2nd meeting WH Periodic Reporting Reflection Year

Monitoring Indicators for Cultural World Heritage sites

ICOMOS Discussion points

2nd meeting WH Periodic Reporting Reflection Year

Periodic Reporting Process

• Periodic Reporting for Europe & North America has highlighted the need to:– monitor progress and changes over time in WHSs

• In the Guidance for Part II of the Periodic Reporting process, the main aim is said to be:– … “to obtain an assessment of whether the World

Heritage value(s) for which a property was inscribed on the World Heritage list is(are) maintained over time.’

•

2nd meeting WH Periodic Reporting Reflection Year

New Operational Guidelines

‘common elements of an effective management system could include ….a cycle of planning, implementation, monitoring, evaluation and feedback”  

And asks State Parties to include in nominations:– “key indicators proposed to measure and assess the

state of conservation of the property, the factors affecting it, conservation measures at the property,

2nd meeting WH Periodic Reporting Reflection Year

Sites are inscribed on the WH list if they:• Are of OUV• Have a Statement of OUV• Have Authenticity and Integrity• Have a Management Plan or Management

System that:– Identifies threats & vulnerabilities– Puts in place processes to:

• Sustain OUV• Monitor & evaluate success in sustaining OUV

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What needs Monitoring

• Monitoring is needed to show if OUV is being sustained

• To monitor OUV we therefore need to monitor management processes to see how successful they are

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Cultural WHSs

• Sites are living evolving places

• Management is part of daily practice

• Carried out by a wide range of stakeholders

• Often with no overall management system

• Collaborative or traditional management set out in a Management Plan

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• For some cultural sites there are a few clear management objectives related to projects– Where there is a defined output and timescale

• e.g. major conservation projects

• Construction of visitor facilities

• For majority of cultural sites• Mangement challenges are related to managing

change on a daily basis• Dont know what threat may arrive tomorrow• Need to have responsive management

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Managing change:

• Involves multiple stakeholders

• Plethora of smallscale projects

• Decisions to guide direction of change– Avoid unwanted consequences– Deliver optimum benefits

• Through responsive processes

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Action plans in Management plans for cultural sites often include:

• Production of strategies e.g.– Visitor management– Risk preparedness– Tall buildings– Use of local materials– Training of craft skills

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• Management processes are the key to successful conservation

• Management Plan often identifies those processes– Whether traditonal or modern management

• In order to deliver sustainable managementnt – Where heritage underpins development– Where opportunities can be taken

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• Where things go wrong

• Often because lack of process to deal with threats

• Threats may be related to complex socio-economic systems

• Need to set site into wider context

• Manage interaction with its setting

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Invovlement of stakeholders is essential in most cultural sites

• Includes local communites

• May include indigenous populations

• Young people

• Should be multi-disciplinary

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Management needs to be related to knowledge

• Of OUV

• How this is related to tangible attributes

• Of processes that drive the site

• Of people involved in it

• Of intangible values

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Monitoring

• For living, developing, cultural sites

• Monitoring needs to be on-going & responsive

• Monitoring that reports impacts of change – positive, negative, neutral – valuable

• More valuable are ways of showing how successful management has steered things in right direction

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• Cultural sites more complex than many natural sites– Where there are clear objectives to be acheived

over time– Success can be tracked by managers who have

some direct control over the process

• Limitations of ‘tracking’ process – activites relating to people, local communities,

visitors, management planning

• All of these relate to cultural sites

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Careful to avoid to simple objectives in order to have measurable indicators

• Can have sites where fabric is well managed– No involvement of local communities– Threats to setting– Erosion of sense of place– Lack of benfits to locals– Heritage seen as stopping development

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IndicatorsMost cultural sites

• Managed locally

• Within a national protective framework

• Both of these need to be in place

• Need indicators for both

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Monitoring IndicatorsQuantative• National protective framework• Basic data – similar to natural sites

Qualitative• Success of local responsive management

• Measuring process not the product• The product - sustaining OUV

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Qualitative Indicators

• Such indicators have not yet been developed

• Three site managers in the UK are curtrently working on this

• Will set out what indicators need to address

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Qualitative Indicators• Pre-conditions for good management:

– People– Values– Knowledge

• Sustainable management processes

• Clear agreement on shared benefits

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People:

• Management structure

• Collaborative arrangements

• How are stakeholders involved

• Local communities

• Indigenous people

• Young people

• Professional advice: expertise

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Values:

• Articulating OUV

• What it relates to on the site– Tangible– Intangible

• Other values

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Knowledge:

• Context for management – wider environment• Inventories• Conservation records• Traditional skills• Know-how• Oral knowledge/traditions

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Sustainable management:

• Decison making processes– National support

• Supportive strategies• Harnessing opportunties• Conservation & preventative conservation

processes• Fostering development• Deal with threats

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Sustainable management:

• Overall strategies

• Involvement of major external funding agencies

• Resources

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Benefits:

Sustaining OUV can bring direct and indirect benefits

To local communities, visitors etc

• Who benefits

• How do they benefit

• Who chooses

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Monitoring Indicators for Cultural WHSs

 Quantative: Suite of indicators – some pre-filled

Qualitative: People 7 Values 4 Knowledge 6 Sustainable management 9 Benefits 2 Total: 28

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Thank You!