustainable development frameworks and mainstreaming the Sustainable Development approach in conservation and management activities;
  • Recalling Resolution 20 GA 13 and Decision 40 COM 12 , and in view of the ever increasing urgency to balance sustainable development and implementation of the Convention at the site level, urges the World Heritage Centre in collaboration with the Advisory Bodies to finalize a clear framework of the Policy Compendium for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 42nd session in 2018;
  • Commends the efforts undertaken by the State Party of Germany in collaboration with the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies concerning the operationalization of the World Heritage – Sustainable Development policy and calls for wider collaboration in consolidating these efforts;
  • Decides to inscribe an agenda item concerning World Heritage and Sustainable Development at its 43rd session in 2019 and also requests the World Heritage Centre, in cooperation with the Advisory Bodies, to present a progress report in this regard.
  • Having examined Document WHC/16/40.COM/5C,
  • Recalling Decisions 36 COM 5C , 38 COM 5D , and 39 COM 5D , adopted respectively at its 36th (Saint Petersburg, 2012), 38th (Doha, 2014) and 39th (Bonn, 2015) sessions, as well as Resolution 20 GA 13 , adopted by the General Assembly at its 20th session (UNESCO, 2015),
  • Welcomes the adoption of the “Policy Document for the integration of a sustainable development perspective into the processes of the World Heritage Convention ” by the 20th General Assembly of States Parties (UNESCO, 2015);
  • Reiterates the need to achieve appropriate balance and integration between the protection of the Outstanding Universal Value of World Heritage properties and the pursuit of sustainable development objectives and invites the World Heritage Centre to develop a strategy in due time, as appropriate, for the implementation of the sustainable development policy;
  • Takes note of the follow-up activities and the progress made by the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies in disseminating and mainstreaming the policy into operational activities, as requested by Decision 39 COM 5D and Resolution 20 GA 13 ;
  • Also takes note of the active participation of the World Heritage Centre and Advisory Bodies in supporting Members States in the implementation of SDG 11 and Target 11.4 of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and of the further work anticipated on developing indicators in this regard;
  • Also notes contributions by the World Heritage Convention to a number of other SDG goals and also invites the World Heritage Centre, Advisory Bodies and States Parties to highlight all World Heritage related contributions in their follow-up processes and reporting on the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development;
  • Calls upon States Parties to ensure that sustainable development principles are mainstreamed into their national processes related to World Heritage and integrated at the level of local communities, in full respect of the boundaries and the Outstanding Universal Value of World Heritage properties;
  • Recalls the Article 13.7 of the World Heritage Convention and encourages all States Parties, the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies to invite the perspectives of non-governmental and civil society organizations with practical experience of conservation of World Heritage properties in the further development of principles intended to mainstream sustainable development into national, regional and other relevant policies related to World Heritage;
  • Decides to inscribe an agenda item concerning World Heritage and Sustainable Development at its 41st session in 2017 and requests the World Heritage Centre to present a progress report in this regard.

The General Assembly,

  • Having examined Documents WHC-15/20.GA/13 and WHC-15/20.GA/INF.13 ,
  • Recalling Decisions 36 COM 5C , 38 COM 5D , and 39 COM 5D , adopted respectively at the 36th (Saint Petersburg, 2012), 38th (Doha, 2014), and 39th (Bonn, 2015) sessions of the World Heritage Committee,
  • Thanks the Technical University of Brandenburg, the Government of Germany and the Government of Viet Nam for their support in the development of the draft policy document on the integration of a sustainable development perspective into the processes of the World Heritage Convention;
  • Welcomes the work accomplished by the group of experts on a voluntary basis despite the lack of resources, under the coordination of the World Heritage Centre, and in close consultation with the Advisory Bodies, to develop the draft of the policy document annexed to Document WHC-15/39.COM/5D;
  • Notes the debate on this item that took place at the 39th session of the World Heritage Committee (Bonn, 2015), the comments expressed by the States Parties on this draft through a broad consultation process, as well as the main outcomes of UN 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda;
  • Adopts the revised policy document as a first step toward the integration of a sustainable development perspective into the implementation processes of the Convention , contained in document WHC-15/20.GA/INF.13 as amended;
  • Invites the World Heritage Centre and States Parties to continue engagement through an ongoing consultation process involving all stakeholders to enrich the policy document and invites the World Heritage Centre to provide an update on progress made to the 40th session of the World Heritage Committee (Istanbul, 2016);
  • the necessary changes to the Operational Guidelines , which would translate the principles of the policy document on sustainable development into specific operational procedures,
  • indicators for measuring the progress of the policy’s implementation;
  • capacity-building initiatives, needed to enable implementation, including an indication of the related costs;
  • Calls on States Parties to contribute financially towards this end;
  • Encourages the World Heritage Centre to sensitize States Parties, as appropriate, to the implications of the policy, notably in terms of the need to establish appropriate governance mechanisms to achieve the right balance between World Heritage and Sustainable Development, and integration between the protection of the Outstanding Universal Value of World Heritage properties and the pursuit of sustainable development objectives and to that same end encourages the World Heritage Centre to cooperate with all of UNESCO’s sectors and in particular with the relevant programmes such as MAB and MOST;
  • Also encourages UNESCO and the Advisory Bodies to widely disseminate the Policy Document as adopted by the General Assembly, and other related publications, to the world heritage community and the broader public, and promote its application;
  • Recommends that Category 2 Centres and UNESCO Chairs related to World Heritage, and the wider network of the UNESCO Forum University and Heritage, prioritize issues related to the implementation of this policy within their capacity-building and research initiatives;
  • Further requests the World Heritage Centre to present to the General Assembly, at its 21st session in 2017, a report on the progress made in the implementation of the above provisions.
  • Having examined Document WHC-15/39.COM/5D ,
  • Recalling Decisions 36 COM 5C and 38 COM 5D , adopted respectively at its 36th (Saint Petersburg, 2012) and 38th (Doha, 2014) sessions,
  • Thanks the Technical University of Brandenburg, the Government of Germany and the Government of Viet Nam for having supported the development of the policy for the integration of a sustainable development perspective into the processes of the World Heritage Convention through the organization of two workshops in Cottbus (Germany) and Ninh Binh (Viet Nam), respectively in October 2014 and January 2015;
  • Welcomes the work accomplished by the group of experts on a voluntary basis, under the coordination of the World Heritage Centre and in close consultation with the Advisory Bodies, despite the lack of resources;
  • Endorses the “Policy Document for the integration of a sustainable development perspective into the processes of the World Heritage Convention ” as described in Annex to Document WHC-15/39.COM/5D;
  • Requests the World Heritage Centre to disseminate the draft Policy Document to all States Parties and collate their comments;
  • Also requests the World Heritage Centre, in consultation with the Advisory Bodies, to revise the Policy Document by incorporating views expressed at the 39th session and other comments received from States Parties, as well as by taking into account the final outcome of the negotiations for the establishment of the UN Post-2015 development agenda and other relevant processes;
  • Decides to transmit the revised Policy Document for discussion and adoption at the 20th General Assembly of States Parties in 2015;
  • Further requests the World Heritage Centre, along with the Advisory Bodies, to ensure - once the Policy Document is adopted by the General Assembly of the States Parties that the Policy Document will be taken into account in the preparation of the overall Policy Guidelines as one of the essential elements to be inserted in the text;
  • Requests furthermore the World Heritage Centre along with the Advisory Bodies, to elaborate – once the overall Policy Document is adopted by the General Assembly of the States Parties – proposals for specific changes to the Operational Guidelines that would be required to translate the principles of the Policy Document into actual operational procedures;
  • Calls on States Parties to contribute financially to this end and after adoption by the General Assembly in 2015, to strengthen the Policy by promoting a wider participation of the government, private sector and communities;
  • Encourages the World Heritage Centre to sensitize States Parties, as appropriate, to the adoption of the policy as well as to its implications, notably in terms of the need to establish the appropriate governance mechanisms to achieve the appropriate balance and integration between the protection of the Outstanding Universal Value of World Heritage properties and the pursuit of sustainable development objectives;
  • Also encourages UNESCO and the Advisory Bodies to disseminate widely the Policy Document as adopted by the General Assembly, and other related publications through appropriate means to the World Heritage community and the broader public, and promote its application and a wider fostering in multilateral scenarios, especially in those related to sustainable development;
  • Recommends to the Category 2 Centres and UNESCO Chairs related to World Heritage and to the wider network of the UNESCO Forum – Universities and Heritage, to prioritize issues related to the implementation of the policy within their capacity-building and research initiatives as well as involving in their activities other actors and sectors related to sustainable development;
  • Finally requests the World Heritage Centre to present to the Committee, at its 40th session in 2016, a report on the progress made in the implementation of the above provisions.
  • Having examined Document WHC-14/38.COM/5D,
  • Recalling Decisions 35 COM 5E and 36 COM 5C , adopted at its 35th (UNESCO, 2011) and 36th (Saint-Petersburg, 2012) sessions respectively,
  • Welcomes the progress made towards the development of a draft policy for integrating a sustainable development perspective into the processes of the World Heritage Convention , despite the lack of resources;
  • Acknowledges the eight key dimensions of sustainable development, namely Inclusive Economic Development, Environmental Sustainability, Peace and Security, Resilience/Disaster Risk Reduction, Gender Equality, Local Communities/Indigenous Peoples and Human Rights;
  • Acknowledges the significance of developing a policy which would emphasize the link between World Heritage and sustainable development in conjunction with the upcoming establishment of the UN post-2015 development agenda;
  • Endorses the proposed methodology for developing the draft policy for integrating a sustainable development perspective into the processes of the World Heritage Convention ;
  • Recognizes however, that broader consultations should be conducted in the drafting process of the policy and that adequate financial resources should be mobilized in this regard;
  • Strongly encourages all States Parties, other potential donors and partner institutions to provide financial or in-kind support for the successful completion of this initiative;
  • Requests the World Heritage Centre along with the Advisory Bodies, if feasible, within the available resources, to submit a draft of the policy for examination by the Committee at its 39th session, in 2015. 

1. Having examined document WHC-12/36.COM/5C ,

2. Recalling Decisions 33 COM 14A.2 , 34 COM 5D and 35 COM 5E adopted at its 33rd (Seville, 2009), 34th (Brasilia, 2010) and 35th(Paris, 2011) sessions respectively,

3. Welcomes the outcome of the Consultative Meeting on World Heritage and Sustainable Development held in Ouro Preto (Brazil) from 5 to 8 February 2012, takes note of its recommended actions and thanks the State Party of Brazil for having generously hosted this event;

4. Recognizing that the conservation of cultural and natural heritage is of critical importance for the achievement of sustainable development in its various dimensions at global and local levels, recommends that, in full consistency with the Convention ’s primary objectives, the processes of the Convention should seek to appropriately integrate a sustainable development perspective to realize the full benefits of heritage to society, and the benefits of sustainable development approaches to the enhanced protection and conservation of heritage;

5. Requests the World Heritage Centre, with the support of the Advisory Bodies to convene a small expert working group to develop, within a year, a proposal for a policy on the integration of sustainable development into the processes of the World Heritage Convention , for possible inclusion in the future Policy Guidelines document. This policy should take into consideration the outcomes of the Ouro Preto Meeting, of other meetings that are taking place in the anniversary year across the world and of the Rio + 20 Conference, as well as integrate the relevant reflection from previous and ongoing discussions on related topics, in connection with the UNESCO initiative to promote the role of culture in development;

6. Further requests the interested States Parties to consider provision of extrabudgetary resources to enable the implementation of this and the other actions recommended by the Ouro Preto Meeting;

7. Also requests , within available resources, the World Heritage Centre to submit a draft of the above-mentioned policy and a report on the progress made in the implementation of other actions recommended by the Paraty and Ouro Preto meetings, for examination by the Committee no later than at its 38th session in 2014. 

1. Having examined Document WHC-11/35.COM/5E ,

2. Recalling Decisions 32 COM 10, 33 COM 14A.2 , 34 COM 5D adopted at its 32nd (Quebec City, 2008), 33rd (Seville, 2009) and 34th (Brasilia, 2010) sessions respectively,

3. Welcomes the progress made in implementing the recommended actions;

4. Requests the World Heritage Centre, in collaboration with the Advisory Bodies, and with the support of interested States Parties to continue its efforts to implement various activities contained in the Action Plan 2012;

5. Also requests that the results of the proposed consultative meeting on "World Heritage and Sustainable Development" be reported for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 36th session in 2012 and thanks the State Party of Brazil for its offer to host such a meeting.

1. Having examined Document WHC-10/34.COM/5D,

2. Recalling Decisions 32 COM 10 and 33 COM 14A.2 , adopted at its 32nd (Quebec City, 2008) and 33rd (Seville, 2009) sessions respectively,

3. Thanks the State Party of Brazil for supporting the organization of an expert meeting on the relations between the World Heritage Convention , conservation and sustainable development, held in Paraty (Brazil) from 29 to 31 March 2010;

4. Welcomes the outcomes of the above-mentioned meeting and agrees that it would be desirable to further consider, in the implementation of the Convention , policies and procedures that maintain the Outstanding Universal Value of properties, and also contribute to sustainable development; 

5. Also welcomes the proposed Action Plan for 2012 developed during the Expert Meeting at Paraty and presented in the above-mentioned Document, and encourages to reflect and to pursue the efforts to strengthen linkages between the World Heritage Convention and other relevant multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs);

6. Requests the World Heritage Centre, in close collaboration with the Advisory Bodies, to pursue the study of the revision of the Operational Guidelines , to integrate sustainable development, and to further consider these matters within the framework of the reflection on the Future of the Convention ;

7. Also requests the World Heritage Centre, in close collaboration with the Advisory Bodies, to seek extra-budgetary funding to organize, within the framework of the reflection on the Future of the Convention , a consultative meeting on "World Heritage and Sustainable Development" with all States Parties and secretariats of the concerned MEAs, before the 36th session of the World Heritage Committee in 2012, and further requests the World Heritage Centre, within the limits of its capacity, to seek extra-budgetary funding for the implementation of the other activities mentioned in the Action Plan for 2012 presented in Document WHC-10/34.COM/5D;

8. Also requests the World Heritage Centre to identify opportunities, of potential collaboration with the UNESCO Man and Biosphere Programme (MAB), United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and other MEAs, and taking into account the needs of Small Island Developing States (SIDS), in the form of pilot projects to address the relation between conservation and sustainable development at regional/ecosystem scales;

9. Further requests the World Heritage Centre to report on the progress accomplished in the implementation of the above for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 35th session in 2011.

