Call for Abstracts: Living (World) Heritage Cities at the EAA 2019 in Bern

Living (World) Heritage Cities. Insights from Archaeology and History, Geography and Social Sciences, and Planning and Design (session no. 107)

The Centre for Global Heritage and Development organizes a session on archaeological heritage management and governance at the 25th Annual Meeting of the European Association for Archaeologists in Bern (Sept 4-7, 2019).  We now invite you to send in your abstract for a paper presentation at our session. 

With the majority of people living in cities and numbers of urban dwellers increasing daily, national and international policies are being directed towards stimulating livable and sustainable futures for cities. Many metropolises have a historic origin and developments through time have influenced development of the cities. Inner cities follow ancient waterways and roads; buildings and other structures may be (partially) historic. Modern city dwellers live in an environment that largely depends on decisions made by previous generations. Modern city life, however, constantly asks for adaptations and internal dynamics change city appearances and functions. Especially in the case of World Heritage cities adaptations are significant. Tourists, eager to experience the ‘Outstanding Universal Value’ of a place, require accommodation, food, entertainment and souvenirs. Developers convert historical buildings into hotels and tourist shops. Traffic constantly pressurizes old, narrow streets. Inhabitants increasingly move to less gentrified outer zones. Slowly, city characters change. While cores and buffer zones were once enlisted as World Heritage because of both the authenticity and integrity of a cities’ parts, now these are exactly the elements that are under threat (with the ultimate risk of ‘delisting’). The desire to assign a World Heritage status to living cities may overshadow the awareness of possible implications for the city and its inhabitants. It also raises questions whether studying the diversity of long-term urban traditions effectively informs design for sustainable urban futures, whether it is possible to find a balance between an authentic and a dynamic city life and who the stakeholders are and how are they involved in new developments.

This session crosses disciplinary and geographical boundaries in order to generate synergizing discussions on meaning and implications of ‘World Heritage Listing’, ‘Living Heritage’, ‘Outstanding Universal Values’, ‘Integrity’, ‘Place Making’, ‘Sustainable Planning’ and ‘Authenticity’.

Instructions for abstracts

  • abstract must have between 150 and 300 words
  • abstract must be submitted before February 14, 2019
  • abstract can only be submitted through the EAA portal: https://submissions.e-a-a.org/eaa2019/
  • upon submitting, you will still be able to review or change your abstract before the 14 February deadline.
  • by submitting the abstract, you become the first (presenting and corresponding) author of your contribution, but you can add up to 9 co-authors.
  • the session organiser will contact you before 14 March to discuss acceptance of your contribution and the practical details regarding the inclusion of your contribution in the session.
  • final decision about your proposal acceptance / rejection will be announced before 26 March by email
  • please note that eventually all Annual Meeting delegates must be current EAA members (paid-up for 2019) and registered for the Annual Meeting.

 

Galle, Sri Lanka
World Heritage City Galle, Sri Lanka (photo by Mara de Groot, 2007)