World heritage sites_ tourism, local communities and conservation activities

Takamitsu Jimura
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© Takamitsu Jimura 2019. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or by any means, electronically, mechanically, by photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright owners.
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library, London, UK.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Jimura, Takamitsu, author. Title: World Heritage sites : tourism, local communities and conservation
activities / Takamitsu Jimura, Liverpool John Moores University, UK. Description: Boston, Massachusetts : CAB International, [2018] | Includes
bibliographical references and index. Identifiers: LCCN 2018037000| ISBN 9781786392688 (Hardback) | ISBN
9781786392671 (ePDF) | ISBN 9781786392695 (ePub) Subjects: LCSH: World Heritage areas--Management. | Heritage tourism. |
Cultural property--Conservation and restoration. Classification: LCC G140.5 .J56 2018 | DDC 338.4/791--dc23 LC record
available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2018037000
Commissioning Editor: Alex Lainsbury Editorial Assistant: Tabitha Lucy Jay Production Editor: Ali Thompson
Typeset by SPi, Pondicherry, India Printed and bound in the UK by Severn, Gloucester
List of Case Studies xix
1 World Heritage Sites – An Introduction 1 1. Aim and Scope of the Book 1 2. Organizations Related to World Heritage Sites 2 3. The Historical Background of World Heritage Sites 4 4. The World Heritage Convention and Mission of World Heritage Sites 6 5. Designation of World Heritage Sites 7 6. Concepts of Heritage and World Heritage Sites 9 7. Eastern and Western Perspectives 11 8. Structure of the Book 15
2 Heritage Management and Conservation Activities at World Heritage Sites 20 1. Introduction 20 2. Postmodernism, Globalization and WHSs 22 3. Reality of Heritage Management and Conservation Activities at WHSs 24 Case Study: Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the Kii Mountain Range (WHS Kii) – Cultural WHS in Japan, Listed in 2004 28 4. Conclusion 29
3 Tourism Development at World Heritage Sites 34 1. Tourism Development 34 2. Tourism Development at World Heritage Sites 40
Contents
vi Contents
Case Study: Old Town of Lijiang (WHS Lijiang) – Cultural WHS in China, Listed in 1997 44 3. Conclusion 44
4 Tourism Marketing at World Heritage Sites 49 1. Tourism and Destination Marketing 49 2. World Heritage Sites: Tourism and Destination Marketing 56 Case Study: Promoting, Discouraging or Banning Tourism at WHSs 60 3. Conclusion 60
5 Local Communities in and around World Heritage Sites 65 1. Local Communities and Local People 65 2. Local People’s Views towards Changes 68 3. Introduction to Four Kinds of Changes in Local Communities 71 4. Psychological Impacts of World Heritage Status and Tourism after
WHS Designation (Attitudinal Changes) 72 Case Study: The UK’s Industrial WHSs and Local Communities 75 5. Conclusion 76
6 The Economic Impacts of World Heritage Site Designation on Local Communities 81 1. The Economic Impacts of Tourism 81 2. The Economic Impacts of WH Status and Tourism at WHSs 85 3. Economic Changes in and around World Heritage Sites and
Local People’s Views 86 Case Study: Economic Impacts of Tourism on Natural WHSs in Africa 92 4. Conclusion 92
7 The Sociocultural Impacts of World Heritage Site Designation on Local Communities 96 1. The Sociocultural Impacts of Tourism 96 2. The Sociocultural Impacts of WH Status and Tourism at WHSs 100 3. The Sociocultural Changes in and around World Heritage Sites and
Local People’s Views 103 Case Study: Historic Villages of Shirakawa-go and Gokayama – Cultural WHS in Japan, Listed in 1995 108 4. Conclusion 109
8 The Environmental Impacts of World Heritage Site Designation on Local Communities 114 1. The Environmental Impacts of Tourism 114 2. The Environmental Impacts of WH Status and Tourism at WHSs 119 3. Environmental Changes in and around World Heritage Sites
and Local People’s Views 122 Case Study: Natural WHSs in the USA and Japan 125 4. Conclusion 126
Contents vii
9 Contemporary Developments in and around World Heritage Sites and Their Implications 131 1. Introduction 131 2. Contemporary Developments in World Heritage Sites 132 3. Contemporary Developments around World Heritage Sites 137 4. Conclusion 142
10 Reflection (Summary) 147 1. World Heritage Sites 147 2. Eastern and Western Viewpoints 150 3. World Heritage Sites: Heritage Management and Conservation Activities 152 4. World Heritage Sites: Tourism 153 5. World Heritage Sites: Local Communities 154 6. Changes in Local Communities and Views towards Changes 155 7. Contemporary Developments in and around World Heritage Sites 157 8. Suggested Academic Models 158
Index 161
ix
Acknowledgements
First of all, I am really grateful to CABI and its books team, especially my commissioning editor Ms Alex Lainsbury, for giving me an opportunity to write a book about the themes that I have been researching for more than 16 years, and for offering me helpful guidance throughout my book writing process. The support from Ms Tabitha Jay and Mrs Ali Thompson has also been essential for me to complete this book.