Book cover

The International Conference on Cultural Sustainable Tourism

CST 2022: Sustainable Tourism, Culture and Heritage Promotion pp 139–149 Cite as

Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Sustainable Development. The Model of the Cultural Heritage Digital Media Lab

  • Fernando Faria Paulino 25 &
  • Tiago Cruz 25  
  • Conference paper
  • First Online: 02 March 2024

33 Accesses

Part of the book series: Advances in Science, Technology & Innovation ((ASTI))

The protection of cultural heritage must, at present, be seen as a determining factor, taking an active role with local communities, resident populations and the environment, for local development, in what is now known as sustainable tourism, articulating all stakeholders. Institutions, organisations, private industries and local populations should play, in close coordination with each other, an active role in the socio-cultural development of the region(s) either as a place of construction and representation of intangible cultural heritage, or as a place of valorisation and revaluation of this same heritage, transforming it into a factor of self-esteem and cultural resource of the populations, considering the potential development of local communities. The Cultural Heritage Digital Media Lab (CHDML) is an ongoing project and aims to contribute to the participatory governance process, to the rescue and enhancement of cultural heritage and memory and to the creation of opportunities for economic development and appreciation of local products, bearing in mind the market potential. New modalities of appropriation and reappropriation of the popular and the traditional emerge, now shaped under the designation of “heritage”. Cultural industries are born and developed around the concept of culture, now considered fundamental in the creative economy, tourism and sustainable development. The main goal of this paper is to present and introduce the CHDML as a platform that supports the development of projects and activities related, mainly, with the preservation of intangible cultural heritage of Portuguese-speaking countries. In this context, the authors present some examples of projects that follow the methodological approach presented in this article and underline the three main characteristics that are essential to the CHDML: (i) it is focused just on Portuguese-speaking countries; (ii) the educational aspect of working with students; (iii) the importance of working on heritage reinterpretations.

  • Cultural heritage
  • Development
  • Sustainability

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution .

Buying options

  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Barbosa, R., & Paulino, F. (2018). Recording the intangible heritage of the city in the Metropolitan Area of Porto. In Cities’ identity through architecture and arts . Taylor & Francis.

Google Scholar  

Carvalho, A. (2011), Os Museus e o Património Cultural Imaterial. Estratégias para o desenvolvimento de boas práticas, Lisboa: Edições Colibri.

Cruz, T., Paulino, F., & Tavares, M. (2019). CulturalNature Arga #2. In I. Management Association (Ed.), Geospatial Intelligence: Concepts, methodologies, tools, and applications (pp. 804–812). IGI Global.

Edensor, T. (1998). Tourists at the Taj . Routledge.

Fabietti, U. (2001). Storia dell’Antropologia . Zanichelli editore.

Fortuna, C. (1999). Identidades, Percursos, Paisagens Culturais . Celta Editora.

Geertz, C. (1993). The interpretation of cultures . Fontana Press.

Geertz, C. (1999). O Saber Local, Novos ensaios em antropologia interpretativa. Editora Vozes.

Giannetti, C. (2012). Estética Digital: Sintopia da arte, a ciência e a tecnologia. C/Arte.

Hafstein, V. Tr. (2018). Making intangible heritage. El Condor Pasa and Other Stories from UNESCO . Indiana University Press.

Kilani, M. (2002). Antropologia. Una introduzione . Dedalo.

Mauss, M. (1988). Ensaio sobre a dádiva . Edições 70.

Meskell, L. (Ed.). (2015). Global heritage: A reader . Wiley Blackwell.

Paulino, F. (2007a). Dos documentos de terreno ao hipermédia. In Antropologia Visual e Hipermedia . Ed. Afrontamento.

Paulino, F. (2007b). Turismo e Autenticidade. O papel da publicidade na representação dos lugares turísticos. In Imágenes de la cultura/Cultura de las imágenes . EditUM.

Paulino, F. (2010a). Recuperação do Imaginário Coletivo da Serra d’Arga. Pela projeção turística dos lugares simbólicos. In Dinâmicas de Rede no Turismo Cultural e Religioso . Ed. ISMAI.

Paulino, F. (2010b). Cultura Visual e Turismo. Natureza e Cultura no Alto Douro Vinhateiro . Universidade Aberta, tese doutoramento.

Paulino, F. (2011). “L’utilisation de l’hypermédia dans le discours anthropologique” in Inter Media. Littérature, cinema et intertextualité . L’Harmattan.

Pinheiro, A., & Paulino, F. (2022). Urban tourism and World Heritage: Relations and effects of the classification. Pasos Revista De Turismo y Patrimonio Cultural, 20 (5), 1234–1254.

Article   Google Scholar  

Pink, S. (2001). Doing visual ethnography . Sage Publications.

Pink, S. (2007). Applied visual anthropology. Social intervention and visual methodologies. In S. Pink (Ed.), Visual interventions. Applied visual anthropology, Nova Iorque . Bergahn Books

Prats, L. (1997). Antropología y patrimonio . Editorial Ariel.

Rabinow, P. (1977). Reflections on fieldwork in Morocco . University of California Press.

Ramos, M. (coord.). (2003). A Matéria do Património—Memórias e Identidades . Edições Colibri.

Ramos, M. (2005). Breve nota crítica sobre a introdução da expressão “património intangível” em Portugal. In V. O. Jorge (Org.), Conservar para quê? (pp. 67–76). DCTP‐FLUP – CEAUCP‐FCT

Santaella, L. (2003), Culturas e Artes do Pós-Humano, São Paulo: PAULUS

Smith, L., & Akagawa, N. (Eds.). (2009). Intangible heritage . Routledge.

Sousa, F. (2018). A Participação na Salvaguarda do Património Cultural Imaterial. O papel das Comunidades, Grupos e Indivíduos . Memória Imaterial CRL.

Stefano, M., Davis, P., & Corsane, G. (Eds.). (2014). Safeguarding intangible cultural heritage . The Boydell Press.

Unesco. (2003). Convenção para a salvaguarda do património cultural imaterial . UNESCO.

Download references

Acknowledgements

We would also like to highlight the various protocols and partnerships made so far. Among them: University of Maia (Portugal), UniCV-University of Cape Verde (Cape Verde), Amílcar Cabral University (Guinea-Bissau), University of São José (Macau), Federal University of Minas Gerais (Brazil), Federal University of Maranhão (Brazil), INEP-National Institute of Studies and Research (Guinea-Bissau), CIAC-Center for Research in Arts and Communication/University of Algarve (Portugal), IPC-Institute of Cultural Heritage of Cape Verde (Cape Verde), Porto Digital Association (Portugal).

Author information

Authors and affiliations.

University of Maia, Maia, Portugal

Fernando Faria Paulino & Tiago Cruz

You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Fernando Faria Paulino .

Editor information

Editors and affiliations.

Department of Quantitative Methods for Economics and Business, University of Granada, Granada, Spain

Jorge Chica-Olmo

Department of Geography, Tourism and Hotel Management, Faculty of Sciences, University of Novi Sad, Novi Sad, Serbia

Miroslav Vujičić

WSB University, Dabrowa Gornicza, Poland

Rui Alexandre Castanho

Uglješa Stankov

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Perugia, Perugia, Italy

Eliana Martinelli

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2024 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG

About this paper

Cite this paper.

Paulino, F.F., Cruz, T. (2024). Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Sustainable Development. The Model of the Cultural Heritage Digital Media Lab. In: Chica-Olmo, J., Vujičić, M., Castanho, R.A., Stankov, U., Martinelli, E. (eds) Sustainable Tourism, Culture and Heritage Promotion. CST 2022. Advances in Science, Technology & Innovation. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-49536-6_15

Download citation

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-49536-6_15

Published : 02 March 2024

Publisher Name : Springer, Cham

Print ISBN : 978-3-031-49535-9

Online ISBN : 978-3-031-49536-6

eBook Packages : Earth and Environmental Science Earth and Environmental Science (R0)

Share this paper

Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content:

Sorry, a shareable link is not currently available for this article.

Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative

  • Publish with us

Policies and ethics

  • Find a journal
  • Track your research
  • Research article
  • Open access
  • Published: 19 July 2021

Joint development of cultural heritage protection and tourism: the case of Mount Lushan cultural landscape heritage site

  • Zhenrao Cai 1 ,
  • Chaoyang Fang   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-6695-7169 1 , 2 , 5 ,
  • Qian Zhang 1 &
  • Fulong Chen 3 , 4  

Heritage Science volume  9 , Article number:  86 ( 2021 ) Cite this article

7722 Accesses

27 Citations

Metrics details

A Correction to this article was published on 08 November 2021

This article has been updated

The joint development of cultural heritage protection and tourism is an essential part of sustainable heritage tourism. Mount Lushan in China is such a site which in the past has had shortcomings in heritage protection and heritage tourism marketing. The present research addresses this issue by using digital technologies such as oblique aerial photography, 3D laser scanning technology, and 360 degrees panorama technology to digitize the Mount Lushan cultural landscape heritage site, integrating all elements to create a virtual tourism subsystem. It provides users with a virtual experience of cultural landscape heritage tourism and promotes cultural landscape tourism marketing. In addition, tourist flow and environmental subsystems were built through the integration of Internet of Things (IoT) technology and analytical models. The tourist flow subsystem can help managers to regulate tourist flow according to the tourist carrying capacity threshold. Managers can also conduct environmental health assessment and management through the "pressure-state-response" model provided by the environmental subsystem. Finally, a comprehensive platform was developed based on the system concept, which integrated the three subsystems and their functions, and developed different versions to provide a visual platform for tourists and managers. This study provides a new model for the joint development of cultural heritage protection and tourism activities.

Introduction

Cultural heritage tourism is an increasingly prominent form of tourism globally, bolstered by heritage listings of UNESCO [ 1 ]. Built environment or other forms of heritage are often regarded as a focus of social and economic development [ 2 ], and the tourism industry can be a driving force to promote heritage protection. Cultural heritage management departments generally assume asset ownership and daily management tasks, while the tourism industry is responsible for product development and marketing [ 3 ]. However, poor management of cultural heritage may lead to its degradation. Heritage sites may be damaged by fire or natural disasters, or by human-induced factors [ 4 ]. For example, the large flow of people typical of popular tourist destinations may indirectly damage the principal tangible and intangible cultural value of a heritage site [ 5 ]. It is thus imperative to strengthen the protection and management of heritage. The Internet has become an important marketing tool for tourism promotion [ 6 ], mainly because it can speed up information dissemination. However, whether the website efficiently conveys travel information or effectively promotes destinations is often uncertain as designers tend to focus on aesthetics rather than content [ 7 ]. In addition, the quantity and quality of information will affect the time it takes for users to visit the website pages, thereby further restricting the development of the tourism industry.

The "digitalization" of heritage can provide a suitable way to address these issues. Field surveys and mapping, photo files, and data collection are traditional methods of acquiring cultural heritage data, and these results have become an essential foundation for heritage protection [ 8 ]. Novel and advanced technologies, such as digital photogrammetry and spectral imaging, are becoming more widely employed in heritage science and are often used to comprehensively record, understand and protect historical relics and artworks [ 9 ]. Some examples of these advances include the use of drones to obtain high-resolution images and using the data for 3D modeling [ 10 ]; using 360 degrees panorama technology to obtain panoramic photos [ 11 ]; or using terrestrial laser scanners to obtain point clouds. Such observations can be used to generate highly accurate models or drawings [ 12 ]. GIS also plays a vital role in protecting and utilizing cultural heritage. Using the Web and mobile GIS support, cultural heritage data, such as text, audio, or video stories, location information, and images, can be obtained through portable devices. GIS has unique advantages for data collection, storage, and manipulation of datasets [ 13 ]. By integrating historical building information models and 3D-GIS attribute data, the visibility and interactivity of the information models used in cultural heritage sites can be enhanced [ 14 ]. Virtual reality (VR) technology also has exceptional value in tourism marketing and cultural relic protection, involving computer graphic rendering, artificial intelligence, networks, and sensor technology, and can virtually reconstruct and simulate cultural heritage. These are examples of effective "digital protection" of cultural heritage [ 15 ] which can also assist in attracting more tourists [ 16 ].

In addition to the digitization of heritage resources, the flow of visitors and its associated impact to the environment of heritage sites is also intimately related to heritage protection and tourism development, and this factor may also be assisted by advanced technology. The Internet of Things (IoT) can be used to monitor and manage the tourist flow, for example, beam sensors can be employed to count the number of tourists and use these numbers to improve tourist management [ 17 ]. The adoption of video monitoring technology in combination with GIS can be used to analyze and visualize the spatial distribution of pedestrian numbers and flow in different areas, providing a strong foundation for tourist flow management [ 5 ]. Ground laser scanning technology, sensor monitoring technology, and digital photography can be used to monitor and manage the local environment [ 18 , 19 , 20 ], and IoT technology can dynamically evaluate whether environmental conditions are suitable to protect cultural heritage.

Such digital technologies have helped to promote the modernization of heritage tourism. Many studies have considered these issues from discrete and separated aspects such as heritage protection, tourism marketing, and tourism management, but less attention has given to the integration of heritage protection and tourism development. Cultural heritage protection and tourism are interdependent by nature [ 21 ], and a holistic approach to cultural heritage protection and tourism management is likely to be more effective for all concerned [ 22 ]. This research will explore a sustainable development model of cultural heritage to construct a bridge between cultural heritage protection and tourism development via an integrated platform approach.

Mount Lushan (29°28'-29° 40' N, 115°50'-116°10' E) is located in Lushan County, Jiujiang City, Jiangxi Province, China. Figure  1 shows the location and main attractions of Mount Lushan. It has a rich cultural and natural heritage and is known for its beautiful and unique scenery. The mountains, rivers, and lakes of Mount Lushan blend into landscape tapestry, and Buddhist, Taoism, Christianity, Catholicism, and Islam coexist here. It is known as a mountain of culture, education, and politics. Historically, it has inspired artists, philosophers, and thinkers and inspired many famous works of art. Thirty churches and schools built in the 1920s remain, and 600 villas are influenced by the architectural styles of 18 countries. It is a site of historical importance to the Chinese Nationalist Party and the Chinese Communist Party, and many major meetings are still held here. It is a world-famous cultural landscape heritage site and one of the spiritual centers of Chinese civilization. Its main area covers 30,200 hectares, and its buffer area is greater than 50,000 hectares. Ontological areas and buffer zones include ancient buildings, ruins, modern villas, stone carvings, alpine plants, waterfalls, and streams. Mount Lushan in its entirety for the conservation of the subtropical forest ecosystem and historical sites [ 23 ]. These elements fully demonstrate the cultural and natural elements of the Mount Lushan World Heritage Site. Mount Lushan is listed as one of the top ten most famous mountains in China in 2003 and was rated as a national 5A Tourist attraction (5A is the highest level of China's tourist scenic spots, representing the level of China's world-class quality scenic spots) in 2007. These accolades have stimulated the rapid development of tourism in Mount Lushan, attracting tens of millions of tourists every year.

figure 1

Geographical location and main attractions of Mount Lushan

However, online and field research on Mount Lushan has revealed significant obstacles to the sustainable development of cultural heritage tourism in this area. On one hand, Mount Lushan promotes and displays the cultural heritage landscape through tourism websites, such as the "China Lushan Network" ( http://www.china-lushan.com/ ). This approach only introduces this heritage site in a two-dimensional way (through pictures and text). Although there is a virtual tour section, tourists can only browse a few scenic spots via panoramic views. The possible immersion and interaction, and thus, the virtual experience, is not adequate or conducive to tourism marketing in the heritage site. On the other hand, the increased influx of tourists has given rise to a series of ecological and environmental problems [ 23 , 24 ]. There is a lack of equipment to monitor the flow of passengers and environmental quality, and there is little visual management information or monitoring capability of tourist flow and environmental information. The quantity and quality of information available at a heritage site directly affects the time spent by users visiting the website and also affects the satisfaction of users (or tourists) [ 25 , 26 ].

