Who Benefits? World Heritage and Indigenous People

Abstract

ABSTRACTThis paper provides the context for a continuing research project on the potential benefits of World Heritage Listing for Indigenous people. The benefits of World Heritage listing are regarded as obvious by advocates of the system, but this view is not shared by many Indigenous communities. This paper provides an assessment of the issues that create conflict between the World Heritage system and Indigenous people. A review of academic and policy literature suggests that the World Heritage System is incompatible with many aspects of Indigenous worldviews, and that conflict arises over issues of sovereignty and translation. These deep-seated issues make it impossible for the World Heritage system to stay abreast of Indigenous concerns, and as a consequence World Heritage continues to be a site of protest and contestation for Indigenous people. This discursive essay offers preliminary insights from research currently underway using Australian case studies to explore these issues.