Search Results (8,271)

Cultural Heritage (CH) is becoming increasingly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, aging, and environmental decay, necessitating advanced preventive conservation strategies. This study presents the results of the SPIDER project, focused on Marquis’s Palace in Botrugno, a small but representative case study in Southern Italy of a municipality overwhelmed with the management of valuable CH sites. The approach integrates multi-sensor surveys, subsurface diagnostics, HBIM modeling, and IoT microclimatic monitoring into a lightweight information model designed for operational flexibility. In addition to that,, the possibility of producing new, eco-friendly filaments for Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF) printing from industrial stone dust waste was explored through a preliminary morphological, structural, and chemical–physical investigation of the stone material historically used in construction, with the aim of identifying materials similar to the original using a simplified, low-cost process. The findings highlight that economic and social factors such as limited resources and the “digital divide” hinder effective technology transfer. Consequently, this study investigates whether a ”lightweight” Asset Information Model (AIM) can provide a more sustainable alternative to complex Digital Twins for small municipalities and other public bodies. For this reason, this research proposes a scalable, wide but basic framework of information management tools and methods aimed at enhancing territorial capacity building, fostering technology integration and social inclusion, and valorizing multidisciplinary approaches to address the challenges affecting CH. Full article

Due to water playing a determinative role in the deterioration mechanisms of stone cultural heritage, water-repellent-surface applications have become an important area of research in preservation studies in recent years. In this study, the efficacy of silane-based surface protectants applied to Sille stone, a volcanic rock commonly used in stone cultural heritage buildings in Konya (Türkiye), was evaluated. Firstly, the mineralogical, petrographic, geochemical and physical properties of the rock were determined. Then, the effects of the coating application on the surface were characterized using contact angle measurements, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), scanning electron microscope (SEM) and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) analyses. Finally, capillary and Karsten tube water absorption tests confirmed the effectiveness of the silane treatment, with the capillary water absorption coefficient decreasing from 23.30 to 2.24 g/m²s^−0.5 and the Karsten tube water absorption value decreasing from 1.59 to 0.57 g/m²s, demonstrating a substantial improvement in the water-repellent performance of the Sille stone. Full article

This work reports the design and validation of a reusable platinum (Pt) electrode platform (ST-E) for green electrochemical analysis. The device integrates Pt working and counter electrodes with an external Ag/AgCl reference and is engineered for repeated regeneration and refunctionalization. Surface renewal by alumina polishing followed by electrochemical activation in 0.5 M H₂SO₄ restores a clean, reproducible Pt surface, as confirmed by diffusion-controlled, reversible ferricyanide voltammetry over 5–150 mV s⁻¹ with near-Nernstian peak separation and i_pa/ipc ≈ 1. Platform versatility is demonstrated in two applications. First, ST-E is functionalized with PFOA-selective molecularly imprinted nanoparticles on an APTES layer, enabling trace determination of perfluorooctanoic acid (1–5 pg mL⁻¹), with a detection limit of 0.50 pg mL⁻¹ and sensitivity of 3.16 μA (pg mL⁻¹)⁻¹. Responses correlate with an equivalently modified commercial screen-printed electrode (r = 0.990, p < 0.005), with Bland–Altman analysis confirming concordance. Second, after regeneration, electropolymerization of o-phenylenediamine yields an insulating poly(o-phenylenediamine) film that attenuates redox currents and increases ΔE_p, illustrating compatibility with diverse surface chemistries. Green metrics (AGREE, AGREEprep ≈ 0.80; BAGI = 75.0) highlight reduced waste and solvent use versus single-use transducers and compatibility with portable potentiostats, supporting circular electrochemical sensing. Full article