Technologies and models

In the method of system thinking [ 27 ], a cultural heritage tourism system can be divided into cultural heritage tourism resource elements, tourist flow elements, and environmental elements. Here we construct subsystems for each of these elements. Our approach involves the digitization of cultural landscape resources to realize a virtual cultural heritage tourism and marketing system. This subdivision into a virtual tourism subsystem, tourist flow subsystem, and environment subsystem build a complete foundation for cultural heritage protection and tourism development. The technical flow chart of the holistic construction of these three subsystems is shown in Fig.  2 .

figure 2

Technical process of the subsystems in the holistic cultural heritage protection and tourism development

Digitalization technologies

Different digital technologies were adopted for cultural tourism information, such as macro-topographic scenes, ancient buildings, panoramic views which considered the complex landscape composition, diverse tourism elements, and the wide geographical diversity of Mount Lushan. The comprehensive application of multiple digitization technologies avoids the deficiencies associated with a single digitization technology and allows large cultural landscape heritage sites to be comprehensively and systematically digitized.

For the large-scale terrain scene of Mount Lushan, it was necessary to purchase 350 km 2 of digital orthophoto map (DOM) data and digital elevation model (DEM) data from the government and use image processing technology to process the original data.

We used an integrated production technology process of 3D models, digital line graphs (DLG), DEM, and digital orthopedic maps (TDOM). The flow chart of this process is shown in Fig.  3 . First, aerial photography was used to obtain oblique photography images [ 28 ]. The flight route and altitude of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) were planned, the aerial photography area was delineated, and then the UAV was equipped with a digital oblique camera, and stereo images were then extracted from the UAV videos for aerial triangulation [ 29 ]. Next, 3D models were constructed by creating point clouds, constructing irregular triangulations, and performing texture mapping. The 3D model results were edited to obtain the digital surface model (DSM) results and TDOM results. The DEM results were then obtained by editing the DSM results, and the original DLG data were collected from the 3D models. The DLG data were further supplemented and improved, and were redrawn through field surveys to improve their accuracy. Finally, contour lines and elevation points were generated to supplement the line elements in the DLG supported by the DEM results.

figure 3

Flow chart of the integrated production technology process

Terrestrial laser scanners allow rapid scans of measured objects. They can directly obtain high-precision scanning point clouds, efficiently carrying out 3D modeling and virtual reproduction of historic buildings [ 30 ]; here, we applied this approach to obtain point clouds of historical buildings in Mount Lushan. Using the point cloud data, the Smart3D software was used to perform fine 3D modeling.

360 degrees panorama technology can yield a 360 degrees horizontal viewing angle and a 180 degrees vertical viewing angle, and can integrate 360 degrees panoramas in a virtual environment [ 11 ]. We employed this technology, using a digital camera to take initial images, then using Photoshop for image stitching to form spherical and cube panoramas.

This study also used traditional data collection methods such as digital photography, digital video shooting, digital recording, image, and text scanning, and interview records to collect cultural heritage resource information. We additionally employed a mobile collection method, using personal digital assistants (PDAs) to obtain real-time wireless communication with the back-end system through the wireless data transmission network, and sent the collected cultural heritage coordinate data to the back-end system in real-time [ 31 ].

Monitoring technologies

We employed IoT technology to monitor and manage the flow of tourists and the environmental conditions in the cultural heritage landscape. Video surveillance technology and electronic ticket checking technology were used to monitor travel traffic, and Internet technology was used to visualize surveillance data. First, cameras were set up at the entrance and exit of the scenic spot and near its main attractions to monitor the flow of tourists. Electronic ticketing technology was used to measure the total number of tourists entering the scenic spot. Then, an established tourist flow subsystem was used to process tourist video data and obtain statistics of the flow of tourists in real-time. In addition, we used wireless sensor technology for environmental monitoring in scenic spots [ 32 ]. We installed sensors to measure the levels of harmful oxygen ion concentrations, sulfur dioxide, temperature, and humidity. Finally, we connected the environmental data with the established environment subsystem to display the environmental status of the cultural heritage site in real-time.

To fully exploit the monitoring data, we applied several analytical models to strengthen cultural landscape management. Specifically, we combined a spatial carrying capacity model with the tourist flow monitoring data and the "pressure-state-response" (PSR) model for environmental monitoring of the cultural landscape heritage site.

The spatial carrying capacity model was adopted to represent the tourist carrying capacity of Mount Lushan. The model refers to the number of tourist activities that can be effectively accommodated by tourism resources within a certain period and still maintain the quality of the resource. It can also reflect the capacity of the cultural heritage landscape, which can be measured from the aspects of planar capacity and linear capacity.

The planar calculation method applies to areas with relatively flat terrain and relatively uniform distribution of scenic spots and reception facilities [ 33 ], expressed as:

where C 1 is the spatial carrying capacity (persons/day, i.e., the number of persons suitable for the scenic spot every day), A is the scenic spot (m 2 ), A 0 is the reasonable area occupied per capita (m 2 ), and T is the average daily opening time (hours). Although the scenic spot is open 24 h per day, tourists are mainly visiting during the daytime, so T is set for 8 h in our study. t 0 is the average time required for visitors to visit the scenic spot (h).

The linear capacity calculation method is suitable for tourism sites along a path, with the resource space capacity expressed as:

If the path is incomplete and the entrance and exit are in the same position, tourists can only return by retracing their steps on the original path. In this case, the spatial carrying capacity formula becomes:

In Eqs. ( 2 ) and ( 3 ), C 2 and C 3 both refer to spatial carrying capacity (persons /d). L is the length of the path (m), L 0 is the length of reasonable possession per capita (m), and t 1 is the return time along the original route (h). The total number of tourists calculated using the area method and the line method constitutes the resource space capacity of the cultural heritage landscape.

The PSR model was first proposed in 1979 to study environmental problems. It has become a commonly used model to evaluate environmental quality [ 34 ]. In the PSR model, "P" refers to the pressure index, which is used to describe the pressure applied to the ecological environment under the influence of human activities. "S" refers to the state index, which is used to describe the status of the ecological environment. "R" refers to the response indicator, which describes the positive management actions taken by human beings towards the ecological environment. The PSR model answers three basic sustainable development questions: what happened, why it happened, and what will happen in the future.

Our study used this comprehensive evaluation index to reflect the ecosystem quality of Mount Lushan. A weighted summation method was used to perform the calculation [ 35 ]:

where Z represents the comprehensive evaluation index, X i is the normalized value of a single index, and Y i is the normalized weight of the evaluation index.

Case study verification

Heritage digitization and visualization, multiple types of digitization.

Digitized results are shown in Fig.  4 a–i. For the 350 km 2 DOM, image fusion, color uniformity, stitching, and resampling were used to generate DOM data with a resolution of 0.2 m (Fig.  4 a shows the spring scene in Guling). Using oblique aerial photography, we made 3D models of White Deer Cave Academy, Donglin Temple, Guling, and Mao Zedong Poetry Garden. The generated large-scale scene 3D model has high accuracy, for example, the accuracy of the 3D model of Donglin Temple is 0.06 m (Fig.  4 b). The DLG data collected only has a small margin of error that satisfies the accuracy of a 1/1000 scale map (such as White Deer Cave Academy shown in Fig.  4 c).

figure 4

Digitization results for selected spots in Mount Lushan

Education, politics, architecture, natural scenery, religion, and other elements of typical cultural heritage landscapes were considered when conducting the digital modeling process. This process was based on 3D laser scanning, 3D modeling, 360-degree panoramas, and other technologies. These results are shown in Fig.  4 d–f. 3D laser scanner was used to model ancient buildings such as the White Deer Cave Academy, Mao Zedong Poetry Garden, and Xianren Cave and obtain delicate point clouds of the buildings. The point clouds contain important appearance features (as shown in Fig.  4 d), such as the characteristic feature lines. The elevation, plan, and cross-sectional views of ancient buildings generated from the point clouds were combined with the collected DLG data to generate a 3D model with fine texture and spatial characteristics (Fig.  4 e). These 3D models can provide accurate and detailed information for cultural heritage protection. UAVs and ground collection equipment were used to obtain aerial and ground panoramas of the cultural landscape heritage site in each season, and a total of 304 main scenic spots in Mount Lushan were collected (Fig.  4 f).

We collected and digitized materials from Taoist and Buddhist cultures, including ancient poems and paintings, ancient books, ancient cultural relics, historical narratives, and written accounts by using traditional data collection methods. Figure  4 g shows a stone carving, which is a poem (its title is "Peach Blossoms in Dalin Temple") written by a famous ancient Chinese poet. Other data on the heritage site (scenic spots, traffic, shopping, accommodations, entertainment, tourist facilities, geological data, vertical zonal soil profiles, plant communities) were collected and digitized using mobile data collection. Figure  4 h displays 7,128 geographical names and addresses covering an area of about 350 km 2 were collected. Figure  4 i shows major geological and geomorphologic features of Xiufeng Mountain.

Virtual tourism of Mount Lushan

From the digitized results, a fundamental geographic information database and a cultural heritage resource database were constructed. The SuperMap software was then used to develop the virtual tourism subsystem. This software can manage a large amount of data, can support directly imported data, has high-quality rendering capabilities, and can optimize the scene. The Lushan virtual tourism subsystem was developed into a display platform integrating sound, text, images, 3D models, maps, and various human–computer interaction technologies.

This subsystem has the following functions of 3D scene browsing:

Generation of a 3D terrain scene: the high-resolution DEM data of about 350 km 2 superimposes with the multi-temporal DOM to generate a 3D terrain scene of Mount Lushan. The "majestic, peculiar and beautiful" natural landscape features of the cultural heritage site can clearly be seen in Fig.  5 a.

figure 5

Browsing the virtual scene of the virtual tourism subsystem

Generation of 3D architectural scenes: the original files of the oblique photography model data included many fragmented files, and the amount of data was enormous. We used SuperMap to process oblique photography models, including generating configuration files, compressing textures, simplifying models and type conversion, meeting the needs of viewing oblique photography models on web pages, and achieving a smooth browsing experience. We located and integrated the processed 3D model of Donglin Temple into the scene (Fig.  5 b). For the 3D model generated by laser scanning, we imported the constructed model data into the data engine provided by SuperMap and integrated it into the scene (Fig.  5 c).

Integration of different types of 3D models: the oblique photographic and geometric modeling data were imported into the terrain scene and accurately matched. By controlling the visibility of layers under different viewing angles, seamless switching between terrain scenes and 3D model data was realized. When users viewing the model from a distance, the subsystem can display the DSM; when viewing it at a close distance, the oblique photographic model is displayed on the periphery, and the internal core building is loaded with an intricately detailed 3D model (see Fig.  5 d). Users can also continue to zoom in to view the fine texture formed by the laser scan data (Fig.  5 e). The subsystem also sets the number of objects and layers in the scene under different viewing angles to reduce the memory and video memory usage of the system to ensure the fluency and stability of the subsystem and speed up the browsing speed of the scene.

Assisted by GIS, the subsystem has the functions of query, recommendation, and popular science. When the user opens the subsystem interface and enters the query keyword through the interactive interface, the result is displayed on the left sidebar and in the 3D scene. The query results will be introduced in pictures and texts (for example, Fig.  5 f, which shows a picture of a stone carving, and its poem). Based on the collected geological geomorphology and vegetation ecological data (Fig.  4 i), we set up the query and positioning function of geological relics, vegetation, and other attribute information in the subsystem, providing 3D elements, pictures, text, and other display elements, which is helpful to popularize the natural background knowledge of the heritage site to tourists. The subsystem provides an automatic roaming function for famous scenic spots and designed several common roaming routes. When performing automatic roaming, it will be supplemented by voice introduction. A "virtual tour guide" is implemented, and the user can control the broadcast process of the route at any time. Figure  5 b shows a roaming scene, and the roaming operation symbol can be seen in the lower right corner. The subsystem can also simultaneously integrate panoramas. By clicking on the panoramic location in the scene, the 360 degrees panoramas of the current position is displayed as a pop-up (see Fig.  5 g). Using the scenic spot location data displayed in Fig.  4 h, we set up multiple travel planning routes in the subsystem (Fig.  5 h). When the user clicks on a specific route, the subsystem will display the route direction and scenic spots on the map to provide convenience for tourists with travel intentions.

The subsystem can provide a unique virtual experience through rich visual content. It can interact with users through query, tourism recommendations, science popularization, and other functions. It can allow to know Mount Lushan in advance, making it an effective marketing tool.

Monitoring and management of tourist flow and environment

When tourists enter a heritage site, they induce environmental pressure. Using our system, tourists can interact virtually before travelling without exerting direct pressure on the cultural heritage site. The virtual tourism subsystem can also help managers improve the protection of the heritage site and carry out tourism marketing. This system can provide better monitoring of tourist flow and the environment of the site, which can greatly assist managers with tourism management and heritage protection. The three subsystems share GIS data to provide a strong data-based foundation for visualization services. These processes are shown schematically in Fig.  6 .

figure 6

Interaction of the three subsystems that improve the management of tourist flow and environmental monitoring of the cultural heritage site

Monitoring and regulation of tourist flow

We used video surveillance technology and electronic ticket checking technology to collect tourist information, built a tourist database, and integrated it with geographic information data (including the location and entrance of the scenic spots and major tour paths). The database is used to record and manage data and to calculate the number of people entering and leaving the scenic spot and the number of people staying in the scenic spot in real-time. We then developed s tourist flow subsystem, which mainly provides services for managers.

Managers can use the subsystem to monitor and manage the tourist flow of the cultural heritage site visually and provide travel services. When visitors buy tickets, their ID number and name will be associated with the identity of the e-ticket. The scope of their travel will be identified in the scenic area. When visitors enter the video surveillance area, face recognition information will be collected by the monitoring equipment, so the general location of the travelers can be identified through the ticket information and video information, and missing tourists can be quickly located to ensure safety.

The determination of tourist capacity thresholds can be vital to the scientific regulation and management of tourist flows within the cultural heritage site. We selected the main scenic spots and routes of Mount Lushan for analysis, and the parameters and results are shown in Tables 1 and 2 . The capacity of general scenic spots should be 100–400 square meters per person (based on the "Standards for the Master Planning of Scenic Spots" issued by the Ministry of Housing and Urban–Rural Development of China [ 36 ]). Guling is a tourist destination, but it is also a town with permanent residents, so we here assume that its reasonable per capita area is 100 m 2 /person. For other spots, we assume that the reasonable per capita living area is 400 m 2 /person. Using these assumptions, the tourist capacity of these scenic spots in Mount Lushan is 46,472 persons/d (Table 1 ). Since the Guling scenic spot has 21,400 permanent residents, the remaining capacity for visitors is thus 25,072 persons/d. The per capita area of tour routes calculated by the linear capacity calculation method is 5–10 m 2 /person. We choose a value in the middle of this range, 8 m 2 /person for our further analyses. The total tourist capacity of the three paths is 4734 persons/d according to this approach (Table 2 ).

The tourist flow subsystem integrates the number of tourists and GIS data and displays the number of people in each scenic spot by way of map visualization. Similarly, the tourist capacity threshold data of each scenic spot is displayed in the subsystem, and managers can compare the tourist flow real-time data with the tourist capacity threshold data. When the number of tourists in each route and scenic spot exceeds the tourist capacity threshold, the cultural heritage site manager can temporarily restrict ticket sales for overcrowded attractions and guide visitors to other areas. The tourist capacity threshold subsystem thus provides a strong data-based foundation for heritage protection and tourist flow pressure.

