A few weeks ago, I made a short visit to Rio de Janeiro to talk to heritage conservation planners from IPHAN (the federal heritage conservation organization) and planners in urban development. I wanted to get a better understanding of the overall planning process in Brazil and the nature of public participation. In between my appointments …
In the United States, several people have had an unusually large impact on the practice of historic preservation. James Marston Fitch created the first historic preservation degree program; Charles Peterson started the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS); W. Brown Morton, III was mostly responsible for writing the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards; and Pat Parker …
Fixing the Environmental Review Process and Section 106 Read More »
This past week I gave the keynote address at the 6th annual conference of the Research Group in Cultural Humanistic Geography (“Grupo de Pesquisa Geografia Humanista Cultural” or GHUM) in Diamantina, Minas Gerais, Brazil. I also took the time to attend some of their sessions. From my experiences at the conference, I can definitely say …
First, I want to make a disclaimer: my food and beverage preferences are decidedly odd in most cultural contexts, including the dominant food culture in the United States. I am most accurately described as a vegetarian, but I do eat seafood – perhaps a “pescetarian” is a more accurate description. I also have a lifelong …
Organic law is defined as the fundamental laws of a country, such as a constitution. Theoretically, all laws in a country should therefore be derived from organic laws. The United States has one of the shortest and oldest constitutions in the world, but while short can equate to simple and perhaps easier to administer, it …
Protecting built heritage and cultural landscapes through organic law Read More »
[O]pponents [of the creation of a new historic district] became increasingly vocal, warning that landmark status would … subject residents to ‘the preservation police.’”–Ellen Barry (2007) Those of us who have worked as staff supporting historic preservation commissions have certainly had the pejorative term of “preservation police” hurled at us by members of the …
Why the public doesn’t like historic preservation commissions Read More »
With much fanfare, I am pleased to announce that the first community workshop meeting on the Horto d’El Rey is finally happening on Thursday, October 8 at the G.R.E.S. Preto Velho in Olinda from 19:00 to 22:00 for residents of the Carmo neighborhood. My students from the Federal University of Pernambuco have been absolutely fantastic …
First Horto d’El Rey community workshop meeting on October 8 Read More »
The need for respect and inclusivity in critical heritage studies In 2012, the Association of Critical Heritage Studies (ACHS) was formed at an inaugural meeting on the subject at the University of Gothenburg. For the first time, researchers in heritage studies came together under the same roof to discuss the future of this field. According …
Are heritage conservation practitioners just objects to critique? Read More »
Although I’ve only been in Brazil for about two months, and am careful about over-generalizing based on my limited experience, it seems as if phenomenology, as a field of study, is much more active here than in the United States. In the US, phenomenology gained traction in the 1970s in the humanistic geography field, represented …
My keynote at the 6th National Seminar on Geography and Phenomenology Read More »
Work is proceeding on setting up the first of what will hopefully be a series of community workshop meetings in Olinda that will address what should become of the Horto d’El Rey. I’ve written about this garden previously, as well as what I hope my research will accomplish and how the overall community engagement and …