A number of people and organizations have supported my academic journey to date. Regarding my research as an MSc and PhD student, I am grateful to my supervisors, tutors and peers at the University of Greenwich and Nottingham Trent University. I could develop my interest in and knowl- edge of the World Heritage Sites, tourism, local communities and conservation activities through studying with them. I would also like to thank my colleagues at York St John University and Liverpool John Moores University for their understanding of my research and the inspiration they have giv- en me. A special ‘thank you’ goes to Liverpool John Moores University for their support for this book project. In addition, I have learned a lot from heritage and/or tourism researchers with whom I have worked on research projects. I have also been inspired by academics and practitioners, especially those with whom I shared or exchanged opinions at various heritage and/or tourism conferences, and at seminars and workshops organized by UNESCO or ICOMOS.
Fortunately, I have built a wide circle of friends in my home country, Japan, my second home country, the UK, and various countries in different regions of the world. They are my invaluable assets, expanding my horizons.
I would like to deeply thank my parents, brothers and parents-in-law for their support from Japan. Finally, I would like to profoundly thank my wife, Akemi Jimura. I could not have completed this book project without her understanding, patience and encouragement.
xi
Preface
Since my childhood in Japan, I have always enjoyed visiting heritage sites such as Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples with my family and friends. Travelling has also been my passion. I still remember my school trips to Kyoto, Tokyo, Nagano and South Kyushu, which are full of cultural and natural heritage. My interests in heritage in foreign countries and travelling overseas stem from television programmes such as Kaoru Kanetaka’s The World around Us, See the World by Train and The World Heritage, and world history and English-language classes in my high school. My first overseas trip was to the USA with my university friends. I was amazed by magnificent views of the Grand Canyon and Golden Gate Bridge. Moreover, I enjoyed walking around cities and seeing townscapes that were totally different from Japanese ones. Talking with local people was a very enjoyable experience, although my English skills were insufficient at that time. The more I travelled, the more I became interested in how cultural and natural heritage in a destination had been conserved. To date, I have been to almost 860 cities in around 60 countries as a tourist or researcher. I have also visited a num- ber of cultural, natural and mixed World Heritage Sites (hereafter WHSs). My travelling experience; encounter with people, especially local people; and engagement with heritage, particularly WHSs, have inspired me, enriched my life, expanded my horizons and given me many friends with diverse cultural backgrounds.
This book is a culmination of my main research over more than 16 years since I moved to the UK as an MSc student in 2002. Needless to say, the book would not exist without the contribution to knowledge in relevant study fields made by forerunners and current researchers sharing similar in- terests with me. I have learned a lot from their studies, and really appreciate their works. In my view, the book is characterized by the following three features:
• It is a single-author work, which is rare for books in this subject area.
• It is written in English by a Japanese researcher who has been based in the UK for a long time. Therefore it reflects the viewpoints of the East as well as those of the West in its contents, aiming to realize an appropriate balance between the two.
• This is the first book to focus specifically on the relationships between WHSs and key relevant themes (tourism development, tourism marketing, heritage management, conservation activi- ties and local communities). The book also covers contemporary developments in and around the concept of WHSs.
My book is aimed not only at scholars in heritage studies, tourism, cultural studies, area/region- al studies, anthropology, sociology, development studies, environmental studies and business
xii Preface
studies, but also professionals who are involved in cultural and/or natural heritage management and conservation, as well as those who engage in tourism management and community matters. Ultimately, however, I do hope that it will inspire a wider audience’s interest in and awareness of the themes discussed, especially among young people.
