Cultural heritage is the tangible and intangible legacy of a culture or society’s past. It consists of the value systems, beliefs, traditions and lifestyles inherited by a people from their ancestors and passed on to future generations. It is expressed in tangible form by artifacts, landscapes, places and monuments as well as intangible forms such as oral history, performing arts and traditional crafts.
Cultural Heritage is the collective memory of a nation and is considered one of its most important assets. It provides an important link to the past and enables a community to establish a common identity and sense of belonging. In addition, it contributes to the quality of life and economic development. Adding a more holistic approach to the valuation of cultural heritage is therefore essential for better awareness and support of its preservation.
The UNESCO World Heritage Convention of 1972 defines world heritage sites as “places that are of outstanding universal value” and identifies the distinctive spiritual, material, intellectual and emotional features of a culture. It was the first international agreement aimed at documenting and safeguarding cultural heritage. The Convention has been ratified by more than 22 countries to date.
Measuring the value of heritage can be challenging. Economic methods based on market price approaches only apply to traded goods and are often inapplicable to nontraded goods such as cultural heritage, since most of its benefits do not enter the markets. Nevertheless, indirect use values can be measured by examining the effects of cultural heritage on tourism and recreation. These effects are comparable to the effects of other forms of leisure activities such as sports, visiting a theme park or museum and even shopping at a mall.
It is also possible to measure intrinsic existence value. While it is unlikely that cultural heritage sites will be the deciding factor for business investment or the location of private households, their presence can contribute to soft location factors such as the quality of life and the sense of belonging.
There are many threats to the preservation of cultural heritage. These include rapid urbanization, climate change and conflict, which can result in the destruction of historic neighborhoods and artifacts. The purposeful destruction of heritage by armed groups, despotic governments or invading armies inflicts losses far beyond the physical damage of monuments and objects.
Cultural heritage preservation requires the active involvement of all stakeholders. A variety of policies are needed to protect and preserve cultural heritage:
The protection of cultural heritage is essential for the preservation of cultural identities, which are a fundamental building block for social cohesion and national and international security. It is also vital for fostering a sense of belonging among citizens, which can help to overcome problems such as inequality, poverty and conflicts. Bringing more rigor to the estimation of the value of cultural heritage is important for guiding decisions in favor of its preservation and for reminding people of the importance it plays in their daily lives.