Water, heritage, city: urbanized deltas on the line between nature and culture

Abstract

Deltas are extremely rich in natural resources and cultural heritage, but also vulnerable. Along coasts and waterfronts, rivers, irrigation/drainage canals, which shape the land-water transition, a plurality of values, demands, and issues emerge in an often-conflictual way.A recurring conflict is that between anthropocentric and ecocentric attitudes, which could be overcome by an “environmental” approach. A case study from the Netherlands illustrates a paradigm shift and provides the basis to discuss the roles heritage can play in the search for a new synergy between natural and human actions.