Monitoring and evaluation of the environment

We used IoT technology, wireless sensors, and GIS technology to monitor the environment. We first determined the geographic location of the monitoring site and installed the sensor to obtain atmospheric and environmental data through General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) data transmission equipment. Then we established an environmental database to integrate and manage various data resources to develop an environment subsystem that can analyze and express data and realize serving managers.

The subsystem provides a real-time visual management platform for managers that provides a visual map. Managers can use this map to monitor and understand the environment and weather conditions of each scenic spot in real-time to address any possible emergency environmental events in a timely manner.

This tool can also assist with longer-term management. The environmental database stores monthly or longer-period monitoring data and social and economic data. The subsystem can then integrate socio-economic data and annual monitoring data into the PSR model. Table 3 shows the original data of the PSR model, and the analysis results calculated by Eq. ( 4 ). As compared with 2017, the comprehensive index of environmental health in 2018 was higher (0.64) because the comprehensive index of response in 2018 was higher than in 2017. However, the pressure index in 2018 was lower than that in 2017. This is attributed to an increase in the number of permanent residents and tourists in 2018, as well as an increase in sulfur dioxide emissions; the combination of both factors has put more pressure on the environment. Future adjustment of the population capacity and better control of the discharge of pollutants could likely improve the comprehensive environmental index.

The analysis results of the PSR model (environmental health index) can be visualized in detail by the environmental subsystem for managers. The comprehensive evaluation results of the environment can play an important role in feedback and early warning. It encourages managers to carry out annual environmental assessments and take corresponding measures, which is conducive to the long-term environmental protection of the heritage site.

Construction of a comprehensive platform

Concept and method of construction.

The relationship between heritage and tourism is problematic and intricate, and considering these factors separately is insufficient [ 37 ]. Synergies should be developed between tourism and heritage protection [ 38 ]. Our integrated system that considered virtual tourism, tourist flow, and environment subsystems is constructed by the integration of different data sources, which have the functions of tourism marketing, digital protection, and information service, and environment management. The interactivity of these different functions improve the overall tourism development and heritage protection. The effective integration of all subsystems allows the construction of a complete platform, detailed in Fig.  7 , which displays the path of "data integration-subsystems integration-functions integration-effects integration", thus our system integrates discrete data and subsystems to yield a comprehensive platform for cultural heritage tourism.

figure 7

Path of the comprehensive platform construction

Products and a new mode

Our first step was to build a comprehensive database. We classified and selected multi-source data, set up a cultural heritage resource database, a GIS database, a tourist and environment database, and a tourism management database to realize the unified storage and management of the data in the cultural heritage tourism comprehensive database. This provided a seamless data interface which includes different types of essential service data for the construction of a comprehensive platform.

The comprehensive platform for Mount Lushan cultural heritage tourism using this complete database is displayed in Fig.  8 . It uses multiple display media (e.g., personal computer, smartphones, LED displays), multiple content presentation forms (3D models, maps, charts, text, audio), and multi-subsystem and multi-functional integration forms (virtual tourism subsystem, tourist flow, environment monitoring subsystem, tourist service subsystem, and corresponding functions), providing comprehensive cultural heritage services for tourists and management.

figure 8

Information of each version

The functions displayed by different media terminals can meet the individual needs of users at different times and places. The Web version is intended for tourists to use before traveling, functioning as a virtual tourism subsystem. It can introduce the cultural heritage site, and can "educate" users to have a more responsible and respectful relationship with the cultural heritage site. It can help to attract potential tourists, as they can “virtually experience” the site before traveling. The LED version of the product is intended for managers, integrating the tourist flow subsystem and the environment subsystem. Managers can monitor tourists and the environment through the LED screen and can visually operate and manage the tourist capacity and environmental health based on the results of the tourist capacity model and PSR model. The smartphone-based application product is intended for tourists during and after travel. It integrates components of the functionality of both the Web-based and LED products to facilitate tourists in obtaining and sharing heritage site information. Tourists can get an overview of the heritage site, navigate the site via the maps and receive tourist recommendation services. They can also find information on the total number of tourists and environmental and weather information of heritage sites. Tourists can then arrange effective plans for their visit based on these functions. It also provides post-tour services such as evaluation of tourist attractions. These functions enrich the experience and satisfaction of tourists.

The comprehensive cultural heritage tourism platform and its corresponding products demonstrate a new paradigm of cultural heritage tourism. Our model can coordinate and integrate multiple key elements to improve the sustainable development of cultural heritage tourism through the combination of in-person and virtual tourism, the combination of service and management to meet the needs of different users, and the combination of heritage protection and tourism.

Results and discussion

The digitization of cultural heritage is becoming more critical, including intangible heritage [ 39 ], historical sites [ 40 ], archaeological sites [ 41 ]. We here developed and described a cultural heritage tourism subsystem, which applies a variety of technologies and methods (such as computer technology, IoT, photogrammetry, geographic information technology, VR technology, and environment assessment methods). We obtained a series of digital results and developed several digital products for tourism marketing and heritage protection.

We also integrated environmental assessment models to provide real-time and long-term assessment and management plans. We accounted for cultural heritage protection, tourism marketing, and management, and the development of cultural heritage tourism digital products. These products show the geographical characteristics of the heritage area, which is conducive to improved heritage protection and the sustainable development of tourism.

The salient point of our research is "integration", which is manifested by integrating multiple subsystems, and connecting themes of different perspectives (including cultural heritage protection, tourism marketing, management, and services) to provide a holistic system. Our important results and finding are now summarized.

(1) Through the use of comprehensive and diverse digital technologies, we obtained a wealth of digital results, including 3D large-scale terrain scenes, 3D cultural relic images, 360-degree panoramas, and pictures. This information was used to create a virtual tourism subsystem to display the regional characteristics of cultural landscape heritage sites through 3D scenes, popular science, and tourism recommendations to improve tourism marketing.

(2) IoT technology was combined with a tourist carrying capacity model and a PSR model to construct tourist flow and environmental subsystems. The tourist flow subsystem allows managers to monitor and manage the tourist flow using capacity models. The environmental subsystem allows the monitoring and management of the environment in real-time and non-real-time using an integrated PSR model.

(3) Finally, a new model of cultural heritage tourism was proposed, and a comprehensive platform for cultural heritage tourism was constructed. We developed products for Web, smartphone, and LED formats, integrating heritage protection and tourism development functions. The platform has rich visual content, including 3D models, maps, charts, and text.

Each subsystem in our comprehensive platform plays a fundamental role. The virtual tourism subsystem can be used before the actual visit to attract more tourists and to provide personalized tourism planning which can improve the virtual experience. Our approach provides a sound foundation, but the continued improvement of this part of the platform is an essential future task [ 42 ]. The environmental management subsystem is also an important result of our approach, however, the integrated tourist capacity threshold used here only considered capacities of single scenic spots at a time. Future directions of study could extend the tourist capacity model to multiple entry/exit areas and scenic spots and could set model parameters and thresholds that meet the unique particularity of each scenic spot. Additionally, while our approach demonstrated the effectiveness of many novel elements, the model and parameters employed here were relatively simple and static. In the future, more attention should be paid to the practicality of the model, such as by setting a dynamic tourist capacity threshold, and how this information can be used to implement efficient evacuation plans in case of sudden emergencies. Finally, since the tourist flow subsystem integrates tourist identity information the privacy of users’ needs to be considered in greater detail in the future.

The study has provided a sustainable model of cultural heritage tourism using digital tools. It considered the Lushan cultural landscape heritage site as a case study, and designed a holistic mode of cultural heritage protection and tourism by the comprehensive use of various digital technologies and the development of digital products. We designed and built a digital framework of a large-scale cultural heritage landscape and built a virtual tourism subsystem that integrates 3D model browsing, popular science, and tourism route recommendation functions to meet the needs of tourism marketing.

We proposed and demonstrated a heritage management method that integrates IoT technology with a tourist carrying capacity model and a PSR model to assist in protecting the environment and ensuring the environmental health of the heritage site. The comprehensive cultural heritage tourism platform developed here can provide valuable services for different target audiences (e.g., tourists and managers) through a variety of visualization technologies, and provides a novel demonstration for future development of cultural heritage protection and tourism that can be applied at other heritage sites worldwide.

Availability of data and materials

The dataset supporting the conclusions of this article is included within the article.

Change history

08 november 2021.

A Correction to this paper has been published: https://doi.org/10.1186/s40494-021-00613-1

Abbreviations

Virtual reality

Internet of things

Digital orthophoto map

Digital elevation model

Digital line graphic

True digital orthophoto map

Unmanned aerial vehicle

Digital Surface Model

Pressure-state-response

General Packet Radio Service

Light-emitting diode

Bak S, Min C-K, Roh T-S. Impacts of UNESCO-listed tangible and intangible heritages on tourism. J Travel Tour Mark. 2019;36(8):917–27. https://doi.org/10.1080/10548408.2019.1658034 .

Article   Google Scholar  

Timothy DJ. Contemporary cultural heritage and tourism: development issues and emerging trends. Public Archaeology. 2014;13(1–3):30–47. https://doi.org/10.1179/1465518714z.00000000052 .

Zhang C, Fyall A, Zheng Y. Heritage and tourism conflict within world heritage sites in China: a longitudinal study. Curr Issue Tour. 2015;18(2):110–36. https://doi.org/10.1080/13683500.2014.912204 .

Ryu H-C. Cultural Heritage Management System and Improvement of the Limits - focused on establishing the tangible cultural heritage on-site management organization. 2013;54:183–214.

Google Scholar  

Zubiaga M, Izkara JL, Gandini A, et al. Towards smarter management of overtourism in historic centres through visitor-flow monitoring. Sustainability. 2019;11(24):7254. https://doi.org/10.3390/su11247254 .

Law R, Qi SS, Buhalis D. Progress in tourism management: A review of website evaluation in tourism research. Tour Manage. 2010;31(3):297–313. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tourman.2009.11.007 .

Li J, Whitlow M, Bitsura-Meszaros K, et al. A preliminary evaluation of World Heritage tourism promotion: comparing websites from Australia, China, and Mexico. Tourism PlanDevelop . 2016;13(3):370–6. https://doi.org/10.1080/21568316.2015.1101393 .

Shah K. Creation of cultural heritage inventories: case of the historic city of Ahmadabad. J Cult Heritage Manag Sustain Develop. 2016;6(2):166–94. https://doi.org/10.1108/jchmsd-02-2016-0011 .

Adamopoulos E, Bovero A, Rinaudo F. Image-based metric heritage modeling in the near-infrared spectrum. Heritage Sci. 2020;8(1):53. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40494-020-00397-w .

Dasari S, Mesapam S, Kumarapu K, et al. UAV in Development of 3D Heritage Monument Model: A Case Study of Kota Gullu, Warangal, India. J Indian Soc Remote Sensing. 2021. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12524-020-01250-0 .

Walmsley AP, Kersten TP. The imperial cathedral in Konigslutter (Germany) as an immersive experience in virtual reality with integrated 360 degrees panoramic photography. Appl Sci Basel. 2020;10(4):1517. https://doi.org/10.3390/app10041517 .

Davis A, Belton D, Helmholz P, et al. Pilbara rock art: laser scanning, photogrammetry and 3D photographic reconstruction as heritage management tools. Heritage Sci. 2017;5:25. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40494-017-0140-7 .

Hadjimitsis D, Agapiou A, Alexakis D, et al. Exploring natural and anthropogenic risk for cultural heritage in Cyprus using remote sensing and GIS. Int J Digital Earth. 2013;6(2):115–42. https://doi.org/10.1080/17538947.2011.602119 .

Ma Y-P. Extending 3D-GIS district models and BIM-based building models into computer gaming environment for better workflow of cultural heritage conservation. Appl Sci Basel. 2021;11(5):2101. https://doi.org/10.3390/app11052101 .

Article   CAS   Google Scholar  

Zhong H, Wang L, Zhang H. The application of virtual reality technology in the digital preservation of cultural heritage. Comput Sci Inf Syst. 2021;18(2):535–51. https://doi.org/10.2298/csis200208009z .

Frey BS, Briviba A. A policy proposal to deal with excessive cultural tourism. Eur Plan Stud. 2021;29(4):601–18. https://doi.org/10.1080/09654313.2021.1903841 .

Jones, T.E., Y. Yang, and K. Yamamoto, Comparing Automated and Manual Visitor Monitoring Methods: Integrating Parallel Datasets on Mount Fuji's North Face. Journal of Park and Recreation Administration, 2018. 36(1): p. 22–38. https://doi.org/10.18666/jpra-2018-v36-i1-7976 .

Campiani A, Lingle A, Lercari N. Spatial analysis and heritage conservation: Leveraging 3-D data and GIS for monitoring earthen architecture. J Cult Herit. 2019;39:166–76. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.culher.2019.02.011 .

Constantinidis D. GIS for managing the analysis and protection of archaeological remains in the Willandra Lakes World Heritage Area. Archaeol Ocean. 2009;44(2):112–8. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.1834-4453.2009.tb00054.x .

Lombardo L, Parvis M, Corbellini S, et al. Environmental monitoring in the cultural heritage field. Eur Phy J Plus. 2019;134(8):411. https://doi.org/10.1140/epjp/i2019-12800-2 .

Lai LWC. Sustainable development of heritage conservation and tourism: A Hong Kong case study on colonial heritage. Sustain Dev. 2020;28(5):1181–8. https://doi.org/10.1002/sd.2067 .

Iliopoulou-Georgudaki J, Theodoropoulos C, Konstantinopoulos P, et al. Sustainable tourism development including the enhancement of cultural heritage in the city of Nafpaktos - Western Greece. Int J Sust Dev World. 2017;24(3):224–35. https://doi.org/10.1080/13504509.2016.1201021 .

Hui W, Ceming T, Wen X, et al. Vascular plants in the tourist area of Lushan National Nature Reserve, China: status, threats and conservation. Eco Mont J Protected Mountain Areas Res. 2020;12(1):60–3. https://doi.org/10.1553/eco.mont-12-1s60 .

Xie DM, Huang QH, Xu S, et al. Assessment of surface water quality in Lushan: a world heritage sites in China. Environ Sci Pollut Res. 2020;27(15):18934–48. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-020-08304-3 .

Yassierli V, MSS Mohamed. The Importance of Usability Aspect in M-Commerce Application for Satisfaction and Continuance Intention. Makara J Technol. 2018. 22(3): 149–158. Doi: https://doi.org/10.7454/mst.v22i3.3655 .

Bastida U, Huan TC. Performance evaluation of tourism websites’ information quality of four global destination brands: Beijing, Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Taipei. J Bus Res. 2014;67(2):167–70. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2012.10.008 .

Roxas FMY, Rivera JPR, Gutierrez ELM. Framework for creating sustainable tourism using systems thinking. Curr Issue Tour. 2020;23(3):280–96. https://doi.org/10.1080/13683500.2018.1534805 .

Wang JJ, Zhu S, Luo XG, et al. Refined micro-scale geological disaster susceptibility evaluation based on UAV tilt photography data and weighted certainty factor method in Qingchuan County. Ecotoxicol Environ Saf. 2020;189: 110221. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoenv.2019.110005 .

He H, Chen T, Zeng H, et al. Ground control point-free unmanned aerial vehicle-based photogrammetry for volume estimation of stockpiles carried on barges. Sensors. 2019;19(16):3534. https://doi.org/10.3390/s19163534 .

