ABSTRACT
This chapter explores how community-based participatory research can help communities engage professional heritage conservation practitioners as equals in a values-based dialog. In the twenty-first century, there is ample evidence that there are fundamental problems with the practice of conserving built heritage and cultural landscapes largely due to the superficial treatment of the meanings and values associated with heritage. Conventional experts must rigidly follow the rules, laws, and regulations for built heritage conservation, which embody a positivistic, pseudo-scientific process that demands meanings, be thin and often quantifiable. The participants were especially emphatic on the need to educate the public as to the importance of the natural and cultural heritage of the garden and its role as the “lungs of the city.” Published literature that employs participatory research, including action research and community-based participatory research, is common in the fields of education and public health, but examples exist from areas as disparate as tourism and architectural design.
