Preventive Conservation of Historic Urban Areas Addressing Cultural Values and Socio-Economic Dynamics. Case Study of the Vista Alegre District in Santiago de Cuba

Historic urban areas are threatened continuously by time- and context-specific political, economic, socio-cultural and technological factors that determine the changing nature of socio-economic dynamics, which in turn, also influence the meanings and perceptions of cultural values attributed these areas. Therefore, the interrelationship between cultural values and socio-economic dynamics is essential in heritage preservation. In particular, diverse social and economic phenomena have influenced the decay of historic urban areas in Cuba, leading to a permanent claim for integrated new approaches that can contribute to their preservation.

In this regard, this research relied on the preventive conservation of built heritage as an emerging alternative for sustainable conservation actions since it focuses on the causes of decay to reduce adverse effects on authenticity and integrity. Accordingly, the following questions guided the reasoning developed: To what extent the interrelationship between cultural values and socio-economic dynamics influences the preservation of historic urban areas? To what extent understanding this interrelationship can contribute to promoting preventive conservation strategies for historic urban areas, specifically for Vista Alegre District in Santiago de Cuba?

Thereby, the overall objective was to determine the influence of the interrelationship between cultural values and socio-economic dynamics on the preservation of historic urban areas, by developing an analytical sequence based on the preventive conservation approach, applied to the case study of the Vista Alegre District in Santiago de Cuba. To this end, it was necessary to review theoretical discussions and methodological approaches that helped to analyse the main concepts and understand the principles of preventive conservation. These fundamentals assisted in developing a multidisciplinary toolbox approach that structures the analytical sequence. The findings were revealed by analysing the case study.

This research’s main contribution to knowledge was the integration of the otherwise separated concepts of cultural values and socio-economic dynamics in the context of preventive conservation, to determine their influence on the preservation of historic urban areas. The results can be considered as a framework that can assist the conservation and management of historic urban areas by facing the challenges posed by diverse social and economic phenomena.