Is colonial heritage negative or not so much?Debating heritage discourses and selective interpretation of Kulangsu,China

Heritage is in essence dissonant,especially colonial heritage in postcolonial nations.Via questionnaire surveys and inter‑views,this study investigates Kulangsu in Xiamen,China,a colonial heritage site mainly developed in the 19th and 20th centuries,to unveil the local government’s authorised heritage discourse(AHD)of the site and how tourists perceive the colonial past of Kulangsu and construct their own heritage discourse(s).Results show that,when considering the colonial history of the site,neither the AHD promoted by the authorities nor the tourists’lay discourses are necessarily negative.However,tension implicitly arises between the tourists’demand for comprehensive heritage information and the authorities’selective interpretation of the site.Although the AHD afects lay discourses to some extent,most tourists expect the authorities to present more complete and neutral information about heritage so they can refect and forge their own conception of colonial legacies.From a critical heritage studies perspective,this tension refects the power imbalance between the authorities and the tourists and reminds the authorities and heritage experts to rethink heritage tourism and conservation in terms of heritage interpretation.This paper,therefore,calls for additional refection on the legitimacy of selective interpretation,which implicates a complex process of intricate reasoning that is underpinned by the power imbalance between the authorities and the tourists,ultimately resulting in an AHD.

Reconstruction of the lost colonial architecture in the context of heritage tourism:Dutch Trading Post in Taiwan,China

To strengthen brand identity,enrich tourist experiences,and promote heritage education,Taijiang National Park proposed to reconstruct Taiwan,China’s Dutch Trading Post in a different location from where it was initially erected in the 17th century.This paper is a case study of the reconstruction proposal for a lost colonial architectural complex in the context of heritage tourism.It discusses the practical and academic issues of rebuilding long-lost colonial heritage sites.The author provided a first-hand account of the technical and practical reasoning for reconstructing a bygone complex erected by Dutch settlers.Historical development phases of the Dutch Trading Post of Taiwan,China were first introduced,and then a reconstruction strategy was proposed to resolve conflicts with legal constraints.Additionally,a site selection process using GIS,a conceptually driven plan for reconstruction,and a 3D simulation were provided.Three specific issues in heritage rebuilding were further discussed,including the decision to reconstruct a heritage building(complex),the authenticity of the reconstructed building if done in a different location from where it was initially situated,and the need to discover more archaeological facts.

Toward sustainable intensification of agriculture in sub-Saharan Africa

Across the African continent efforts to intensify agriculture have been limited to specific commodities,locations or particular production schemes.The causes for the widespread failure to overcome low land and labor productivity while maintaining ecosystem services have often be analyzed but remain poorly understood.A socialecological system approach may help to better understand the complex nature of ecological disadvantages,postcolonial structures,limited connect between producers and consumer markets,low off-farm livelihood opportunities,partial underpopulation and lacking experience with the concept of sustainable production as a major impediment for sustainable intensification of the agricultural sector.Nevertheless,recent success stories in agro-pastoral systems as well as urban vegetable and animal production and associated value chains in West Africa,and in intensive mixed-cropping systems of the Great Lakes Region show the potential of stakeholder-driven agricultural intensification.Proper interpretation of these cases may provide lessons for a more widespread eco-intensification of smallholder agriculture in sub-Saharan Africa.