How can you learn from other cities' urban heritage conservation?

It is essential to consider the definition of heritage you want to conserve. Merely peeling off from lists from the local authorities is not enough. When I co-authored a report into the heritage challenges of Kent last year, we had to look at all forms of local heritage to ensure we tried to capture a whole cross-section of what people hold as 'their heritage'. Gill, D. W. J., C. Moore, and J. Winder. 2022. Historic Kent: The Value of the County’s Heritage Sector. Canterbury: Centre for Heritage, University of Kent.

If only Johannesburg could do what Utrecht, in the Netherlands is: i.e. being paid by the government to grow plants on their roofs. Unfortunately, ours are Third World problems. But we can take a leaf out of their book. - Drive small cars proudly; save on fuel; and help the environment. Sadly, many here equate big cars with status. To feed under-nourished egos. On a recent visit to Holland I noticed you're seen as uncool if you drive a big car. We should get over our inferiority complex. Yet also point out to the First World that ours remain coalface issues. Great that international galleries are featuring African perspectives as leading. May they commit more deeply to investing in our perspectives, so we believe our authenticity is cool.

Involving local citizens in preserving their urban heritage, as it forms part of their identity and life. Adopting a firm stance towards restoration is based on a sustainable development vision, laws and conflicting advice that is changed through the development of archaeological and historical areas without their character.

A powerful tool is always local knowledge, but it is hard to capture unless the author has this. In the past, if I were stuck on a particular topic, I would reach out to friends or colleagues from the local area. In the absolute last case resort, you can join and then anonymously post within Facebook Groups. However, if you breach any data rules by doing so, you must always be careful of this.

Every city has a unique character and therefore unique approach to address it's conservation needs. One solution doesn't fit all but to assess visiting cities having kind of related character, issues and challenges is a good start. Also, getting in touch with that city's local authorities or people who are part of the conservation project to discuss how they have dealt with issues and understanding the current scenario and projects is a wonderful way of self interpreting the ideas that can enable a guided conversation strategy. A participatory approach always brings about in-depth knowledge of methodologies adopted, simultaneously presenting scope of research based outcomes, thus validating the suggested plan for conservation projects.