Abstract
ABSTRACTCultural heritage policy in the UK puts a high value on participation, and heritage agencies often encourage that participation through appealing to the endangered status of the landscapes, sites and monuments in their care. Participation takes many forms, and can involve influencing policy, contributing to cultural outputs and enjoying cultural activities. This paper critically examines the literature and discourse underpinning the endangerment/participation axis and presents a case study of heritage participation in the English Lake District. In order to ground critique in empirical investigation, the case study focusses on the practice of a particular fell shepherd, whose participation in heritage is not motivated by endangerment. The paper then explores the implications of this research for wider thinking about heritage and public life, arguing for the importance of moving beyond endangerment narratives for the creation of resilient heritage futures.
Highlights
Cultural heritage policy in the UK puts a high value on participation, and heritage agencies often encourage that participation through appealing to the endangered status of the landscapes, sites and monuments in their care
This paper has explored what participation in heritage looks like in the English Lake District, with a focus on the practices of fell shepherding
It has identified the role that endangerment plays in the framing of the Outstanding Universal Value of the landscape and discussed how the perception of continued endangerment is undermined by the harmonious management that the nomination document seeks to celebrate
Summary
Using a case study from the English Lake District, and focusing on UK heritage policy, the paper demonstrates how a different future orientation–based on patience, complexity and continuity–provides a viable alternative basis for participation in heritage and its contribution to public life. The case study sought to understand how individual participation in heritage, its both cultural and political contexts, can be framed as a practice that constructs particular futures and presents alternatives to endangerment narratives. The case study discussion is preceded by a literature review which examines the policy discourses related to cultural and political participation. I will be presenting a case study based on small stories and fine detail because I want to ground these complex theoretical arguments in practice For this reason, I will unpack the endangerment literature in some depth before moving on to the case study. A narrow focus on endangerment, I argue, limits the range of futures that these publics may be working toward
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