People are on the move in almost all parts of the world on a possibly unprecedented scale, whether in refugee crises or through long-term urbanization processes. The social, cultural and economic transformations that go with such migrations are no less far reaching than the spatial ones. Think of the emergence of urban multicultural melting pots or, on the other hand, of rural depression (and in some places, of post-industrial urban abandonment). The making or preservation of heritage is intimately linked to these transformations, as it is about creating, safeguarding or contesting identities and communities, whether urban or rural. Hence, it has become common practice in spatial planning to use heritage as a tool to reach development goals such as social cohesion and economic sustainability. But how to do this successfully, and how to identify potential risks and dangers, still needs proper investigation. This WP will study best practices and success factors, to develop and test procedures and tools that can challenge European key social-demographic issues like gentrification, multi-culturalism, and population decline and growth.
PhD projects:
10. Adaptation of urban heritage in multicultural society. Host: BEZAL (IL) (CLOSED)
11. Urban regeneration and cultural identity. Host: ROMA3 (IT) (CLOSED)
12. ESR12 = Heritage zoning and population dynamics. Host: TUD (NL) (CLOSED)