Knowledge of vernacular plant names is fundamental for ethnobotanical research, aiding both in the identification of botanical taxa and the preservation of linguistic and ethnological heritage. This study examines the Ligurian vernacular plant names recorded in botanical publications from the late 19th century to 2020, spanning over 120 years. Beyond contributing to historical Italian ethnobotany, the aim was to describe how communities perceived and utilized plants during this long period, which saw significant socioeconomic shifts and historical events, such as the two World Wars. The main results show that the vernacular flora quotes a total of 9474 citations of dialectal names referring to 950 species, corresponding to 2120 basic vernacular names. Overall, 32.27% of wild taxa were sufficiently well-known to have a vernacular name, highlighting a good conservation of botanical knowledge for the Ligurian flora, characterized by very high biodiversity. However, a comparison between the periods before and after World War II showed a decline in the number of both cited species (30% reduction) and vernacular names recorded (14.48% reduction). These data should be viewed as merely indicative, given that they were collected using methodologies that were not always consistent across the different time periods. Nevertheless, it can be hypothesized that socioeconomic and land use changes—occurring over such a long and complex historical period—have contributed to reducing the population’s reliance on wild plants, thereby diminishing knowledge regarding their vernacular names. Ultimately, our survey explored how Liguria’s folk botanical knowledge has survived to this day, in an effort to provide a foundation for safeguarding this cultural heritage. Full article

Against the backdrop of global climate change, enhancing the carbon sink capacity of ecosystems has become one of the key pathways for implementing climate action. This study takes the Western Hills–Yongding River Cultural Belt in Beijing as its study area to systematically investigate the coupling mechanisms between multidimensional spatial pattern factors and the carbon sink capacity of vegetation net primary productivity (NPP). The study employed the morphological spatial pattern analysis (MSPA) method to structurally identify and quantify regional green space landscape elements. By integrating vertical vector data such as building height and canopy height, and incorporating terrain background and human activity intensity indicators, a comprehensive system of driving factors was established, encompassing two-dimensional landscape patterns, three-dimensional spatial structures and multi-dimensional attributes. Based on the Local Climate Zone (LCZ) classification system, a detailed classification of the study area’s land cover was carried out, and eight typical units—encompassing built-up settlements, brownfield sites, forested green spaces and riparian wetlands—were selected as the core objects of analysis. Building on this, multiple non-linear machine learning regression models were constructed to conduct fitting analyses and accuracy validation; the LightGBM model was identified as the optimal fitting model based on the test set coefficient of determination (R²) and root mean square error (RMSE) as core indicators; Furthermore, the SHAP interpretability analysis framework was introduced to systematically reveal the relative importance of each of the driving factors, their positive and negative effects, non-linear response characteristics, and two-factor interaction mechanisms. Based on these findings, category-specific, differentiated spatial regulation strategies for enhancing carbon sinks were proposed, providing scientific support for the optimisation of ecological spaces, the ecological restoration of brownfield sites, and the realisation of carbon sink potential within the study area. Full article

Global restoration frameworks, such as the Bonn Challenge and Forest Landscape Restoration, have endorsed multistakeholder engagement in agroforestry as key to reversing land degradation at scale. This paper follows shifts in how stakeholders have been organised, coordinated and steered since 2010 when Rwanda’s National Forestry Policy came into force, a year ahead of Rwanda’s pledge to the Bonn Challenge. The specific focus is on Bugesera District, representing a national policy shift from focusing on restoration in highland areas only. Bugesera is a lowland area facing complex socio-ecological and livelihood challenges including high rates of deforestation, recurrent drought and rapid population fluctuations. This paper analyses these changes by investigating which stakeholders were involved, how they were engaged (modes of participation) and why they participated (drivers of participation). Conceptually, this follows stakeholder mapping, Reed’s theory of participation and multi-level governance theory. Through thematic analysis, we triangulated data from 15 policy-related documents with semi-structured interviews with representatives from 24 organisations. Our findings show that both before and after 2010, stakeholder engagement has remained top-down. However, since 2010 this has been qualified by an asymmetrical form of collaboration that increasingly takes the form of top-down deliberation. Changes were observed in participation patterns, engagement approaches, and governance arrangements, driven by contextual conditions, power relations, process design, and spatial–temporal dynamics. Within a centrally coordinated government system, shaped by the post-genocide political context and culturally embedded structures such as Umuganda and Ubudehe, multistakeholder restoration initiatives have largely remained state-led, with structured approaches to coordination and implementation that have varied in the extent of local stakeholder engagement. Trust emerged as an important factor influencing stakeholder interactions. Despite more diverse and expanded institutional arrangements over time, variations in levels of participation and influence among stakeholders persist, with differences in how engagement and decision-making power are distributed. We conclude that effective stakeholder engagement is contingent on existing governance structures, the political will to engage with a diversity of actors at different levels, contextual conditions including spatial-temporal dynamics, and opportunities provided by global and regional restoration frameworks. Full article