Takamitsu Jimura Liverpool John Moores University, UK
xiii
Restoration of Cultural Property ICH Intangible Cultural Heritage ICOMOS International Council on Monuments and Sites ICT information and communications technology IUCN International Union for the Conservation of Nature LDC less-developed countries LWHD List of World Heritage in Danger MNC multinational corporation MoW Memory of the World NGO non-governmental organization NPS National Park Service OECD Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development OUV Outstanding Universal Value PACT World Heritage Partnerships for Conservation Initiative PESTLE Political, Economic, Social (Sociocultural), Technological,
Legal and Environmental PPP public–private partnership SME small or medium-sized enterprise SNS social networking site SOC State of Conservation Information System TAC Taishan Administrative Committee TCLF Cultural Landscape Foundation TIC tourist information centre TBL triple bottom line
xiv Abbreviations and Acronyms
UGG UNESCO Global Geopark UNEP United Nations Environment Programme UNESCO United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization UNWTO World Tourism Organization VM Vienna Memorandum WH World Heritage WHC UNESCO World Heritage Centre WHF World Heritage Fund WHL World Heritage List WHS World Heritage Site WNBR World Network of Biosphere Reserve WNNR Wolong National Nature Reserve WOM word-of-mouth WTTC World Travel and Tourism Council WWF World Wide Fund for Nature
xv
List of Figures
1.1 Steps for designation of World Heritage Sites 8 2.1 Daimon-zaka in WHS Kii 28 3.1 Key stakeholders in tourism as an integrated system 35 4.1 Hiroshima Peace Memorial (Genbaku Dome) 53 4.2 Cologne Cathedral 54 4.3 Costiera Amalfitana 55 4.4 Official tourism website of Hiroshima City 60 5.1 Tourist Signs in WHS Saltaire 75 5.2 WH status, tourism and local people’s views towards changes in their minds 77 6.1 Three different types of economic impacts of tourism 82 6.2 WH status, tourism and local people’s views towards economic changes 93 7.1 Gassho-style houses in Ogimachi 108 7.2 WH status, tourism and local people’s views towards sociocultural changes 110 8.1 WH status, tourism and local people’s views towards environmental changes 126
10.1 World Heritage Sites: tourism, local communities and conservation activities 159
xvii
List of Tables
1.1 Criteria for selection of World Heritage Sites 5 4.1 Classification of tourist sites 52 9.1 Criteria for the World Heritage in Danger (cultural properties) 133 9.2 Criteria for the World Heritage in Danger (natural properties) 133 9.3 Cultural Landscapes: main categories and sub-categories 135
xix
List of Case Studies
Case Study: Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the Kii Mountain Range (WHS Kii) – Cultural WHS in Japan, Listed in 2004 (see Chapter 2) 28 Case Study: Old Town of Lijiang (WHS Lijiang) – Cultural WHS in China, Listed in 1997 (see Chapter 3) 44 Case Study: Promoting, Discouraging or Banning Tourism at WHSs (see Chapter 4) 60 Case Study: The UK’s Industrial WHSs and Local Communities (see Chapter 5) 75 Case Study: Economic Impacts of Tourism on Natural WHSs in Africa (see Chapter 6) 92 Case Study: Historic Villages of Shirakawa-go and Gokayama – Cultural WHS in Japan, Listed in 1995 (see Chapter 7) 108 Case Study: Natural WHSs in the USA and Japan (see Chapter 8) 125
© T. Jimura 2019. World Heritage Sites (T. Jimura) 1
Historic Centre of Oporto, Luiz I Bridge and Monastery of Serra do Pilar, Portugal.
1
1 Aim and Scope of the Book
This book brings together opportunities and challenges associated with the designation of World Heritage Sites (hereafter WHSs). From among diverse themes surrounding WHSs, the book focuses on three key themes: tourism; local communities; and heritage management and
conservation activities. The impact of WHS list- ing can be either positive or negative for tourism, local communities, and heritage management and conservation activities. The book explores such opportunities and challenges.
Firstly, proper heritage management and conservation activities are vital for WHSs before and after inscription. If they are not managed
2 Chapter 1
and conserved appropriately they will be added to the List of World Heritage in Danger (LWHD). At worst, they may lose their World Heritage (WH) status. Therefore, it is significant to exam- ine how WHSs are managed and conserved. Sec- ondly, WH status works as a strong brand in tourism marketing. Tourism in many WHSs has developed further after designation; however, these WHSs do not always manage their tourism in a sustainable manner; so investigating how tourism has been developed and marketed at WHSs is also essential. Thirdly, many WHSs are located in or around local communities, and, in some cases, local people even live within WHSs. Therefore, the relationship between WHSs and local communities is also crucial. The impacts of WHS listing and tourism on local communities after listing are also examined. In relation to this, local people’s views towards the changes that occur in their communities after WHS in- scription are also investigated. Finally, contem- porary developments in and around the concept of WHSs are explored.
