Abstract

The World Heritage Convention, based on euro-centric principles espoused in the Venice Charter, provides a mechanism for listing and protecting tangible and intangible heritage in many countries. The World Heritage List is wide-ranging but not all-encompassing representing selected examples of indigenous heritages. However, there is an extensive collection of heritage that falls outside this safety net of recognition and protection, particularly in developing countries of Asia. Many cultural heritages of Asia have their roots in the cultural traditions of the sub-continent developing independently to those of Europe. As a result the traditional view is that the cultural systems of the sub-continent are based on spiritual values, norms and beliefs, communalism, and holism. However western culture has evolved towards the development of values founded on the reality of the material world or materialism, and rationalism. Tangible and intangible heritages values have had a distinctive role in presenting the differences between the western mode of thinking and that of Asia. This paper proposes that any sustainable approach to the conservation in South and Southeast Asia must be based on the cultural and philosophical traditions that have underpinned the formation of the cultural heritage. Through a review of literature synergies between systems theory, resilience thinking, based on holism, and the philosophical traditions of the region, particularly Buddhism are established. Focusing on a case study of non-secular built heritage in Sri Lanka it is argued that systems theory provides the foundation for an alternative paradigm supporting an original approach to sustainable conservation and protection of cultural built heritage in South and Southeast Asia. Outcomes presented in this paper indicate such an approach highlights the uniqueness of cultural traditions, notions of spirituality, place-making and spatial relationships particularly of non-secular monuments. Sound preconditions for sustainable cultural heritage conservation outside the institutional protection provided by the World Heritage Convention and euro-centric approaches.