This study develops an ontology-driven framework for the semantic enrichment of the Ephesus Ancient City within a Heritage Digital Twins (HDT) context. The proposed approach integrates heterogeneous cultural heritage data into a unified semantic structure, enabling consistent representation of complex relationships. A domain-specific ontology is developed, followed by the construction of a knowledge graph in Neo4j to support structured querying. The framework moves beyond visualization-oriented digital twins by introducing a knowledge-centered semantic layer intended to support future reasoning and decision-making capabilities. Rather than constituting a complete digital twins system, the proposed approach establishes a semantic backbone that can serve as a foundation for future Heritage Digital Twins implementations. The Ephesus case suggests the practical applicability of the framework on a complex CH site. The results suggest a scalable and semantic foundation for developing interoperable Heritage Digital Twins. Full article

Coptic represents the final stage of the Ancient Egyptian language and remains an important component of Christian and Mediterranean cultural heritage. Although several digital resources exist for Coptic textual corpora, Greek-oriented computational tools for the interpretation of Coptic inscriptions on artifacts remain limited. This study presents the design and early implementation of a semi-automated software tool for the computer-assisted translation of Coptic inscriptions into Greek, with optional English support. The tool combines a Coptic–Greek digital dictionary, an interactive character-selection interface, and two dictionary-search strategies: a length/alphabetically structured linear search and a weighted linear search based on expected word frequency. The application is intended to support scholars working with inscriptions on fragile or fragmented cultural heritage objects, where full automation is not realistic and human supervision remains essential. The paper describes the linguistic and material challenges of Coptic inscriptions, the structure of the lexical database, the interface design, and the planned use of Coptic corpora for improving retrieval efficiency. The proposed approach contributes to cultural heritage digitization by offering a practical, expandable, and user-oriented framework for supporting the study, interpretation, and preservation of Coptic inscriptions. Full article

The socio-cultural sustainability of heritage tourism depends in part on how historical memories and cultural meanings are communicated, interpreted, and passed on over time. However, the family’s role as a key socialization agent in shaping tourists’ interpretations of nationally significant heritage remains underexplored. This study examines the relationships among family historical communication (FHC), tourists’ subjective interpretation of heritage, and behavioral intentions. Using the case of sustainable heritage tourism in Dandong, China, the study conceptualizes tourists’ subjective heritage interpretation in terms of three dimensions: educational experience (cognitive), historical identity (affective), and inheritance value (evaluative). The study contributes by treating family historical communication as a pre-trip interpretive context that shapes heritage meaning-making and by proposing a multidimensional framework linking prior social experiences, subjective interpretation, and behavioral intentions. Survey data from 611 heritage tourists were analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) to test the hypothesized relationships and age-cohort moderation effects. The results show that FHC is positively associated with all three meaning-making dimensions as well as with behavioral intentions. The mediation analysis further indicates that the indirect effects of FHC on behavioral intentions are stronger through historical identity and inheritance value than through educational experience. In addition, significant age-cohort moderation is found only in the relationship between FHC and educational experience. By highlighting the family as an important bridge between national narratives and personal meaning, this study offers implications for the tourism-supportive and socio-cultural dimensions of sustainable heritage management and inclusive destination governance. Full article