2 Organizations Related to World Heritage Sites
2.1 UNESCO World Heritage Centre
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) was founded in 1945. Its mission is ‘to contribute to the building of peace, the eradication of poverty, sustainable development and intercultural dialogue through education, the sciences, culture, communication and information’ (UNESCO, 2016). UNESCO extended its responsibilities for WHSs to contain both preservation and stimulation of culture (Graham et al., 2000). UNESCO aspires to pro- mote the concept of politically neutral universal heritage through WHSs and against the self- interest of various host countries whose concerns are mainly with national priorities (Kozymka, 2014). It is a great endeavour for UNESCO to de- fine and conserve WHSs by listing the sites whose Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) should be protected for all people, and ensuring their pres- ervation through close cooperation among States Parties (see Section 2.3) (Hitchcock, 2002). Con- sequently, UNESCO is enhancing the idea that
these WHSs comprise a common heritage that should be fostered as unique testimonies to an enduring past (Hitchcock, 2002). Thus UNESCO has been working to conserve sites with OUV for future generations through the WH initiative.
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre (WHC) was established in 1992 (WHC, 2016a). WHC is the focal point and coordinator within UNESCO for all matters related to WHSs and ensures everyday management of the World Heritage Convention (see Section 4) through the follow- ing activities:
• organizing the annual sessions of the World Heritage Committee (see Section 2.2) and its bureau;
• providing advice to the States Parties in the preparation of site nominations;
• organizing international assistance from the World Heritage Fund (WHF) upon re- quest; and
• coordinating the reporting on the condition of sites and the emergency action undertak- en when a site is threatened (WHC, 2016a).
Other responsibilities of the WHC include:
• organizing technical seminars and work- shops;
• updating the World Heritage List (WHL) and database;
• developing teaching materials to raise awareness among young people of the need for heritage preservation; and
• keeping the public informed of WH issues (WHC, 2016a).
2.2 World Heritage Committee
The World Heritage Committee was established within UNESCO (WHC, 2016b) and consists of representatives from 21 of the States Parties to the WH Convention elected by their General As- sembly (WHC, 2016c). According to the Con- vention, a Committee member’s term of office is for six years; however, most States Parties select voluntarily to be members of the WH Committee for four years, to give other States Parties an op- portunity to be on the Committee (WHC, 2016c). The bureau of the WH Committee con- sists of seven States Parties elected annually by the WH Committee, coordinates the work of the
World Heritage Sites – An Introduction 3
Committee and fixes the dates, hours and order of business of meetings (WHC, 2016c). The WH Committee meets once a year and the tasks for the Committee include:
• to be responsible for the implementation of the WH Convention;
• to define the use of the WHF and allocate fi- nancial assistance upon requests from States Parties;
• to make a final decision on whether or not a nominated property is inscribed on the WHL;
• to examine reports on the state of conser- vation of WHSs and ask States Parties to take action when WHSs are not managed in a proper manner; and
• to make a decision on the inscription or dele- tion of WHSs on the LWHD (see Chapter 9) (WHC, 2016c).
Historically, several key issues have been discussed by the WH Committee. In 1994, for instance, a report to the Committee highlighted that listed cultural WHSs were biased in favour of Europe, historic towns, religious buildings and Christianity, and against prehistory, the 20th century, vernacular artefacts and living traditional cultures (Graham et al., 2000). To re- dress these problems, the Committee requested more advanced countries to slow down their rate of nomination (Kammeier, 2003).
2.3 States Parties
States Parties are countries that adhere to the WH Convention and there are 193 States Parties as of January 2017 (WHC, 2017). When a State Party nominates a property, it gives details of how the property is protected and provides a management plan for its maintenance (WHC, 2017). States Parties also must protect WH val- ues of the properties designated and are encour- aged to report periodically on their condition (WHC, 2017). Concerning the conservation and management of WHSs, the national govern- ment of a State Party is obliged to obey the re- quirements of the WH Convention; however, regional and local governments may also have some responsibilities for their WHSs. If a WHS faces any threat, its State Party can apply for the designation of the WHS on the LWHD and the
application is considered by the WH Committee. Hoelscher (2011) advocates that globalization has accentuated competition among States Par- ties for the recognition of their WHSs. This incli- nation is noted by Jimura (2015) who states that many States Parties are still competing for the acquisition of WH status. Simultaneously, how- ever, Jimura (2015) argues that such a fierce contest is not limited among States Parties and is also observed within a State Party that has a long Tentative List of candidate sites.
2.4 Advisory bodies
There are…