Managing the landscape values of urban heritage: a critical analysis of the UNESCO's Recommendation on the Historic Urban Landscape in Valparaíso, Chile
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2019
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Melbourne Authors
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Architecture, Building and Planning
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PhD thesis
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Open Access
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© 2019 Astrid Andrea Ortega Esquivel
Abstract
This thesis critically analyses the approach proposed by the Recommendation on the Historic Urban Landscape (herein the HUL Recommendation) for managing the landscape values of urban heritage. The HUL Recommendation was adopted by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 2011. The HUL approach is a significant step forward in the management of heritage because integrates a diversity of values and it considers the increasingly changing dynamics of urban areas. The implications of implementing the HUL in Latin America, namely Chile, are investigated through a case study of the World Heritage Site (WHS) of the city of Valparaiso.
The Historic Quarter of the Seaport City of Valparaiso was inscribed as WHS in 2003. In the justification for inscription as WHS , its statement of outstanding universal significance is largely founded on the relationships between the natural and the built environment which have shaped this unique city. In 2013, the UNESCO and the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) conducted an Advisory Mission that critiqued the existing management plan for the WHS of Valparaiso. The Advisory Mission criticised that its management approach lacks important issues related to the Outstanding Universal Values (OUV) beyond the boundaries of the WHS. Therefore, the Advisory Mission considered the HUL approach as a good starting point to improve the management of the outstanding landscape values of the urban heritage of Valparaiso.
The main research question is focused on how the approach proposed by the HUL Recommendation can manage the outstanding landscape values of the city of Valparaiso. To address this question, mixed methods and triangulation were used. The methods included policy analysis, key stakeholder interviews, community focus groups and mapping exercises to explore the applicability of the HUL to Valparaiso. By assessing the alignment of the current policies of heritage conservation and urban planning in Valparaiso, the views of key stakeholders and the expectations of local communities are critically analysed through the management approach proposed by the HUL Recommendation. The results reveal barriers and facilitators for the HUL approach to be implemented in Valparaiso, as well as practical implications for improving the content of the HUL Recommendation.
The thesis finds that implementing the HUL approach in Valparaiso and Chile is not straightforward. Firstly, the WHS has boundaries that are not consistent with broader outstanding landscape values of Valparaiso. That reflects that the definition of WHS has not well accounted for its OUV. Secondly, there is a significant conflict between the HUL approach, the legislative framework on heritage conservation in Chile, the conceptions of heritage of national level authorities and the perspectives of local communities. Beyond the case study of Valparaiso and Chile, the thesis undertakes a critical analysis of the HUL Recommendation in the Hispanophone context. This thesis finds that the HUL approach remains rooted in European and English-Speaking ideals of heritage which makes its implementation in Latin American cities problematic. This critique of the HUL approach has implications in how the view of local communities is considered and how the boundaries of WHS are defined. Thus, this thesis contributes in reflecting on the applicability of the HUL approach Latin American cities and the potential implications at a global level.
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Keywords
Historic Urban Landscape, World Heritage Site, UNESCO, heritage, urban heritage, landscape values