The firing of traditional gray pottery relies on complex physicochemical reactions governing its color, dimensional accuracy, and structural stability. Unclear kiln-transformation mechanisms restrict standardized and digital production of this Chinese intangible cultural heritage. Herein, direct ink writing (DIW) was used to fabricate Hejin gray pottery green bodies from local ternary raw materials. Thermodynamic calculations, TG–DTG/DSC, XRD, XRF, and atmosphere-controlled firing tests were combined to reveal coupled phase evolution and reduction color-forming mechanisms during sintering. Two interrelated kiln-transformation processes were identified. First, sequential mineral reconstruction occurs at four critical temperatures: free water loss at 119.8 °C, two-stage dehydroxylation of hydrous silicates at 270.5 °C and 767.9 °C, and CaCO₃ decomposition at 547.9 °C. Uneven shrinkage and gas release at these temperatures induce cracking, blistering, and deformation of printed bodies. Micron-sized CaCO₃ (equivalent radius ≈ 1.31 μm) exhibits high surface energy and significantly reduces its decomposition temperature, consistent with experimental observations. Second, reducing atmospheres trigger competitive phase formation. Distinct from the conventional Fe₂O₃ → Fe₃O₄ → FeO reduction pathway, Fe oxides preferentially react with abundant Al₂O₃ to form thermodynamically stable FeAl₂O₄ spinel, yielding uniform celadon-gray tones. The final color is nearly independent of 20–90 vol% CO, and air-isolated cooling below 600 °C is mandatory to prevent secondary oxidation and reddening. This work establishes a thermodynamic framework for DIW-printed Hejin gray pottery kiln transformation, clarifies microscale defect and color-evolution mechanisms, and offers theoretical guidance for atmosphere-controlled firing and digital mass production of heritage ceramics. Full article

The devastation of cultural heritage after the Second World War led to the establishment of international organisations committed to its protection, such as UNESCO. The near-total destruction of Aachen’s historic city centre led to profound changes, including reconstruction and the incorporation of contemporary architecture, which established a new heritage identity. Against the backdrop of the reconstruction and reaffirmation of European identity, Aachen Cathedral was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1978. Since then, the concept of heritage has evolved to encompass a broader and more inclusive understanding. In 2013, it incorporated a buffer zone to protect the cathedral’s surroundings. In this scenario, the question arises: how is the coexistance between the historical and the contemporary within a UNESCO heritage context? The main objective is to analyse the coexistance between the heritage of historic and contemporary buildings within the buffer zone of Aachen Cathedral. We base the methodology on a comparative study of the catalogue files of 405 protected buildings, taking into account variables such as the year of protection, date of construction, possible reconstructions and current uses. Preliminary results suggest that only 4% were protected after 2013, or that 55% of the buildings have been rebuilt. The results improve our understanding of the management and evolution of historic urban complexes in the context of UNESCO. It can be concluded that the concept of heritage goes beyond mere historical or universal significance, encompassing aspects such as identity and continuity, as well as the integration of contemporary interventions into the historical fabric. Full article

Lore Lindu National Park (LLNP), a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Biosphere Reserve in Central Sulawesi, Indonesia, is characterized by its significant biodiversity and ecotourism potential, including endemic forest orchids and rich cultural heritage. Despite its ecological importance, the park continues to face deforestation and illegal land use, partly driven by limited community involvement in conservation governance. In this study, we examine the co-creation of governance in community-based forest orchid cultivation and ecotourism initiatives in Karunia Village, where local communities have developed organic orchid cultivation practices since 2004. Drawing on the co-creation governance framework of Christopher Ansell, Eva Sørensen, and Jacob Torfing, we employ a qualitative case study approach based on a literature review, field observations, and in-depth interviews conducted over four months. Our findings reveal that each phase of co-creation is shaped by distinct institutional and socio-political dynamics. Initiation is strongly influenced by local economic pressures and social solidarity, while design encounters regulatory barriers related to licensing and conservation policy. Implementation remains constrained by fragmented coordination among multi-level stakeholders, and systematic evaluation mechanisms are largely absent. We propose the use of a Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed (RACI) Matrix to clarify institutional roles and strengthen collaborative governance arrangements. This article contributes to the literature by expanding the empirical understanding of co-creation practices in the Global South and highlighting the importance of institutional and socio-political dimensions in community-based environmental governance. Full article

