ABSTRACT
This chapter examines how the perceptions of living heritage were shaped and to what extent the living heritage approach in combination with greater community participation contributed to heritage management and preservation and to easing tension between the occupants of the World Heritage property and those in the wider Hoi An City. It then seeks to fill a gap in the heritage literature and to add new insights into the relationships between living heritage, community participation and sustainable development. The living heritage approach, which is clearly a community-based approach, has been a prerequisite for enabling community participation in Hoi An Ancient Town because it supports local people in continuing to live in their heritage place. The limitation of community participation in Hoi An has been reflected in the lack of facilitators. World Heritage is indeed an inseparable part of Hoi An, but on a much broader social, economic and environmental scale than merely the area within the nominated boundaries.