Pavlidis G, Koutsoudis A, Arnaoutoglou F, et al. Methods for 3D digitization of cultural heritage. J Cult Herit. 2007;8(1):93–8. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.culher.2006.10.007 .

Zhou Y, Lobo NF, Wolkon A, et al. PGMS: a case study of collecting PDA-based geo-tagged malaria-related survey data. Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2014;91(3):496–508. https://doi.org/10.4269/ajtmh.13-0652 .

Agbota H, Mitchell JE, Odlyha M, et al. Remote assessment of cultural heritage environments with wireless sensor array networks. Sensors. 2014;14(5):8779–93. https://doi.org/10.3390/s140508779 .

Zhao GL, Deng ZJ, Shen J, et al. Carrying capacity and its implications in a Chinese ancient village: the case of Hongcun. Asia Pacific J Tour Res. 2018;23(3):260–80. https://doi.org/10.1080/10941665.2017.1421566 .

Rapport DJ, Singh A. An ecohealth-based framework for state of environment reporting. Ecol Ind. 2006;6(2):409–28. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2005.05.003 .

Zhang J, Zhang Y. Assessing the low-carbon tourism in the tourism-based urban destinations. J Clean Prod. 2020;276: 124303. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.124303 .

Standards for the Master Planning of Scenic Spots. 2019. http://www.mohurd.gov.cn/wjfb/201903/t20190320_239842.html . Accessed 1 MAR 2021.

Chang-Vargas GV. Between discourse and practice: heritage and cultural tourism in the ICOMOS charter. Pasos-Revista De Turismo Y Patrimonio Cult. 2019;17(2):389–408. https://doi.org/10.25145/j.pasos.2019.17.027 .

PargaDans E, P Alonso Gonzalez, R OteroEnriquez. The social value of heritage: Balancing the promotion-preservation relationship in the Altamira World Heritage Site, Spain. Journal of Destination Marketing & Management. 2020. Doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jdmm.2020.100499 .

Deng X, Kim IT, Shen C. Research on Convolutional Neural Network-Based Virtual Reality Platform Framework for the Intangible Cultural Heritage Conservation of China Hainan Li Nationality: Boat-Shaped House as an Example. Math Probl Eng. 2021;2021:5538434. https://doi.org/10.1155/2021/5538434 .

di Filippo A, L Javier Sanchez-Aparicio, S Barba et al. Use of a Wearable Mobile Laser System in Seamless Indoor 3D Mapping of a Complex Historical Site. Remote Sensing. 2018. 10(12): 1897. https://doi.org/10.3390/rs10121897 .

Tanasi D, Hassam S, Kingsland K, et al. Melite Civitas Romana in 3D: Virtualization Project of the Archaeological Park and Museum of the Domus Romana of Rabat. Malta Open Archaeology. 2021;7(1):51–83. https://doi.org/10.1515/opar-2020-0126 .

Broderick M, Cypher M, Macbeth J. critical masses: augmented virtual experiences and the Xenoplastic at Australia’s cold war and nuclear heritage sites. Archaeol J World Archaeol Congress. 2009;5(2):323–43. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11759-009-9110-3 .

Download references

Acknowledgements

Thanks to Xiao Xin and Adam Thomas Devlin of Jiangxi Normal University for their technical and linguistic help.

This work was supported by the National Key Technologies R&D Program of China under Grant 2015BAH50F03; Major project of Art Science of the National Social Science Foundation of China under Grant 19ZD27; Cultural Arts and Tourism Research Project under Grant xxhfzzx201907; Strategic Priority Research Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences under Grant No. XDA19030502.

Author information

Authors and affiliations.

School of Geography and Environment, Jiangxi Normal University, Nanchang, 330022, China

Zhenrao Cai, Chaoyang Fang & Qian Zhang

Key Laboratory of Poyang Lake Wetland and Watershed Research, Ministry of Education, Jiangxi Normal University, Nanchang, 330022, China

Chaoyang Fang

Key Laboratory of Digital Earth Science, Aerospace Information Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100094, China

Fulong Chen

International Centre on Space Technologies for Natural and Cultural Heritage (HIST) Under the auspices of UNESCO, Beijing, 100094, China

Nanchang Base, International Centre on Space Technologies for Natural and Cultural Heritage (HIST) under the auspices of UNESCO, Nanchang, 330022, China

You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

Contributions

ZC, CF: Wrote this article; QZ, FC: Reviewed the whole paper and put forward suggestions for improvement. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Chaoyang Fang .

Ethics declarations

Competing interests.

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Additional information

Publisher's note.

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

The original version of this article was revised: the author names were transposed and a funding note was added.

Rights and permissions

Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article's Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article's Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver ( http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/ ) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated in a credit line to the data.

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article.

Cai, Z., Fang, C., Zhang, Q. et al. Joint development of cultural heritage protection and tourism: the case of Mount Lushan cultural landscape heritage site. Herit Sci 9 , 86 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40494-021-00558-5

Download citation

Received : 08 March 2021

Accepted : 06 July 2021

Published : 19 July 2021

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1186/s40494-021-00558-5

Share this article

Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content:

Sorry, a shareable link is not currently available for this article.

Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative

  • Heritage protection
  • Tourism sustainability
  • Heritage site

heritage tourism local development

Home

Search form

Revitalizing urban heritage for tourism development: a case study of baghdad's old city center.

© 2023 IIETA. This article is published by IIETA and is licensed under the CC BY 4.0 license ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ ).

OPEN ACCESS

Heritage is widely recognized as one of the key expressions of civilizations, acting as a conduit for customs, traditions, and human values. The revitalization and development of certain tourist sites are deeply intertwined with heritage and archaeological elements, particularly those bearing historical significance or associated with specific events. The aim is to promote and thereby invigorate these sites. Certain urban treatments and their extrapolations are considered attractive and supportive factors for the revitalization of tourism, designed with a view to their application within the local context. This research aims to spotlight the center of the old city of Baghdad, highlighting its most significant heritage monuments of historical and social value. It seeks to identify the potential factors and essential elements for the success of these sites, with the goal of transforming them into appealing tourist points for both local and international tourism. This endeavor is intended to stimulate the tourism industry and serve as a central axis for the development of the city center at large. The research adopts a descriptive analytical approach in order to gather and analyze information. It employs a comprehensive framework for local sites, incorporating contemporary urban treatments that activate tourism and emphasize the identity of the place. The research concluded that there are three beneficial components to revitalizing urban tourism effectively towards enhancing the tourism product in heritage tourism: creativity, innovation, and leadership. A case study was conducted on Al-Mutanabbi Street, demonstrating how it is possible to activate the tourism product by utilizing these three components. These elements work in tandem to ensure the success of the initiative locally, and subsequently, globally.

heritage tourism development, revitalization, tourism product, Baghdad

Tourism acts as a significant source of national income for many countries, with nations vying to develop tourist destinations that bolster the economy, as well as urban and social development. The revitalization of tourism has heightened competitive capabilities, with success factors for heritage sites being identified in numerous countries. This has led to an increase in tourism promotion, with the aim of elevating heritage tourist destinations, strengthening collective memory and spirit of place. The public and private sectors are empowered by a vision primarily crafted by decision-makers and stakeholders, focusing on preparing visitors, promoting destinations, and associating them with specific cultural or heritage events, or with the local or collective memory of the community, as a backdrop for events [1-3].

The heritage tourism sector is expanding at a more rapid rate than all other forms of tourism, especially in third-world countries. Visitors to cities seek to appreciate and enrich their understanding of cultural and historical aspects, making this sector a potentially effective tool for poverty alleviation and community economic development (UNWTO 2005) [4].

The historic quarter of Old Rusafa is a city area where historical quality is embodied in places, buildings, and spaces steeped in history, culture, and significant political and popular events dating back to the thirteenth century. Examples include Al Mustansiryia School, The Abbasid Palace, and Al Khulafa Mosque [5], along with many distinctive buildings and spaces reflecting important political, social, and architectural changes over time.

Heritage tourism is defined as a subset of cultural tourism, where the primary motive for the visit is dependent on the characteristics of the place as perceived by tourists in terms of their own heritage [6]. Previous discussions [7] have emphasized the importance of a tourist's perception, motives, and expectations. The motives for heritage tourism include nostalgia for the past, social distinction, and the desire for an authentic experience, with nostalgia and authenticity being significant motivational factors driving demand for heritage tourism. Heritage tourism encompasses all activities undertaken by tourists in areas with historical monuments [8]. Thus, heritage tourism shares some attributes of cultural tourism, but it is more focused on the characteristics of the place as perceived spatially, in terms of tangible heritage aspects and their connection with intangible aspects. Another study [9] suggests that the preservation of heritage extends to maintaining the economic structure, and that economic activity is not confined to tourism aspects solely. There needs to be an integrated organization benefiting all parties involved in the process, including the government sector, international and local organizations, as well as the residents of the heritage area.

Existing literature primarily categorizes heritage into two types: tangible and intangible. Tangible heritage includes all assets that possess a degree of physical embodiment of cultural values, encompassing cultural assets, movable materials, historical cities, archaeological sites, and the cultural landscape [10-12].

Heritage tourism is introduced as one of the most popular forms of tourism related to all visitors who travel to experience the culture, scientific performances, or the lifestyle/heritage of a community, region, group, or institution. In this context, the cultural experience is the foundation of entertainment and constitutes a repository of the values of modern society, including economic values. Meanwhile, van Renswouw et al. [13] suggests that it involves implicit or active and interactive engagement with cultures, civilizations, and societies, where the tourist gains new experiences of an educational, creative, and recreational nature.

Another study highlights the significance of promoting health aspects and improving the quality of life in outdoor spaces in heritage tourism. It suggests the possibility of designing urban activity environments as places that increase the physical activity of users or passers-by with the aid of interactive technology [14].

In this vein, another study indicates that tourism is a pioneering, profit-driven industry at the levels of economy and use. It leverages information and communication technology to provide new tools for marketing tourism, aiming to develop, manage, and market the product and the tourist destination using points of attraction between the tourism and culture sectors, thereby preserving and developing heritage [15, 16].

Smith proposes a comprehensive taxonomy of cultural tourism, including: heritage sites, performance venues, visual arts, festivals and special events, religious sites, rural environments, indigenous communities and traditions, modern popular culture, and creative activities such as painting, photography, and dancing. Culture encompasses both tangible and intangible elements of a group or society passed down from previous generations.

Urban outdoor spaces, in this context, play a crucial role as “factories of meaning” for the sensory experience of the visitor and tourist [3]. Cultural tourism parallels the growing interest in culture in general. However, Richards [1] suggests that rather than an increase in cultural stimuli, there are more people making short visits, thus boosting the number of visitors to all kinds of attractions. As highlighted by the World Tourism Organization (2002), the creation of a cultural tourism destination is not confined to cities or regions boasting an impressive cultural background or rich heritage. Cultural attractions allow travelers to experience human and intellectual creations (ibid).

According to marketing theory, the term “product” is defined as “any service that can be offered to the market for interest, acquisition, and consumption use that may satisfy a need or desire” [17]. This definition emphasizes "meeting customer needs". Meanwhile, González et al. [18] defines the tourism product as "a satisfying experience in a desirable destination". Other studies suggest that the tourism product is a blend of tangible and intangible elements, tourist attractions, facilities, services, and activities centered around a specific element of interest that generates a comprehensive tourism experience for potential customers [19]. Some suggest it is any product marketed by a country or an institution to attract visitors and experience the aforementioned product [20], while others propose that the tourism product is a set of elements based on impressions, interpretations, concepts, and sensations, primarily experiences that shape the tourist’s feelings and attitudes towards their visit [21].

Middleton Pointed that the tourism product is a geographical area containing administrative borders [21]:

- A place where the tourist finds the means of entertainment and stay, such as entertainment and shopping events, attractions and event areas;

- Existence of tourism marketing efforts, i.e., the place should market itself to attract visitors;

- Establishing an organizational structure that coordinates and leads the management of the tourist destination and coordinates tourism efforts in the place;

- Perceptions about what the place should offer to tourism. These images may or may not be accurate;

- Government agencies have introduced special laws, regulations and regulations that control various aspects of tourism;

- Mix of stakeholders in tourism: private sector companies, government agencies, organizations, non-profit organizations, including NGOs.

By reviewing the previous literature, it is possible to summarize what was presented with regard to heritage tourism and tourism product because it represents the main focus of the research topic, as shown below in (Table 1), the literature review shows that lack in studying the major concepts of revitalizing tourism product so it was needed to be more studies in further in the upcoming section.

Table 1. Previous studies and literature review

The research aim focused on revitalizing heritage tourism by enhancing heritage tourism product achieved by three components, which are Creativity, Innovation and Leadership, as an essential step in revitalizing and enhancing the tourism product locally which a collaborative efforts of various stakeholders. The following is an explanation for each of them.

5.1 Creativity

The first component of activating tourism product is creativity that many studies and dictionaries indicated that creativity was defined in the Cambridge dictionary as a term that reflects the ability to produce or use original and unusual ideas. While oxford dictionary referred to creativity as involving the use of skill and the imagination to produce something new or a work of art. While academic discussions refer to creativity as the ability to think in new ways and apply fresh perspectives to old problems [22], or the capability or act of conceiving something original or unusual [22], or a critical skill that enables people to adapt and create unique approaches that may be even better suited than tried-and-true methods.

5.1.1 Types of creativity

According to Dietrich [23], there are four types of creativity: deliberate and emotional, deliberate and cognitive, spontaneous and emotional, and spontaneous and cognitive. Creativity is an active process necessarily involved in innovation. It is a learning habit that requires skill as well as specific understanding of the contexts in which creativity is being applied. The creative process is at the heart of innovation and often the words are used interchangeably.

(Richards)coined the term in creative tourism first in 2000 and developed it through the years [24] as “Tourism which offers visitors the opportunity to develop their creative potential through active participation in courses and learning experiences, which are characteristic of the holiday destination where they are taken”, by appreciating everyday life to build an authentic and unique sense about the destination visited through active participation.

5.2 Innovation

The second component of activating tourism product is innovation that is defined as:

Cambridge dictionary defined the term as a new idea or method that is being tried for the first time, or the use of such ideas or methods, Also Oxford dictionary referred to term as the introduction of new things, ideas or ways of doing something. While Nilssen [25] referred to urban innovation as solutions, provisions and/or ways of adapting to the challenges surrounding major cities. Innovation can be both multidisciplinary and multifaceted, including product, service, process, position, strategic, rhetoric, and governance innovation. Another point of view is an actively intended process of change that leads to discontinuity, with the aim of improving institutional structures and/or practices in a given context.

The implementation or creation of something new that has realized value to others [22]. Innovation can be broadly thought of as new ideas, new ways of looking at things, new methods or products that have value. Innovation contains the idea of output, of actually producing or doing something differently, making something happen or implementing something new.

5.3 Leadership

The third component was leadership that was defined in the Oxford dictionary as a state or position of being a leader or the action of leading a group of people or an organization, or the set of characteristics that make a good leader.

(Rada) pointed to the concept of Burn’s Theory of Transformational leadership that involves leaders and followers working together to develop mutual goals, to recognize and achieve higher order needs [26], he argues that leadership can occur at all levels of organization and society

Another point of view [27] that referred to Leadership as crucial role for successful projects and has an important function to satisfy the needs of all stakeholders developed three aspects of leadership: Communication of Vision, Stakeholder Engagement, and Adaptation to the Transition Process.

