From Local Archives to the World Heritage List: Making Inventories of Cultural and Natural Wealth and the Case of Turkey

Abstract

Systems for identifying and assessing the cultural and natural heritage have been developed in virtually all countries around the world, constituting a vast body of information on the wealth that is found on Earth, divided amongst the territories of various states. The value appropriation to cultural and natural assets ranges in ‘level of significance’ from the local (neighborhood/ municipal) to the regional, national and international, creating a hierarchy of values that can be the topic of much debate for stakeholders. Inventorying and designation also have implications in terms of protection, land use, zoning, identity politics and the potential for economic development – particularly through tourism – based on the heritage industry revolving around labeled ‘heritage sites’. With advancing technology, digital and online inventories and archives enable more public accessibility, visibility and opportunities to influence the way their content can be used for various agendas. This paper focuses on the concept of the ‘inventory’ in the broad sense, to discuss its relationship with heritage identification and designation with a focus on the Turkish system. An evaluation is made in particular of the nomination process for sites leading to the UNESCO World Heritage List, through the channel of national Tentative Lists (TL), with a case study of the Turkish TL. Thus, potential approaches are explored for building on local and national inventories, to contribute to improved systems of appropriating value to cultural and natural resources, benefiting their protection, appreciation and sustainable use by local and global communities.

Keywords

• Inventories,UNESCO World Heritage,Tentative List,Turkey,cultural and natural heritage

Yerel Arşivlerden Dünya Miras Listesi’ne: Kültürel ve Doğal Zenginliğin Envanterlenmesi ve Türkiye Örneği

Abstract

Kültürel ve doğal mirasın tespit edilmesi ve değerlendirilmesine yönelik sistemler, dünyanın hemen her ülkesinde geliştirilmiş, yeryüzünde bulunan ve çeşitli ülkelerin toprakları arasında dağılmış olan zenginliğe ilişkin geniş bir bilgi haznesi oluşmuştur. Kültürel ve doğal varlıklara atfedilen değerlerin ‘önem düzeyi’ yerelden (mahalle/ belediye) bölgesele, ulusala ve uluslararasına kadar değişkenlik göstermekte, konu ile ilgili paydaşlar arasında tartışmalara yol açabilen bir değerler hiyerarşisi yaratmaktadır. Envanterleme ve tescillemenin ayrıca koruma, arazi kullanımı, yapılaşma koşulları, kimlik siyaseti ve ‘miras alanı’ olarak etiketlenen yerler etrafında dönen miras endüstrisine dayalı (özellikle turizm yoluyla) ekonomik kalkınma açısından birçok yan etkisi bulunmaktadır. Gelişen teknoloji ile, dijital ve çevrimiçi envanterler ve arşivler, bu bilgiye daha fazla kamusal erişim, görünürlük ve bilgi içeriğinin çeşitli amaçlar doğrultusunda kullanımını yönlendirmek için fırsatlar getirmektedir. Bu makale, geniş anlamda ‘envanter’ kavramını ele alarak mirasın tespit edilmesi ve tescillenmesi ile olan ilişkisini Türkiye örneğine odaklanarak tartışmaktadır. Özellikle ulusal Geçici Listeler üzerinden ilerleyen UNESCO Dünya Miras Listesi’ne giden adaylık süreci Türkiye özelinde değerlendirilmektedir. Bu şekilde, yerel ve ulusal envanterleri temel alarak, kültürel ve doğal kaynakların yerel ve küresel topluluklarca korunması, yaşatılması ve sürdürülebilir şekilde faydalanılmasına yönelik daha etkili ve adil değer atfetme yaklaşımlarına ilişkin düşünceler geliştirilmektedir.

Keywords

• Envanter,UNESCO Dünya Mirası,Geçici Liste,Türkiye,Kültürel ve doğal miras

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