Experts in the World Heritage Regime Between Protection and Prestige

Addressing the topic of expertise in international cultural conservation, this book argues that the UNESCO World Heritage regime emerged as a Faustian pact between protection and prestige, and a productive tension between these elements remains at its core, embodied by the heritage expert. Tracing experts’ practices in the World Heritage regime, this book shows how they burnish, broker and themselves benefit from World Heritage prestige. As World Heritage prestige also contributes to states’ international status claims, the stakes are raised, with both the denouement of the pact and the future for World Heritage poised between condemnation and redemption.

.- Chapter 1: Politicisation and crisis.

.- Chapter 2: Bringing the World Heritage regime into view.

.- Chapter 3: The Faustian pact.

.-Chapter 4: The name of the orchid: expertise and the sustainable generation of prestige.

.- Chapter 5: Burnishing the lustre of prestige.

.- Chapter 6: Brokering between prestige and protection.

.- Chapter 7: Beneficiaries: experts in the market for prestige.

.- Chapter 8: From 'World Champion of World Heritage' to 'superpower of culture': World Heritage, prestige and international status.

.- Chapter 9: Conclusion.

Luke James is a heritage studies scholar, lawyer and heritage practitioner specialising in World Heritage and international conservation governance. Luke is Lecturer, Cultural Heritage and Museum Studies at Deakin University and previously worked in the Australian Government’s International Heritage Section, with UNESCO and as a heritage consultant.