While Van Serters referred to the term as [28]:

Leadership is a complex process, consisting of behavioural, relational and situational elements. It exists not only in the leader, but also in individual, dyadic, group and organisational relationships. Leadership can stem upwards from lower organisation levels as much as it is initiated downwards from higher levels. Leadership occurs both internally and externally in the situational environment. It motivates people intrinsically by improving expectations, as well as extrinsically by enhancing reward systems.

Table 2 shows literature review on creativity, innovation and leadership

The most important components of the tourism product have been reached that deal effectively with each other when available to activate heritage tourism in the areas that are being rehabilitated and redeveloped, namely (as shown in Table 3):

- Innovation : Which is achieved through indicators of fair use, providing flexibility in design, providing sustainability in urban spaces.

- Leadership : Which is achieved through indicators of social participation in decision making process, Activating the tourism process, giving more attention to traditional activities, developing government legislation and laws, keeping pace with technological developments, Decentralized management model and the establishment of companies to coordinate projects in the city and the use of public-private partnership.

- Creativity: Which is achieved through indicators of authenticity in preserving architectural elements that carry value for historical continuity, The creativity of the designer in drawing inspiration from the heritage revival in architecture, Enhancing the commercial identity, Exploiting open spaces for urban events.

Table 2. Literature review on components of tourism product activation

Table 3. Ways to achieve the components of tourism product activation

6.1 The history of Al-Mutanabbi Street

Al-Mutanabbi Street was chosen as a sample for the case study, as Al-Mutanabbi Street is located in the center of Baghdad near Al-Midan area in Al-Rusafa district, and it is considered the vibrant axis of the cultural side in the city of Baghdad because it contains many libraries, printing and publishing houses, in addition to containing some old Baghdadi buildings and significant landmarks. The historic street was named in 1932 during the reign of King Faisal I after the famous poet Abu al-Tayyib al-Mutanabbi, who was born during the Abbasid state [34, 35].

6.2 Redevelopment efforts for Al-Mutanabbi Street

Al-Mutanabbi Street, like other heritage areas, was exposed to neglect and deterioration of conditions, especially after what it witnessed of the 2007 bombing. A joint committee was formed from the Ministry of Culture, the Ministry of Municipalities, and the Baghdad Provincial Council to reconstruct it and open it in 2008, in the presence of many Iraqi personalities, writers, and intellectuals. Then, the area was redeveloped in 2021 [36] with the support of the Tamkeen initiative of the Central Bank of Iraq and the Association of Iraqi Banks within the Baghdad Revival Project launched by the Municipality of Baghdad (as shown in Figure 1) to beautify the streets of the capital and its heritage places, in addition to holding many artistic and musical activities and events along the street, which has been paved again. The facades of the brick shops were re-coated and painted, as were the small ornate iron balconies and compact columns. Small identical wooden boards bearing the names of the shops were hung over their entrances. The street is about one kilometer long, and leads to one of the banks of the Tigris River, preceded by a large statue of Al-Mutanabbi, and ends with an inscription on which is one of the verses of his famous poems (Figures 1-4).

heritage tourism local development

Figure 1. The proposed design for Al-Mutanabbi Street

Source: https://www.shayd-eng.com/post/how-to-make-the-most-out-of-remote-meetings

heritage tourism local development

Figure 2. Maintenance work on the project and restoration of building facades

Source: https://www.ina.iq/132164--.html

heritage tourism local development

Figure 3. The end result and the reality of the situation for Al-Mutanabbi Street

Source: www.googlephotos.com

heritage tourism local development

Figure 4. The river front and the end of the axis of Al-Mutanabbi Street overlooking the Tigris River, with the presence of a small river transport station and the statue of Al-Mutanabbi

The case study was analyzed through what was extracted shown in Table 3, the theoretical framework presented, and ways to achieve this in the chosen area of the case study.

7.1 The innovation component

The innovation component is employed through the nature of the place and its personal identity, and the combination between daily life practices the could enrich the visitors exppeience through innovative ways and functions by spatial preserving heritage contents that help restore heritage identity, for instance the recall of authentic experience to have a cup of tea in Al-Zahawii coffee shop as a way to experience the community traditional values and introducing new functions that are more flexible for multi functions of space as using libraries for communicating with intellectuals, writers and poets in small groups in two or three to discuss cultural, poetic and literary matters. fair use for all and equalities is achieved through rehabilitate urban spaces within archaeological areas and provide them with floor elements that facilitate movement providing flexibility in use and designing a structure of paths to achieve visual and functional diversity, usability and interaction with the surrounding buildings achieving the suitability of urban spaces for use and linking all urban spaces with a set of paths and corridors that provide proper movement.

7.2 The leadership component

The leadership component is achieved through the development of applicable governmental legislation and laws to activate heritage tourism and the laws of restoration of sites and the development of a leadership plan for government institutions in cooperation with the private sector and the local community that reflects multiple interests by establishing a decentralized management model and facilitating legal procedures to activate heritage tourism in addition to keeping pace with technological developments in publicity and advertisement for available tourist sites, and it is necessary to give more attention to heritage and cultural activities and festivals, thus increasing the ability to compete between cities by attracting new companies and building urban revitalization projects to change the city, and establishing companies to coordinate projects in the city and using partnership between the public and private sectors to contribute to the implementation of projects Local governments, active municipal government, interaction with the judiciary and adoption of exemplary management practice.

7.3 The creativity component

The creativity component is achieved by containing creative cultural, social and commercial activities such as establishing visitor reception centers that include (showrooms, administrative offices, a public library and an archaeological museum) and strengthening the commercial identity in the region of Al-Mutanabi and Al-Karkh region and revitalizing and initiating national projectsto revive and enhance the traditional markets that meet the needs of the visitor in achieving sence of place and nostalgia to the past through traditional crafts that are It disappeared with time as a result of the lack of artisans working in the fields of handicrafts, which were replaced by ready-made goods imported from other countries. In addition to that the case study region have potentials to develop the river front by introducing river taxi which exist but need much more attention and development matching the value of the place and developing the tatic entenventions as an approach to maximize the percentage of marketing activites in the campus of heritage areas with distinguished identity and exploitation of open spaces to establish public gardens and terraces for celebrations, festivals and cultural activities and work to rehabilitate the main movement axes surrounding the region and provide the necessary commercial services for the region with the need to take into account the services necessary for the local community in addition to flexibility and ease of change and the possibility of modification and reconfiguration in order to respond with the variables of time and place to meet the need The user takes advantage of the capabilities of the era and expresses the identity of the community as a result of local creativity with authentic values and a contemporary spirit, through originality in preserving the elements of the heritage that have a fixed character and that are still of value for historical continuity, and through temporal and spatial communication, the creativity of the designer is inspired by the revival of heritage in Architecture (Think Design A new water that bears the changing character of inherited), a changing use of inherited architectural elements (such as shanasheels, iwans, mashrabiyas, air catchers, tents and domes) in a contemporary manner by simplifying and abstracting ideas and achieving contemporary formally and functionally (environmentally, economically, socially).

Tourism is a major source of national income for many countries, and many countries are competing over increasing the competitive value of the city through the possibility of developing tourist product that enrich the economic aspect and urban and social development.

The most important components to enrich and revitalize heritage tourism product have been indicated as: the first component was Innovation, which is achieved through indicators of fair use, providing flexibility in design, providing sustainability in urban spaces, the second component was Leadership, which is achieved through indicators of social participation in decision making process and urban interventions, stakeholders synergy to maintain and recall the essence of Baghdad and spirit of place and activating the tourism process, Giving more attention to traditional activities, Developing govermental legislation and laws, Keeping pace with technological developments, Decentralized management model and the establishment of companies to coordinate projects in the city and the use of public-private partnership. the last component was Creativity, Which is achieved through indicators of identity by providing an authentic experiences to the visitors and tourists and preserving architectural elements that carry a unique value for historical continuity, the adaptation to change and transforming it to urban potentials to enhance the commercial intellectual and cultural identity, Exploiting open spaces for urban events and national festivals and taking advantage of existing landmarks and benefit from them as a design power and potential for revival process in urban design that reflect the nostalgia to the past and empower the future generations by recalling the values of the past, reflecting on it, taking lessons and learning from them (Figure 5).

heritage tourism local development

Figure 5. Components of activating tourism product in heritage tourism

[1] Richards, G. (2001). Cultural Attractions and European Tourism. CABI Publishing. [2] Morrison, A.M. (2013). Marketing and Managing Tourism Destinations. Routledge. [3] Barrera-Fernandez, D., Hernández-Escampa, M., Vázquez, A.B. (2016). Tourism management in the historic city. The impact of urban planning policies. International Journal of Scientific Management and Tourism, 2(4): 349-367. [4] Timothy, D.J., Nyaupane, G.P. (2009). Cultural Heritage and Tourism in the Developing World. Routledge. [5] Poria, Y., Butler, R., Airey, D. (2003). The core of heritage tourism. Annals of Tourism Research, 30(1): 238-254. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0160-7383(02)00064-6 [6] Poria, Y., Butler, R., Airey, D. (2001). Clarifying heritage tourism. Annals of Tourism Research, 28(4): 1047-1048. [7] Garrod, B., Fyall, A. (2001). Heritage tourism: A question of definition. Annals of Tourism Research, 28(4): 1049-1052. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0160-7383(00)00068-2 [8] Experts of the Iraqi Consultative Commission for Reconstruction and Development. (2022). A comprehensive scientific study for the reconstruction of Iraq. London. https://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/576771645715123591/pdf/Iraq-Reform-Recovery-and-Reconstruction-Fund-I3RF-Trust-Fund-Annual-Progress-Report-to-Development-Partners-2021.pdf. [9] Chhabra, D. (2010). Sustainable Marketing of Cultural and Heritage Tourism. Routledge. [10] Richards, G., Richards, G.B. (1996). Cultural Tourism in Europe. Cab International. [11] Silberberg, T. (1995). Cultural tourism and business opportunities for museums and heritage sites. Tourism Management, 16(5): 361-365. https://doi.org/10.1016/0261-5177(95)00039-Q [12] Smith, M.K. (2015). Issues in Cultural Tourism Studies. Routledge. [13] van Renswouw, L., Vos, S., Van Wesemael, P., Lallemand, C. (2021). Exploring the design space of InterActive urban environments: Triggering physical activity through embedded technology. In Designing Interactive Systems Conference 2021, pp. 955-969. https://doi.org/10.1145/3461778.3462137 [14] Katiyar, R.C., Priyanka, P. (2015). Sustainable heritage tourism marketing through intelligence ICT solutions. Scholarly Journal of Business Administration, 5(1): 1-7. [15] Hadžić, O. (2004). Tourism and digitization of cultural heritage. Pregled nacionalnog centra za digitalizaciju. http://hdl.handle.net/10760/11865. [16] Kotler, P., Turner, R.E. (1989). Marketing Management, Canadian. Scarborough, Ontario, Prentice Hall Canada. [17] Jefferson, A., Lickorish, L.J. (1988). Marketing Tourism. A Practical Guide. Longman Group UK Ltd. [18] González, O.L., Rodríguez, R.M., Fernández, J.I.P. (2022). Actor networks and development of cultural tourist destinations. In Handbook of Research on Cultural Tourism and Sustainability, pp. 209-230. IGI Global. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-7998-9217-5.ch010 [19] Kuznik, L. (2018). Fifty shades of dark stories. In Encyclopedia of Information Science and Technology, Fourth Edition, pp. 4077-4087. IGI Global. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-5225-2255-3.ch353 [20] Amaral, M.I., Rodrigues, A.I. (2020). The importance of social media for the improvement of the tourist experience offered by rural tourism enterprises: the case of the Alentejo. In Handbook of Research on Social Media Applications for the Tourism and Hospitality Sector, pp. 309-333. IGI Global. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-7998-1947-9.ch018 [21] Middleton, V.T.C., Clarke, J.R. (2012). Marketing in Travel and Tourism. Routledge. [22] Hunter, G.S. (2013). Out Think: How Innovative Leaders Drive Exceptional Outcomes. John Wiley & Sons. [23] Dietrich, A. (2004). The cognitive neuroscience of creativity. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 11: 1011-1026. https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03196731 [24] Richards, G. (2009). Creative tourism and local development. Creative Tourism: A Global Conversation, 78-90. [25] Nilssen, M. (2019). To the smart city and beyond? Developing a typology of smart urban innovation. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 142: 98-104. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2018.07.060 [26] Rada, D.R. (1999). Transformational leadership and urban renewal. Journal of Leadership Studies, 6(3-4): 18-33. https://doi.org/10.1177/107179199900600302 [27] Kirn, L., Schmidt, J., Rothfeld, N. (2018). Urban Development Projects: The Role of Leadership for Social Sustainability in a Multicultural District-A Case Study of Drottninghög, Helsingborg. [28] Van Seters, D.A., Field, R.H. (1990). The evolution of leadership theory. Journal of organizational change management, 3(3): 29-45. https://doi.org/10.1108/09534819010142139 [29] Mohamed Ali, E.E.D., Mahmoud, M.A.S.R., Al-Jumaili, Z.H. (2022). Towards activating comprehensive ‘global’ urban design standards to develop heritage ‘tourist’ urban spaces. Journal of Urban Research, 46. https://jur.journals.ekb.eg/article_253899_459ebbab73cc374a1950642b57100454.pdf. [30] Nayef Alsarayreh, M. (2017). Heritage tourism and its role in the tourism industry and activating the process of attracting tourists to Jordan. The International Journal of Heritage, Tourism and Hospitality - published by the Faculty of Tourism and Hotels - Fayoum University, 11: 41-51.  [31] Ali ElSayyad, N.A.H.M., Gizawi, E., El Din, L.S. (2022). The flexibility effect of using heritage formation vocabulary in contemporary architecture. MEJ. Mansoura Engineering Journal, 47(2): 71-79. https://dx.doi.org/10.21608/bfemu.2022.248285 [32] Al Rajoub A.M., Al Shawabkeh, R. (2019). Employing urban heritage in tourism. https://repository.aabu.edu.jo/jspui/handle/123456789/2096. [33] Oliveira, F.B.D., Sant'Anna, A.D.S., Diniz, D.M., Carvalho Neto, A.M.D. (2015). Leaderships in urban contexts of diversity and innovation: The Porto Maravilha case. BAR-Brazilian Administration Review, 12: 268-287. https://doi.org/10.1590/1807-7692bar2015140080 [34] Duclos, D. (2016). Revisiting Iraqi cultural heritage from “outside” in times of looting and destruction: Al-Mutanabi Street in Motion 1. Autrepart, (2): 219-233. https://doi.org/10.3917/autr.078.0219 [35] Al Waily, T. (2017). Baghdad_21st_Century_The_Historical_City (1). Dar al Adeeb, Jordan. https://issuu.com/turath/docs/part_1_632b2a962c42af. [36] Almousawi, N.H., Al-Hinkawi, W.S., Al-Askary, A.A.H.A. (2022). Temporal awareness in urban place: Al-Mutanabbi street-case study. International Journal of Sustainable Development and Planning, 17(5): 1461-1470. https://doi.org/10.18280/ijsdp.170510

Phone: + 1 825 436 9306

Email: [email protected]

Subscription

Language support

Please sign up to receive notifications on new issues and newsletters from IIETA

Select Journal/Journals:

Copyright © 2024 IIETA. All Rights Reserved.