As a complex heritage site embodying maritime defense civilization, the Ming Dynasty Coastal Defense Garrisons face a profound contradiction between protection and development. Current research has failed to effectively explain the spatial mechanism of the transformation of coastal defense garrisons from military fortresses to modern towns. This study selects three coastal defense garrisons in southern Zhejiang—Jinxiang Garrison, Puzhuang Fort, and Hai’an Fort—and, based on long-term spatial data from 1969 to 2025, uses GIS, spatial syntax, and fractal index methods to construct a morphological analysis framework from four dimensions: architecture, land parcels, streets and alleys, and boundaries, revealing their evolutionary patterns and functional transformation mechanisms. The results show that (1) morphological evolution follows an asynchronous and coordinated rhythm of “buildings filling in first, road network updating lagging behind, and boundaries continuously constraining.” (2) Differences in urbanization pressure, industrial implantation intensity, and cultural heritage management drive the three garrisons to differentiate into three transformation paths: gradual preservation, radical reconstruction, and balanced regularization. The intensity of street and alley renovation is the core indicator for judging whether the historical fabric is preserved. (3) The boundaries of the garrison exhibit a “macroscopically regular but microscopically fragmented” characteristic, with a simple outer boundary and a complex inner boundary. Even after the city walls disintegrated, the moat still served as a morphological inertial line, maintaining the stability of the macroscopic outline. This research can provide quantitative evidence and empirical reference for the differentiated protection of coastal defensive heritage. Full article

Cultural sustainability at World Heritage Sites depends on whether heritage meanings remain publicly intelligible and experientially meaningful, not only on conservation outcomes or visitor management. Yet empirical evidence remains limited on how authorized heritage meanings are received, negotiated, and spatially anchored by visitors. This study examines the transformation of expert-informed authorized heritage meanings into visitor heritage identity at the Yungang Grottoes, China. Through thematic analysis of 20 semi-structured expert interviews, an expert-informed analytical framework was developed and consolidated into four case-specific identity dimensions: National, Ethnic, Cultural, and Place Identity. Based on 325 valid on-site questionnaires, the study combines Likert-scale measurement, open-ended response coding, and period-level cultural mapping. Results show that Cultural and National Identity were most strongly recognized, while Ethnic and Place Identity were more closely linked to interpretive mediation, prior knowledge, and embodied spatial experience. In cultural mapping responses, respondents most frequently anchored National Identity in Early Period caves, Ethnic and Cultural Identity in Middle Period caves, and Place Identity across more distributed landscape and atmospheric settings. Four Authorized Heritage Discourse–Visitor heritage identity relational patterns were identified: correspondence, partial alignment, negotiation, and divergence/extension. The findings offer a visitor-centered and spatially differentiated approach to evaluating sustainable heritage interpretation by extending conventional conservation-, management-, and satisfaction-oriented indicators toward visitor meaning-making, identity negotiation, and spatially situated interpretation. Full article

This study examines 4811 immovable cultural heritage sites in Mianyang City to address how these sites are spatially clustered, how their distribution varies across historical periods and heritage types, and how the observed spatial patterns are associated with selected natural-environmental conditions. The main objective is to identify the spatial distribution, spatiotemporal evolution, and site-selection characteristics of immovable cultural heritage sites in Mianyang and to provide an environmental and spatial basis for heritage conservation and territorial management. Using ArcGIS-based spatial analysis, this study applies average nearest neighbor analysis, kernel density estimation, standard deviational ellipse analysis, mean center analysis, spatial overlay statistics, and GeoDetector. The explanatory analysis focuses on three natural-environmental variables: elevation, slope, and distance to rivers. The results show that: (1) The sites are widely distributed and exhibit multi-core clustering, with dense concentrations in the south and central-east and sparse distribution in the northwest; (2) their spatiotemporal evolution follows an alternating “agglomeration–diffusion–re-agglomeration” pattern, with the centroid shifting along the middle and lower Fujiang River valley; and (3) the sites are mainly concentrated in low-elevation, gently sloping, water-adjacent river-valley plains and shallow hilly terraces. These findings provide a partial environmental interpretation of the spatial distribution of immovable cultural heritage sites in Mianyang and offer exploratory evidence for identifying priority conservation areas, supporting conceptual heritage-corridor planning, and promoting sustainable heritage management. The study also suggests that future research should further integrate historical transportation networks, administrative centers, population migration, economic activities, religious landscapes, and military-political contexts to explain the broader cultural landscape processes behind heritage distribution. Full article