The Role of Cultural Heritage in Promoting Urban Sustainability: A Brief Review

Abstract

Cities are hubs of social and cultural activity, and culture is key to what makes cities creative, and sustainable. The Post-2015 Development Agenda has prioritized culture and how it may help people and communities create the future they desire. The study aims to determine the link between cultural heritage and urban sustainability and how multidisciplinary education can help organize urban issues. The article is of relevance to the emerging multicultural urban society with wide socio-economic disparities straining the global urban resilience and posing a challenge for future policy implementation. A systematic literature review was conducted using the Dimension database, and the results were analyzed using VOS viewer. The study also employed the PRISMA quantitative approach for selection criteria. This paper has identified understudied themes including community heritage, sustainable urban governance, and behavioral and multidisciplinary approaches. It is strongly felt that undertaking this study will not only add to the literature in cultural heritage study but also help further multidisciplinary and knowledge-based inquiry, which is currently evolving in the academic domain. Therefore, urban academics have a duty to resolve the issue confronting global urban sustainability and cultural disputes. Future research is required to simplify the current complex issue to make it more relevant and inclusive.

Analysis of the impact of green urban areas in historic fortified cities using Landsat historical series and Normalized Difference Indices

“…In this regard, preserving cultural heritage and creating green spaces are key aspects for the sustainable management of historic cities. Encouraging their maintenance and utilization as urban resources not only improves the quality of life for residents but also promotes tourism and local economy, while reducing negative environmental impact in the city 73 – 75 .…”

“…In historic cities, cultural heritage is a source of inspiration and connection with the history and identity of the community. The combination of green areas and heritage spaces promotes outdoor recreation, improves physical health, enhances citizen well-being, and fosters social cohesion through the communal use and learning of heritage resources 74 , 75 , 79 .…”

Assessment of Sustainable Development Suitability in Linear Cultural Heritage—A Case of Beijing Great Wall Cultural Belt

“…Bassily connected architectural heritage to the Sustainable Development Goals and documented how various architectural heritage sites contribute to sustainable development [27]. Naheed emphasized the connection between cultural heritage and urban sustainable development and its role in urban planning [28]. Guzman connected SDG11 and SDG13 to evaluate the potential correlation between development factors and the preservation of urban cultural heritage using local indicators [29].…”

“…A total of seven suitability type combinations, namely ecologically advantageous (E), socio-economically advantageous (S), culturally advantageous (C), ecologically-socio-economically advantageous (ES), ecologically-culturally advantageous (EC), culturally-socio-economically advantageous (CS), and ecologically-culturally-socio-economically balanced (ECS), were constructed. The Beijing Great Wall Cultural belt valley units contained three primary potential types: ES ( 45), E (22), and EC (28). The remaining computed kinds were ECS (9), CS (5), and S (1).…”

Adaptive Thinking in Cities: Urban Continuity within Built Environments

“…Sustainability involves the preservation of people's well-being across generations [1]. It considers social, environmental, cultural and economic dimensions [2] in the pursuit of meeting every person's needs while preserving the living world on which we all depend [3]. At the crossroads between the economic, social, cultural and economic dimensions, heritage plays a key role in contributing to sustainability.…”