Advisory Council on Historic Preservation

Each year, millions of travelers visit America’s historic places. The National Trust for Historic Preservation defines heritage tourism as “traveling to experience the places, artifacts, and activities that authentically represent the stories and people of the past and present.”  A high percentage of domestic and international travelers participate in cultural and/or heritage activities while traveling, and those that do stay longer, spend more, and travel more often. Heritage tourism creates jobs and business opportunities, helps protect resources, and often improves the quality of life for local residents.

The ACHP has encouraged national travel and tourism policies that promote the international marketing of America’s historic sites as tourism destinations. The ACHP also engages in ongoing efforts to build a more inclusive preservation program, reaching out to diverse communities and groups and engaging them in dialogue about what parts of our national legacy should be more fully recognized, preserved, and shared. 

The ACHP developed Preserve America , a national initiative to encourage and support community efforts for the preservation and enjoyment of America’s cultural and natural heritage. In partnership with other federal agencies, the initiative has encouraged the use of historic assets for economic development and community revitalization, as well as enabling people to experience and appreciate local historic resources through heritage tourism and education programs. These goals have been advanced by an Executive Order directing federal agencies to support such efforts, a community designation program, and a recognition program for outstanding stewardship of historic resources by volunteers.

From 2004-2016, over 900 Preserve America Communities   were designated in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and two territories, as well as nearly 60 Preserve America Stewards . Many Preserve America Communities are featured in “Discover Our Shared Heritage” National Register on-line travel itineraries . From 2006 through 2010, the National Park Service (in partnership with the ACHP) awarded more than $21 million in Preserve America Grants   to support sustainable historic resource management strategies, with a focus on heritage tourism. 

These links are being provided as a convenience and for informational purposes only; if they are not ACHP links, they do not constitute an endorsement or an approval by the ACHP of any of the products, services or opinions of the corporation or organization or individual. The ACHP bears no responsibility for the accuracy, legality, or content of the external site or for that of subsequent links. Please contact the external site for answers to questions regarding its content, including its privacy policies.

Related resources.

heritage tourism local development

You are here

Moscow downtown historic district.

  • Location: Moscow Idaho Regional Essays: Idaho Latah County Architect: Robert H. Barton Leonidas McCartor Michael Shields William J. McConnell James McGuire Milburn Kenworthy Types: mixed-use developments motion picture theaters hotels (public accommodations) apartments retail stores storefronts Styles: Romanesque Revival Richardsonian Romanesque Italianate (North American architecture styles) Spanish Colonial Revival Art Deco Materials: brick (clay material) cast iron sandstone dimension stone cast stone

What's Nearby

Wendy R. McClure, " Moscow Downtown Historic District ", [ Moscow , Idaho ], SAH Archipedia, eds. Gabrielle Esperdy and Karen Kingsley, Charlottesville: UVaP, 2012—, http://sah-archipedia.org/buildings/ID-01-057-0003 . Last accessed: March 29, 2024.

Permissions and Terms of Use

heritage tourism local development

According to historians who traveled throughout North Idaho at the turn of the twentieth century to interpret the early histories and future viability of the region’s towns, Moscow was a community where the early “pioneers got it right.” In 1903, visiting historians observed a thriving town in the center of a rich agricultural valley, where commercial development significantly outpaced resident population growth. They noted that, here, in contrast to other pioneer settlements, railroad companies accepted early settlers’ geographic choice for the town center rather than forcing the town to move the commercial districts to accommodate railroad interests. Downtown Moscow has persisted as the symbolic heart of the community and center of public life. Its late-nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century buildings have adapted to changing needs over time and currently serve entertainment and housing needs of a university city.

Multiple conditions favored early Moscow’s capacity to achieve stability and prosperity as a business center during its formative years. The region’s geography was naturally accommodating of human habitation. For hundreds of years “Tatkinmah,” the “valley of the spotted deer” in which Moscow is located, served as a seasonal meeting grounds for tribal peoples including the Nez Perce, Coeur d’Alene, and Palouse, who frequented the area to harvest camas roots, trade, and race horses. Early settlers benefitted from ease of access to the region afforded by the Nez Perce Trail, which climbed two thousand feet from the tribe’s winter home in the Snake River Valley. In 1871, the first wave of homesteaders ascended the trail and claimed land in what they called “Paradise Valley,” a landscape of rich soil, bucolic grassy hills, and gently flowing streams. As farm families in pursuit of a permanent home, they brought early stability to the area and a need for a commercial marketplace. Moscow’s formative years also benefitted from the foresight and generosity of four homesteaders and businessmen (Almon Lieuallen, James Deakin, Henry McGregor, and John Russell), who each donated 30 acres of their intersecting claims to establish the initial townsite and commercial center. From the start, they established a climate for community stability by cultivating commercial enterprises along Main Street. Their motivations differed from those of fortunes seekers throughout the west, who temporarily populated, and exploited, early western settlements and then moved on.

Given its central location within a highly productive agricultural landscape, downtown Moscow quickly expanded from its humble beginnings into a booming regional marketplace for outlying communities and farmsteads. In 1885, the railroad arrived downtown, assuring Moscow’s role as a regional shipping point. Equally vital to the commercial district’s economic well-being, was the territorial legislature’s 1888 decision to locate the University of Idaho in Moscow. The combined economic stimuli afforded by agriculture, railroad linkage, and education produced downtown Moscow’s most significant period of commercial development. All downtown buildings constructed between 1888 and 1893 were either retail establishments or banks; over one-third of buildings designated as “contributing” to Moscow’s National Historic Downtown District were built in this period. Their developers, which included William McConnell, Robert H. Barton, and Michael Shields, were among Moscow’s most influential local businessmen. In architectural stature and purpose, these buildings remain unsurpassed by later periods of downtown development.

In 1891, William McConnell and his partner, James McGuire, erected the McConnell-McGuire Building, a three-story department store on the southeast corner of First and Main Streets. The physical heart of downtown during this period, however, developed at the intersection of Fourth and Main Streets, where a prominent commercial building was constructed at each corner between 1889 and 1891. All of the structures were built of brick, as required by an 1891 city ordinance regulating fire safety. The 1891 Skattaboe Block, originally constructed on the southwest corner of the intersection in the Richardsonian Romanesque style, was modified at the street level in the 1980s. The Hotel Moscow, a replacement building following a catastrophic fire in 1890, was also designed in the Richardsonian Romanesque style. Across the street on the northeast corner, Leonidas McCartor erected two mixed-use buildings in the Romanesque Revival style in 1891 and 1896, respectively. The 1891 building initially served as Farmer’s Bank before becoming Moscow’s City Hall in 1900, and it served in that capacity until the mid-twentieth century. Use of the Italianate style for downtown buildings was also relatively common as in the Shields Building on the intersection’s southeast corner. Michael Shields developed the Shields Building North as Moscow’s first three-story brick building with an elevator in 1889. The building has since lost some of its original ornamentation and has been modified at the street level.

Mirroring national economic trends, downtown development and construction activity paused during the economic panic of 1893. The national recession led to a slowdown in new construction and the upper floors of several department stores were converted from retail space to offices and apartments between 1893 and 1900. Main Street’s growth resumed in tandem with the country’s economic recovery. Twenty percent of the downtown district’s current inventory of buildings was built between 1900 and World War I. The majority are one- and two-part, block-style commercial buildings. They are smaller in scale and simpler in their detailing than buildings associated with downtown’s peak period. The Kenworthy Theater, a vaudeville and motion picture venue, is a notable exception. Between World War I and World War II, downtown continued to infill with brick and concrete block buildings designed in period-appropriate Art Deco and Spanish Mission styles. Both downtown movie theaters exhibit Art Deco influences and remain popular destinations for cultural entertainment and community events.

Typical of downtowns throughout the country during the post–World War II period, retail businesses and buildings along Moscow’s Main Street suffered from the erosive effects of highway traffic and shopping mall construction. A downtown revitalization initiative in 1980, featuring highway rerouting, streetscape improvements, and construction of a public plaza at the downtown’s core intersection at 4th and Main, helped to re-establish Main Street as a center for public life. The historic integrity of even the most prominent downtown buildings has been compromised, and many bear the marks of storefront modifications intended to forestall retail decline. Collectively, however, they provide a palimpsest of inherited culture and visitors to Moscow’s Main Street need only look up from street level at the brick buildings to connect with late-nineteenth-century community builders who had envisioned downtown Moscow as a bustling regional marketplace.

Attebury, J. Building Idaho: An Architectural History. Moscow: University of Idaho Press, 1991.

David, H. “Moscow at the Turn of the Century.” Moscow, ID: Local History Paper #6, Latah County Historical Society, 1979.

Hibbard, Don, “McConnell-McGuire Building,” Latah County, Idaho. National Register of Historic Places Registration Form, 1977. National Park Service, U.S. Department of Interior, Washington DC.

Julin, Suzanne, “Moscow Downtown Historic District,” Latah County, Idaho. National Register of Historic Places Registration Form, 2005. National Park Service, U.S. Department of Interior, Washington DC.

Julin, Suzanne, and D. Krae, “Kenworthy Theater,” Latah County, Idaho. National Register of Historic Places Registration Form, 2001. National Park Service, U.S. Department of Interior, Washington DC.

Monroe, J. Moscow: Living and Learning on the Palouse , Charleston, SC: Making of America Series, Arcadia Publishing, 2003.

Otness, L. A Great Good Country: A Guide to Historic Moscow and Latah County, Idaho . Moscow, ID: Local History Paper # 8, Latah County Historical Society, 1983.

Western Historical Publishing Company. An Illustrated History of North Idaho: embracing Nez Perce, Idaho, Latah, Kootenai and Shoshone Counties, State of Idaho . Spokane, WA: Western Historical Publishing Company, 1903.

Wright, Patricia, “Hotel Moscow,” Latah County, Idaho. National Register of Historic Places Registration Form, 1978. National Park Service, U.S. Department of Interior, Washington DC.

Writing Credits

  • Location: Moscow, Idaho Regional Overviews: Latah County Architect: Robert H. Barton Types: mixed-use developments motion picture theaters hotels (public accommodations) apartments retail stores storefronts Styles: Romanesque Revival Richardsonian Romanesque Italianate (North American architecture styles) Spanish Colonial Revival Art Deco Materials: brick (clay material) cast iron sandstone dimension stone cast stone

If SAH Archipedia has been useful to you, please consider supporting it.

SAH Archipedia tells the story of the United States through its buildings, landscapes, and cities. This freely available resource empowers the public with authoritative knowledge that deepens their understanding and appreciation of the built environment. But the Society of Architectural Historians, which created SAH Archipedia with University of Virginia Press, needs your support to maintain the high-caliber research, writing, photography, cartography, editing, design, and programming that make SAH Archipedia a trusted online resource available to all who value the history of place, heritage tourism, and learning.

  • Public Notices

Tourism’s impact in Washington County

Mar 28, 2024 3 min read.

By Jeff Kotula

A study by the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) again demonstrated that Washington County’s tourism industry continues to be a major driver in our local economy and a leader in our region.

In their recently released annual report, the DCED firmly placed Washington County as second in the greater Pittsburgh region in significant tourism impact categories such as total tourism demand, lodging, food and beverage and retail. This study highlights not only the importance of tourism in the continued diversification of our economy, but also the success we have achieved in marketing our county as a premier tourism destination.

According to the report, travel and tourism direct impacts for visitor spending in Washington County in 2022, which is the most recent available data, was approximately $665.9 million, an increase from $594.1 million the year before. The report also stated that Washington County’s travel economy directly employed 5,359 people, which about equals our pre-pandemic employment numbers in this sector and generated $200.4 million in labor income, also an increase from $179 million in 2021.

These travel industry impacts also generated nearly $79 million in federal, state, and local tax revenue. These impressive statistics allow Washington County to rank as the second-highest, after Allegheny County, in traveler spending, tourism employment and overall travel impacts among counties in the eight-county Pittsburgh region. This is positive momentum as we look forward to the 2024 tourism season in our area.

For the greater Pittsburgh region as a whole, tourism employment directly supported by visitor spending increased by more than 6,000 jobs in 2022, but remained 11 percentage points below the region’s pre-pandemic level. And while visitor spending increased 25% over the previous year, it is still just shy of pre-pandemic spending. Washington County is performing well, but we as a region need to invest more in this vital industry that supports one out of every 11 jobs in our area.

Washington County continues to invest in tourism, and those funds are paying significant dividends across our area. Liberty Pole Spirits’ new campus distillery, the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum’s new Welcome and Education Center and Washington County Historical Society’s Research and Education Center complement the long-term investments being made by The Hollywood Casino at the Meadows, Monongahela Aquatorium, and Washington Wild Things to keep these assets strong, vibrant, and relevant. These projects, along with the Washington County Tourism Promotion Agency’s recent grants to organizations for new marketing and capital initiatives, represent extensive investments that will translate into new visitors and opportunities in our county.

It is important that our actions and investments are positively quantified by the DCED’s study and that our tourism marketing efforts are contributing to our county’s overall economic success. As our tourism slogan states, “The American Spirit Lives Here” and so do the economic and job creation impacts of this important industry for Washington County. –

Jeff Kotula is the president of the Washington County Chamber of Commerce and Tourism Promotion Agency.

CUSTOMER LOGIN

If you have an account and are registered for online access, sign in with your email address and password below.

NEW CUSTOMERS/UNREGISTERED ACCOUNTS

Never been a subscriber and want to subscribe, click the Subscribe button below.

Starting at $3.75 / week.

Subscribe today.

  • Business & Finance
  • Real Estate
  • Transportation
  • Tourism & Hotels
  • Conferences

Moscow To Increase Tourism Amongst UAE Citizens

The Moscow City Tourism Committee concluded a business mission in Dubai on February 7th to discuss primary tourism objectives and development between both countries, positioning Moscow as a top tourist destination.

The delegation from the Moscow City Tourism Committee consisted of representatives from major tour operators and the hospitality industry. They met with 113 members of local companies, government agencies, and other interested organizations to explore potential cooperation opportunities. Within the framework of the business mission, approximately 2,000 cooperation negotiations were concluded.

“We are committed to maintaining this relationship as the Gulf countries remain one of the most promising markets for inbound tourism to Moscow. Business guests enjoy experiencing the high level of hospitality and services in Moscow, as well as the city’s carefully preserved historical heritage. We hope to see more of these business visitors return with their families to enjoy the leisure and beauty of the Russian capital,” said Mr. Bulat Nurmukhanov, Head of the International Cooperation Division of the Moscow City Tourism Committee.

Bulat Nurmukhanov also noted that this business mission to the UAE signifies Moscow’s commitment to strengthening its relationship with Middle Eastern countries and promoting tourism potential between both regions. The delegation is optimistic about the opportunities that may arise from these discussions and looks forward to fostering long-term partnerships with their counterparts in the UAE.

During the meeting, a presentation showcasing Moscow’s tourism potential was conducted, highlighting the diverse array of activities available in the city. It was noted that group and family tourism were among the fast-growing and popular choices for UAE residents.

Earlier in 2023, the Moscow City Tourism Committee organized business missions to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the Kingdom of Bahrain, resulting in thousands of negotiations with partners from Middle Eastern countries.

These events aimed to develop tourism cooperation between the Moscow City Tourism Committee and the Gulf Countries, as well as strengthen business relations in the tourism industry.

heritage tourism local development

  • About Henan
  • Bilingual News
  • Daily Updates on COVID-19 in Henan

Forum on high-quality development of China's "beautiful villages" held in Beijing

A branch of the China Tourism Association on Thursday held a forum on promoting the high-quality development of China's "beautiful villages" in the new era.

