Using Heritage: Let's Begin by Using the Same Language

Abstract

Attempts to use heritage in place planning and development are often hindered by terminological and conceptual confusion, stemming from the diverse disciplinary contributions to heritage studies and the contradictory attitudes toward the past and its uses. This paper argues for a common, logically grounded language to improve dialogue and enhance the instrumental effectiveness of heritage in planning. It reconceptualises heritage not as an object or artefact, but as a process, outcome, and experience shaped by contemporary needs and consumer values. The paper critiques dichotomies such as natural/cultural and tangible/intangible, presenting heritage as multi-used and multi-consumed, requiring careful management. It explores the roles of preservation, conservation, and heritage paradigms, proposing that contradictions in the first two can be resolved within the third. Ultimately, heritage is positioned as a flexible, inexhaustible resource for urban development, regeneration, environmental enhancement, and place branding—though its full potential can only be realised through clearer terminology and conceptual alignment.