In a world where half of the population lives in cities and more than 90 percent of urban growth is occurring in the developing world, cities struggle to modernize without completely losing their unique character, which is embodied by their historic cores and cultural heritage assets. As countries develop, cultural heritage can provide a crucial element of continuity and stability: the past can become a foundation for the future. This book collects innovative research papers authored by leading scholars and practitioners in heritage economics, and presents the most current knowledge on how heritage assets can serve as drivers of local economic development. What this book tries to suggest is a workable approach to explicitly take into account the cultural dimensions of urban regeneration in agglomerations that have a history and possess a unique character, going beyond an approach based solely on major cultural heritage assets or landmarks. The knowledge disseminated through this book will help stakeholders involved in preparation, implementation, and supervision of development investments to better assess the values of cultural heritage assets and incorporate them in urban development policies.

Valentina Vadi assesses whether cultural heritage has and/or should have any relevance in international investment law and policy.

Combining theory, empirical data, and policy this book provides a fresh analysis of sustainable finance. It explains the sustainability challenges for corporate investment and shows how finance can steer funding to certain companies and projects without sacrificing return, speeding up the transistion to a sustainable economy.

Dozens of investments have been made in cultural monuments and historic environments in the countries of South-East Europe over the last decade in accordance with the principles of the European Union and Council of Europe Ljubljana Process. Whether investing in cultural heritage actually produces dividends for local economies and improves the quality of life of communities has not been previously demonstrated, however. This book reports on a pilot exercise carried out by the Research Unit on South Eastern Europe at the European Institute of the London School of Economics and Political Science. It develops a methodology for the collection of evidence needed to monitor and evaluate the wider benefits of investment in cultural heritage. This book presents the findings of a study on six completed projects in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia. It identifies the challenges to achieving sustainable development goals – and how they may be met – and the benefits, both direct and indirect, that can arise from developing and valorising cultural heritage sites and increasing their influence on the sustainability of the local economy and on quality of life. On the basis of detailed case studies, the book provides an overview of the main challenges facing cultural heritage in South-East Europe from a pan-European perspective and analyses the institutional and policy framework for effective sustainable rehabilitation. It concludes with an assessment of lessons learned from the study and makes some suggestions for generating wider benefits from future investment in the cultural heritage of South-East Europe.

The Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe, in co-operation with the European Association of Historic Towns and Regions and the City of Norwich, organised the European Symposium on "Heritage for the future - Realising the economic and social potential of a key asset", which was held in Norwich (United Kingdom) on 9 - 10 September 2004.This publication contains the main statements and representations of the symposium. The event was attended by over 100 participants from across Europe, who shared their experiences relating to the heritage of European towns.The symposium included discussions on the economic and social importance of cultural heritage, mechanisms to facilitate the protection and enhancement of heritage, enhancing the potential of cultural routes, cultural heritage and technology and improving co-operation between international organisations and the public

From the lush forests of Appalachia to the frozen tundra of Alaska, and from the tallgrass prairies of the Midwest to the subtropical rainforests of Hawaii, the United States harbors a remarkable array of ecosystems. These ecosystems in turn sustain an exceptional variety of plant and animal life. For species such as salamanders and freshwater turtles, the United States ranks as the global center of diversity. Among the nation's other unique biological features are California's coast redwoods, the world's tallest trees, and Nevada's Devils Hole pupfish, which survives in a single ten-by-seventy-foot desert pool, the smallest range of any vertebrate animal. Precious Heritage draws together for the first time a quarter century of information on U.S. biodiversity developed by natural heritage programs from across the country. This richly illustrated volume not only documents those aspects of U.S. biodiversity that are particularly noteworthy, but also considers how our species and ecosystems are faring, what is threatening them, and what is needed to protect the nation's remaining natural inheritance. Above all, Precious Heritage is a celebration of the extraordinary biological diversity of the United States.

Examining international case studies including USA, Asia, Australia and New Zealand, this book identifies and explores the use of heritage throughout the world. Challenging the idea that heritage value is self-evident, and that things must be preserved, it demonstrates how it gives tangibility to the values that underpin different communities.

The conservation of cultural heritage requires the involvement of multiple actors from across the public, private, and nongovernmental, or third, sectors, not only to initiate and carry out conservation but also to sustain heritage places. The conservation of the historic urban environment poses specific and urgent challenges that require a multidisciplinary approach in which conservation actions are embedded within economic, social, and environmental development strategies. Increasingly, the private and third sectors are playing a pivotal role in these processes. Public-private partnerships (PPPs) are contractual arrangements in which the private and/or third sector assists in delivering a public facility or service by providing funding or operating leadership. The third sector, which may include heritage-related NGOs, as well as people living near a heritage site, is of particular relevance to PPPs used for heritage conservation. This publication focuses specifically on the use of PPPs for historic buildings and historic urban areas, and is targeted to those working in the cultural heritage sector. It draws on existing literature, which it aims to make more accessible to those interested in cultural heritage conservation. While providing information on the basic concepts of public-private partnerships and the roles and responsibilities of the partners in a PPP, this is not a guide to the use of PPPs. It discusses the types of PPPs that have been used to conserve historic buildings and historic urban areas, provides specific examples of where and how they have been used, and demonstrates ways in which PPP mechanisms have met conservation goals. This publication also makes some limited observations on the aims of PPPs drawn from the literature, from published case studies, and from a few further case study investigations. This publication draws on English-language works produced between 1992 and 2012, but concentrates on the more recent literature. Much of this material is from the Australia, the United Kingdom, and other European nations that have been the most active in conducting PPPs for heritage resources and in publishing information about these projects. This overview includes an extensive bibliography and provides some suggestions of topics for further research.

Bringing together leading conservation scholars and professionals from around the world, this volume offers a timely look at values-based approaches to heritage management. Over the last fifty years, conservation professionals have confronted increasingly complex political, economic, and cultural dynamics. This volume, with contributions by leading international practitioners and scholars, reviews how values-based methods have come to influence conservation, takes stock of emerging approaches to values in heritage practice and policy, identifies common challenges and related spheres of knowledge, and proposes specific areas in which the development of new approaches and future research may help advance the field.