More than 30 experts from tourism departments, the diplomatic field and universities attended the forum in Beijing, and discussed topics including how to build the "most beautiful villages" of high standard in China.

Relevant standards and evaluation work will be actively advanced this year, according to the forum.

Experts agreed that China could potentially learn from European countries in this field, carry out international exchanges and cooperation, and advance rural revitalization.

heritage tourism local development

  • The Star ePaper
  • Subscriptions
  • Manage Profile
  • Change Password
  • Manage Logins
  • Manage Subscription
  • Transaction History
  • Manage Billing Info
  • Manage For You
  • Manage Bookmarks
  • Package & Pricing

Tourism boom strains Greek islands

Friday, 29 Mar 2024

Related News

The Kuching Old Bazaar in Sarawak is full of history, and life

The Kuching Old Bazaar in Sarawak is full of history, and life

Grave problem at ‘celebrity’ cemetery, how to charge a phone in gaza.

Crowds gathering for the sunset in Mykonos, Greece. As development alters Greek islands’ nature and culture, the locals push back. — ©2024 The New York Times Company

WITH a deluge of foreign visitors fuelling seemingly non-stop development on once pristine Greek islands, local residents and officials are beginning to fight back, moving to curb a wave of construction that has started to cause water shortages and is altering the islands’ unique cultural identity.

Tourism is crucial in Greece, accounting for one-fifth of the country’s economic output, and communities on many islands depend on it.

Subscribe to win RM50 Touch 'n Go e-Voucher! More Info

Monthly plan.

RM13.90/month

Annual Plan

RM12.33/month

Billed as RM148.00/year

For new subscribers only

heritage tourism local development

Tags / Keywords: StarExtra

Found a mistake in this article?

Report it to us.

Thank you for your report!

Grave problem at ‘celebrity’ cemetery

Embark on a Mi Sedaap culinary journey

heritage tourism local development

Trending in News

Air pollutant index, highest api readings, select state and location to view the latest api reading.

  • Select Location

Source: Department of Environment, Malaysia

Others Also Read

Best viewed on Chrome browsers.

heritage tourism local development

We would love to keep you posted on the latest promotion. Kindly fill the form below

Thank you for downloading.

We hope you enjoy this feature!

PRESSR: Moscow to increase tourism amongst UAE citizens

First published: 13-Feb-2024 10:56:37

The Moscow City Tourism Committee concluded a business mission in Dubai on February 7th to discuss primary tourism objectives and development between both countries, positioning Moscow as a top tourist destination.

The delegation from the Moscow City Tourism Committee consisted of representatives from major tour operators and the hospitality industry. They met with 113 members of local companies, government agencies, and other interested organizations to explore potential cooperation opportunities. Within the framework of the business mission, approximately 2,000 cooperation negotiations were concluded.

"We are committed to maintaining this relationship as the Gulf countries remain one of the most promising markets for inbound tourism to Moscow. Business guests enjoy experiencing the high level of hospitality and services in Moscow, as well as the city's carefully preserved historical heritage. We hope to see more of these business visitors return with their families to enjoy the leisure and beauty of the Russian capital," said Mr. Bulat Nurmukhanov, Head of the International Cooperation Division of the Moscow City Tourism Committee.

Bulat Nurmukhanov also noted that this business mission to the UAE signifies Moscow's commitment to strengthening its relationship with Middle Eastern countries and promoting tourism potential between both regions. The delegation is optimistic about the opportunities that may arise from these discussions and looks forward to fostering long-term partnerships with their counterparts in the UAE.

During the meeting, a presentation showcasing Moscow's tourism potential was conducted, highlighting the diverse array of activities available in the city. It was noted that group and family tourism were among the fast-growing and popular choices for UAE residents.

Earlier in 2023, the Moscow City Tourism Committee organized business missions to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the Kingdom of Bahrain, resulting in thousands of negotiations with partners from Middle Eastern countries.

These events aimed to develop tourism cooperation between the Moscow City Tourism Committee and the Gulf Countries, as well as strengthen business relations in the tourism industry.

For any media queries or interview requests with Mr. Bulat Nurmukhanov , Head of the International Cooperation Department of the Moscow Tourism Committee, please contact:

Zeina Akkawi

Founder & Managing Director - Paz Marketing UAE

[email protected]

Kristiemae T. Gonzales

Marketing Executive - Paz Marketing UAE

[email protected]

© Press Release 2024

Disclaimer: The contents of this press release was provided from an external third party provider. This website is not responsible for, and does not control, such external content. This content is provided on an “as is” and “as available” basis and has not been edited in any way. Neither this website nor our affiliates guarantee the accuracy of or endorse the views or opinions expressed in this press release.

The press release is provided for informational purposes only. The content does not provide tax, legal or investment advice or opinion regarding the suitability, value or profitability of any particular security, portfolio or investment strategy. Neither this website nor our affiliates shall be liable for any errors or inaccuracies in the content, or for any actions taken by you in reliance thereon. You expressly agree that your use of the information within this article is at your sole risk.

To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, this website, its parent company, its subsidiaries, its affiliates and the respective shareholders, directors, officers, employees, agents, advertisers, content providers and licensors will not be liable (jointly or severally) to you for any direct, indirect, consequential, special, incidental, punitive or exemplary damages, including without limitation, lost profits, lost savings and lost revenues, whether in negligence, tort, contract or any other theory of liability, even if the parties have been advised of the possibility or could have foreseen any such damages.

IMAGES

  1. Cultural Heritage and Tourism

    heritage tourism local development

  2. Five reasons why heritage tourism is important

    heritage tourism local development

  3. Framework of heritage tourism development at Dymarki...

    heritage tourism local development

  4. An Insight Into The World Of Cultural Tourism

    heritage tourism local development

  5. PPT

    heritage tourism local development

  6. PPT

    heritage tourism local development

COMMENTS

  1. PDF Heritage, tourism and local development

    Heritage, tourism and local development Guest Editors Chiara Dalle Nogare, University of Brescia, Italy ([email protected]) Maria Devesa, University of Valladolid, Spain ([email protected]) Scholars have been discussing the role of heritage as a driver of economic development for quite a long time,

  2. Exploring the relationships between heritage tourism, sustainable

    Introduction. Tourism, heritage, and sustainable development go hand in hand. Socio-economically, tourism is considered a vital means of sustainable human development worldwide, and remains one of the world's top creators of employment and a lead income-generator, particularly for Global South countries [].For most low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), tourism is a key component of ...

  3. World Heritage and Sustainable Tourism Programme

    World Heritage partnerships for conservation. Ensuring that World Heritage sites sustain their outstanding universal value is an increasingly challenging mission in today's complex world, where sites are vulnerable to the effects of uncontrolled urban development, unsustainable tourism practices, neglect, natural calamities, pollution, political instability, and conflict.

  4. How to use tourism for development while preserving local culture

    Cultural and historical travel accounts for 40% of all tourism globally. 73% of millennials report being interested in cultural and historic places. Protecting local culture and heritage requires a robust plan to mitigate negative impacts and policies to ensure prosperity is shared. Culture and heritage tourism has the potential to create ...

  5. People's perspectives on heritage conservation and tourism development

    STD includes developmental policies and the protection of the local environment. The common dilemma faced by all interested parties in tourism development is finding a sustainable tourism development plan that will conserve heritage while influencing the positive growth of tourism and tourism-related economic activities (Xing et al. 2013). When ...

  6. From Cultural Heritage to Economic Development Through Tourism

    The most evident and noticeable link between cultural heritage and economic development is tourism. During the 70s and, more extensively, the 80s heritage tourism began its development (CHCfE Consortium, 2015 ). As highlighted by the OECD, local cultural assets, including cultural heritage, started to be considered as elements of territorial ...

  7. Cultural heritage tourism as a catalyst for sustainable development

    Cultural heritage tourism development has evolved 112 riad hotels between 1997 and 2016 (Alami, El Khazzan, ... towards creating a perfect Moroccan paradise for foreigners as an antithesis to the tremendous impact of cultural heritage tourism on the local people (El-Ghazaly Citation 2008; Sutton Citation 2012; Abdullah Citation 2015 ...

  8. Heritage, Tourism and Local Development in Peripheral Rural Spaces

    In the context of multiple repurposing of rural spaces, tourism represents a path for development, with the potential to revitalize these areas. The conservation and restoration of heritage, and its promotion through tourism, can become an opportunity for local development, in which a range of stakeholders fulfil different roles in the carrying out of the processes involved. The aim of the ...

  9. Heritage, local communities and economic development

    Heritage, development and local communities. International tourism, in addition to its economic contributions to wealth-creation, investment, and employment, also plays a significant role in the construction of many countries' national identities and, particularly, how a country wishes to be perceived by others.

  10. Local Sustainable Development and Cultural Tourist Routes

    Sustainable cultural routes could revitalize tourist destinations and constitute a glaring example of sustainable promotion of the local cultural identity. The current chapter examines whether sustainable cultural heritage could have an impact on the economic, social, environmental, and cultural environment of a semi-rural destination.

  11. The tourism and local development in world heritage context. The case

    The 'Pre-Hispanic City and National Park of Palenque' in Mexico will be used as a case study, with especial attention on local Indigenous communities. It analyses the use of 'World Heritage' as a brand for tourism promotion and expected tourism growth, and the changes in the role of the Indigenous peoples in archaeology and UNESCO policies.

  12. [PDF] Heritage, Tourism and Local Development in Peripheral Rural

    In the context of multiple repurposing of rural spaces, tourism represents a path for development, with the potential to revitalize these areas. The conservation and restoration of heritage, and its promotion through tourism, can become an opportunity for local development, in which a range of stakeholders fulfil different roles in the carrying out of the processes involved.

  13. World Heritage and Sustainable Development

    World Heritage partnerships for conservation. Ensuring that World Heritage sites sustain their outstanding universal value is an increasingly challenging mission in today's complex world, where sites are vulnerable to the effects of uncontrolled urban development, unsustainable tourism practices, neglect, natural calamities, pollution, political instability, and conflict.

  14. Exploring the Factors Influencing Heritage Tourism Development ...

    Heritage and cultural tourism development can be effectively achieved through marketing and promotion, and by working with local and regional partners. This involves collaborating with local businesses, tourism boards, and other groups to establish marketing strategies, attractions, and experiences that reflect the history and culture of a ...

  15. Culture, tourism and local development: New strategies for Italian

    Heritage, responsible cultural tourism, and sustainable development . Webinar #2 - 29 October 2021 - REPLAY AVAILABLE. Heritage as a driver for new local creative entrepreneurship. Webinar #1 - 26 May 2021 - REPLAY AVAILABLE. Cultural heritage and social cohesion: how to make the local community more cohesive and inclusive

  16. Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Sustainable Development. The ...

    The protection of cultural heritage must, at present, be seen as a determining factor, taking an active role with local communities, resident populations and the environment, for local development, in what is now known as sustainable tourism, articulating all stakeholders.

  17. Joint development of cultural heritage protection and tourism: the case

    The joint development of cultural heritage protection and tourism is an essential part of sustainable heritage tourism. Mount Lushan in China is such a site which in the past has had shortcomings in heritage protection and heritage tourism marketing. The present research addresses this issue by using digital technologies such as oblique aerial photography, 3D laser scanning technology, and 360 ...

  18. Revitalizing Urban Heritage for Tourism Development: A Case Study of

    The heritage tourism sector is expanding at a more rapid rate than all other forms of tourism, especially in third-world countries. Visitors to cities seek to appreciate and enrich their understanding of cultural and historical aspects, making this sector a potentially effective tool for poverty alleviation and community economic development (UNWTO 2005) [4].

  19. Heritage Tourism

    Each year, millions of travelers visit America's historic places. The National Trust for Historic Preservation defines heritage tourism as "traveling to experience the places, artifacts, and activities that authentically represent the stories and people of the past and present." A high percentage of domestic and international travelers participate in cultural and/or heritage activities ...

  20. Dark tourism development in a leisure destination: the perceptions of

    This is an important planning and policy consideration, as members of the local community (e.g., hoteliers and business owners) can react negatively to dark heritage site development and tourism promoters if their needs are ignored over tourism requirements.

  21. Moscow 2030: a Development Plan / Smart City of the Future

    1. To focus on humans and creating the conditions for a full-fledged, high-quality, and happy life for all categories of residents. Participation of residents. in city governance. 2. To develop conditions for active involvement of residents in social life and making decisions on citywide issues; open digital government. Artificial intelligence.

  22. Moscow Downtown Historic District

    All downtown buildings constructed between 1888 and 1893 were either retail establishments or banks; over one-third of buildings designated as "contributing" to Moscow's National Historic Downtown District were built in this period. Their developers, which included William McConnell, Robert H. Barton, and Michael Shields, were among ...

  23. Land

    This study finds that tourism development promotes the local employment of rural labor, encouraging workers to stay and participate in agriculture, thus inhibiting land transfer. ... Zhang, A. Evolution Disparities of Agricultural Land Use Behavior of Different Types of Farmers in Agricultural Heritage Tourism Destinations-a Case Study of Hani ...

  24. Tourism's impact in Washington County

    By Jeff Kotula A study by the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) again demonstrated that Washington County's tourism industry continues to be a major driver in our local economy and a leader in our region. In their recently released annual report, the DCED firmly placed Washington County as second in the greater […]

  25. Moscow To Increase Tourism Amongst UAE Citizens

    The Moscow City Tourism Committee concluded a business mission in Dubai on February 7th to discuss primary tourism objectives and development between both countries, positioning Moscow as a top tourist destination. ... They met with 113 members of local companies, government agencies, and other interested organizations to explore potential ...

  26. Better China Initiative Sparks Cultural Tourism: Showcasing Rural

    Amidst the vibrant tapestry of China's development, a unique blend of cultural tourism, rural revitalization, and heritage conservation stands out, thanks to the Better China initiative.This multifaceted approach not only highlights the nation's dedication to enhancing the quality of life for its elderly and nurturing aesthetic sensibilities among its youth but also positions these endeavors ...

  27. Forum on high-quality development of China's "beautiful villages" held

    A branch of the China Tourism Association on Thursday held a forum on promoting the high-quality development of China's "beautiful villages" in the new era. More than 30 experts from tourism departments, the diplomatic field and universities attended the forum in Beijing, and discussed topics including how to build the "most beautiful villages ...

  28. Tourism boom strains Greek islands

    WITH a deluge of foreign visitors fuelling seemingly non-stop development on once pristine Greek islands, local residents and officials are beginning to fight back, moving to curb a wave of ...

  29. PRESSR: Moscow to increase tourism amongst UAE citizens

    First published: 13-Feb-2024 10:56:37The Moscow City Tourism Committee concluded a business mission in Dubai on February 7th to discuss primary tourism objectives and development between both countries, positioning Moscow as a top tourist destination.The delegation from the Moscow City Tourism Comm…

  30. Prevent Housing Development in Our Rural Community

    Our community is known for its farming heritage. The fields around Lambs Grill Rd/Creek Rd and Chesnee Rd/County Line Rd intersection are more than just scenery; they provide hay that feeds local cows, horses, and other animals we all rely on daily. A new housing development threatens to take away these resources that are vital to our way of life.