Tool 2 - Factors affecting the property

1. To assess whether there is a good understanding and documentation of the factors affecting the property, both current and potential.
2. To identify whether the list of factors affecting the property includes factors originating from outside of the property (e.g. within the buffer zone(s) and/or the wider setting).
3. To check whether the underlying causes of the factors have been identified.
4. To understand the complexity and relationships between factors affecting the property, their causes and the impacts that they have on the attributes of the property.
5. To assess whether the management measures and time-frames identified to address the factors and their impacts are appropriate, and if it is clear who is responsible for the implementation of the identified measures.
6. To identify challenges and ways to improve management measures.

World Heritage All inherited assets which people value for reasons beyond mere utility. Heritage is a broad concept and includes shared legacies from the natural environment, the creations of humans and the creations and interactions between humans and nature. It encompasses built, terrestrial, freshwater and marine environments, landscapes and seascapes, biodiversity, geodiversity, collections, cultural practices, knowledge, living experiences, etc.   properties and other heritage places face many factors which can affect their state of conservation and, consequently, their values. While there is a tendency to focus on negative factors, commonly referred to as threats, there are also factors that can have positive effects – one example of this is tourism. On the one hand, if managed appropriately and based on a sustainable approach, tourism can generate positive benefits. On the other hand, mass tourism or unplanned and unregulated tourism activities can lead to the dislocation of local communities, loss of sense of place or physical damage. Furthermore, some factors may be perceived negatively by some actors but positively by others.

Factors Everything that can affect, positively and negatively, the values and attributes of the heritage place and its state of conservation. Negative factors are usually called threats.
How factors affect a property needs to be analysed through a series of parameters namely the underlying causes that are the source of the factor, their origin (if originating within or outside the property), the current and potential impacts deriving from the factor and the extent and severity of the impacts on the attributes of the heritage place. originating (or potentially originating) within the buffer zone(s) and/or the wider setting must also be addressed. For instance, the construction of a dam upstream of a property can severally affect the water flow to that property. Similarly, the construction of an airport near to a historic urban settlement can increase the number of visitors, which can then lead to an increase in tourist-related activities within the property and limit services and everyday commercial activities needed by local communities. Therefore, the origin of the factor is not necessarily important; rather, what is critical is the factor’s current or potential impacts on the state of conservation of the property’s attributes and, thus, on the ability of the attributes to convey the property’s values.

The factors affecting a property typically have a complex set of causes and impacts. This tool helps you to understand the relationships between the causes and impacts of those factors and the extent and severity of current and potential impacts on the attributes of the property. It also helps you to assess whether management responses that have been put in place are sufficient to prevent or minimize impacts.

Although this worksheet can initially appear relatively simple, it can be complex to complete, especially when there is confusion between ‘factors affecting the property’, the ‘causes’ of those factors and their ‘impact’. In filling out the worksheet, it can be useful to move back and forth between the different columns when analysing each factor, rather than simply completing each row from left to right.

The definitions and relationships between factors, causes and impacts are outlined in Box 5.3. While some sections can be completed using the professional and personal experiences of those involved in the assessment (e.g. if the factor is currently affecting the property or could potentially affect it in the future), other sections (e.g. ‘extent’ and ‘severity’ of impacts) are better supported by data and detailed information sources, rather than educated guesses.

Reflection questions:

• Have the factors affecting the World Heritage property A cultural, natural or mixed heritage place inscribed on the World Heritage List and therefore considered to be of OUV for humanity. The responsibility for nominating a property to the World Heritage List falls upon the State(s) Party(ies) where it is located. The World Heritage Committee decides whether a property should be inscribed on the World Heritage List, taking into account the technical recommendations of the Advisory Bodies following rigorous evaluation processes.
  When used as a general term, World Heritage refers to all the natural, cultural and mixed properties inscribed on the World Heritage List. or other heritage place been identified and documented in information sources that are used regularly (e.g. management plan)?
• Is there a detailed understanding of the factors affecting the property and their underlying causes and impacts? Or is available knowledge mainly limited to a list of factors?
• Have positive factors been identified? Or is the list limited to negative factors or threats?
• Have potential factors been identified? Have factors originating from outside the property been identified, e.g. within the buffer zone(s), the wider setting and sometimes even beyond it?
• In some cases, one factor (e.g. tourism) can impact more than one attribute (e.g. a wetland and a cultural practice), and in different ways. Are these differences well understood?
• Have the relationships between factors and the potential cumulative and multiplying effects of different impacts been considered?
• Have adequate responses to all factors with high and very high impacts been identified? Are these responses being implemented?
• Are these management responses clearly documented and monitored, including information on who is responsible for their implementation and monitoring?
• What are the main challenges and shortcomings for addressing the most critical factors (i.e. those factors having a significant detrimental impact on attributes)? How can they be addressed?