IN-PERSON ISTANBUL HERITAGE(S)

Abstract

Cultural identity is an essential component of an individual’s overall identity, deeply rooted within specific cultural contexts. It reflects a sense of belonging formed through inherited values, traditions, beliefs, and meanings embedded in a society’s shared heritage. Cultural identity shapes how individuals perceive and engage with their surroundings. Urban parks, are not merely human-made landscapes or visual assets; they are increasingly recognised as cultural assets that hold intangible value through the meanings, memories, and identities attached to them. However, the extent to which such spaces are experienced as places of meaning depends significantly on the cultural backgrounds of their users. Cultural identity plays a key role in shaping how people interpret, appreciate, and emotionally connect with urban parks — beyond aesthetic or recreational functions — by influencing what individuals seek in public space, how welcome they feel, and whether they can locate aspects of their identity within it. In Greater Cairo, parks are often characterised by diminished experiential value, underutilisation, unequal geographic distribution, and a general sense of detachment from urban nature. This paper will evaluate user preferences and engagement in Cairo’s parks, drawing on recent ethnographic research exploring how cultural identity influences park usage and experience. Within a theoretical framework that integrates cultural identity studies with evolutionary, cultural, attachment and personal perspectives on landscape preference theories, and the article contributes to restoring the human–place relationship and fostering a sense of connection and belonging — qualities often lacking in the public green spaces of Greater Cairo’s compact urban core.