COPIED
2 mins

What role for cultural heritage in promoting societal well-being?

Although achieving open, inclusive and collaborative societies is at the top of the EU strategic agenda, building such societies is a complex process that requires various resources and tools. At EU level, but also at lower levels, cultural heritage has been increasingly identified as one of the resources to be brought into play in this process. As pointed out by the European Commission Communication ?Towards an integrated approach to cultural heritage for Europe?, cultural heritage is ?a resource for economic growth, employment and social cohesion? and a ?source of inspiration for thinkers and artists?.

The instrumental value of cultural heritage in achieving these objectives has also been increasingly acknowledged in academic, empirical and civil society debates.

But how does cultural heritage contribute to societal well-being in practice?

Three main dimensions of the contribution of cultural heritage to well-being have been identified by the ESPON HERIWELL project (2021): quality of life; societal cohesion and material conditions.

When it comes to quality of life, cultural heritage contributes extensively to, life satisfaction, health and well being, education and knowledge production and environmental sustainability. Such findings are also confirmed by the HERIWELL survey: 77% of people surveyed deem heritage relevant to personal development, whereas 72% consider that living close to heritage sites can improve people?s quality of life. In addition, a 2015 study conducted by Fujiwara reveals that visiting heritage sites saves the British health system over GBP 298 million.

Cultural heritage contributes to societ al well-being mainly through creating connectedness and solidarity among groups in society, fostering place identity and sense of belonging promoting inclusivity and community engagement. The HERIWELL survey also reveals the societal value of cultural heritage: 73 % of people surveyed consider that cultural heritage can bring people toget her and foster the social inclusion of minority/migrants, whereas 81 % consider heritage to be an important resource for the development of societies and communities (HERIWELL Consortium, 2021). The contribution of cultural heritage to economic development should also not be forgotten. Cultural heritage enhances tourism, territorial attractiveness, the labour market and hence economic growth.

However, cultural heritage may also have negative effects when not valorised in a socially and environmentally sustainable way, for instance gentrification and pollution, overtourism, faking of citizenship and social conflicts related to minorities/immigrants, or contested heritage). Negative effects of cultural heritage are also pointed out by the HERIWELL sur vey: 49 % of the sur veyed population considers that living close to heritage sites downgrades quality of life, whereas 45 % maintains that some cultural traditions can hinder migrants? integration.

Despite the value of cultural heritage to societal well-being, its mainst reaming into societal well-being policies is still lacking. As pointed out by Montalto this is because, in particular, the non-cultural policymakers and stakeholders seem to underestimate the role that culture, including cultural heritage, plays in mainstream well-being policies (e.g. Sustainable Development Goals).

The value of cultural heritage as a societ al well-being driver should, therefore, be further acknowledged and better integrated into all EU policies (including Cohesion policy), as well as policies at national, regional and local levels. Only a holistic approach ? rather than a sectoral one ? can unleash the full potential of our shared heritage for Europe?s society, economy and the environment.

Cristina Vasilescu, researcher at the IRS

This article appears in EURegionsWeek 2021

Go to Page View
This article appears in...
EURegionsWeek 2021
Go to Page View
Editorial
Dear readers, If the Treaty of Rome is
Elisa Ferreira
3 milestones for inclusive recovery
Apostolos Tzitzikostas
Regions and cities should be the cornerst ones of recovery in Europe
Younous Omarjee
Together for recovery and major transitions
A vision of ruralar eas that leaves no place behind
Important initiatives and policies are in place to
A new narrative for the EU's rural areas
On 30 June, the European Commission adopted a
#NewEuropeanBauhaus
New European Bauhaus: addressing global challenges through sustain able, inclusive and beautiful solutions at the lo cal level
Interinstitutional cooperation to ensure no one is left behind
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit Europe and the
EU municipalities and the twin challenges of digitalisation and climate change
Debora Revoltella Peter McGoldrick Fiscal austerity
The key role of cities in the Conference on the Future of Europe
Petzold Wolfgang Gosset Martin Kaye
Regions and cities contributing to the debate on our common future
The pandemic has reshaped and highlighted the challenges
What local politicians think about the future of Europe?
Between 21 July and 9 Septem ber 2021,
2021 EU Annual Regional and Local Barometer
On 12 October 2021, the European Committee of
Boosting Europe's recovery: how different are the needs and challenges the European regions and cities are facing after the pandemic?
Looking into the future based on ESPON territorial evidence:
Cross-border cooperation in Europe is important to address future challenges
You will be hard pushed to find any
Discovering Europe's next great journalists: the Megalizzi-Niedzielski Prize
Florin Rugina We live in an age
3D virtual exhibition: focus on interactivity and visibility
From 11 to 14 October, the 19th edition
Quality of life and territorial development: what territories do we want in the future?
There is an increasing interest in integrating quality
Using Interregional flows to design better territorial policies
EU territories are experiencing unprecedented changes as economic
Realising the potential of digital transition for healthy ageing in the EU
There is no denying that Europeans are ageing
Metropolitan areas after COVID-19: a driver for a territorially balanced and green transition
The ongoing pandemic crisis has very clear ly
A call for change: the potential of transnational cooperation for a more integrated central Europe
What does the future hold for central Europe?
Covenant of Mayors: reinforcing the initiative at the national level
We all need to be committed to a
Modal Shift in Border Crossing Freight Transport - the Brenner Corridor as a Pilot
For decades, modal shift of freight transport from
What role for cultural heritage in promoting societal well-being?
Although achieving open, inclusive and collaborative societies is
# EURegio n s week: exch an ges for exper t s networking for polit icians
Lars Koenig For more than a
A week highlighting the spirit of our multifaceted EU!
Mikael Janson Northern Sweden consists of the
Leaping from a primary to a quaternary sector in a rural EU border area
Lucia Huert as Brussels is all about
# EURegions Week: Social netowrking and policy updates
Kai Böhme The first time I attended
# EURegions Week: A stimulating events for researchers and policymakers
Giancarlo Cot ella I participated in the
Digitisation of public services and European digital sovereignty
In the province of Alicante (Spain), all levels
Looking for back issues?
Browse the Archive >

Previous Article Next Article