Heritage, Democracy and the Public ― Nordic Approaches

What is the significance of heritage for how welfare is defined? What function does heritage have in the public realm and how is heritage becoming a resource for citizens to gain influence in society? Who and what defines the public debates and the politics about heritage? Is there a knowledge gap between research communities, management, and the public understanding and use of heritage? These are some of the questions that the authors of this book reflect upon. They provide Nordic perspectives on how the management of the past takes place, and how it is carried out in the service of the society, offering new interpretations of the role of heritage in present society, where institutional heritage management has become just one of the many and multiple ways in which different publics engage with cultural heritage. This book addresses the main challenges faced by heritage managers today in light of the changing understanding of heritage in society.

Torgrim Sneve Guttormsen is an archaeologist (PhD) and Researcher at Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage Research, Norway. Grete Swensen is an ethnologist and Senior Researcher at Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage Research, Norway.