IN-PERSON ISTANBUL HERITAGE(S)

Abstract

This paper introduces a novel theoretical framework to re-conceptualise sustainability and heritage. Within this framework, sustainable heritage is understood as a heritage assemblage of sustained relationships and actors. This framework characterises a sustainable world as inherently multi-deterministic, interdisciplinary, and constantly dynamic, and heritage is a part of this world with interconnected relationships with broader society. It informs the necessity for an inclusive, democratic, and anticipatory decision-making process. Compared to the conventional value-based approach, this relational approach emphasises relevance rather than pre-moralised values when assessing heritage assemblages, allowing critical reflection, contestation, and dissonance in research and practice, especially in complex or contested heritage contexts. The paper illustrates the applicability and advantages of this framework through case studies involving early timber buildings in China’s Shanxi Province and the industrial landscapes in Wales. These case studies, which vary in scale, typology, and geographical and cultural context, reveal that the significance of heritage stems from and is contingent upon actively sustained relationships throughout history and in the present. They also highlight the necessity to encourage new relationships to emerge beyond the straitjacket of conventional value assessment and conservation principles. The paper argues that these principles, while valuable and widely adopted, require reflection, and in the meantime, academic critiques must find resonance among heritage professionals to have an impact. It proposes a shift toward a more inclusive and dynamic relational framework in heritage practice and research to foster sustainable heritage for a sustainable world.