Advisor: Prof. Rami Daher

Abstract:
Through the last century, essence and consciousness of cultural heritage values and significance, defined by historical cultural sites in Jordan, have been experiencing limited and non-realistic management processes due to the absence of a clear definition and proper identification of the values, dynamics, and contexts that constitute each site’s significance. Currently, many cultural sites in Jordan, suffer from foreign and imported management policies that are technically impractical, costly, and do not elicit enough local political support to ensure implementation. In addition, most cultural resource management projects and cultural site management endeavors are initiated by foreign initiatives subject to global investment mechanisms and strategies. Such financial mechanisms increase Jordan’s dependency on foreign aid and debts (Daher, 1999).

On the other hand, local management strategies are aimed to achieve immediate solutions to what is considered as urgent problems, however, this unplanned approach leads to ad hoc decisions that result in unanticipated, negative consequences in the short and long terms. Furthermore, achievement of cultural site management is also challenged by the lack of successful funding strategies, which aim to impose policies instead of practical and comprehensive decision making, considering the conservation and protection of cultural resources. Most of these policies are unsustainable to the local communities involved in such sites, due to the absence of a clear understanding of heritage conservation mechanisms and approaches.

The objective of this research is to develop ‘locale-driven’ methodology for CSM in Jordan. The approach of this research is based on two major facts: first, the ‘locale’ and place politics should inform cultural site management strategies and policies. Second, the current financing mechanisms are impeding to development. New funding and financing mechanisms should be developed that emerge from the community’s local concept of development.

The research will accommodate two main methods. The first method will investigate previous cultural site management policies and methods through international and regional case studies. The second method, embodied within a phenomenological approach, will heavily be based on fieldwork that will explore the current cultural site management processes in action at Al Qastal Development and Conservation Project (QCDP), located at the main Highway route to Queen Alia’s International Airport. The selection criterion of case studies is based on: first, the cultural, contextual, and historical significance and value the reflect, second, the evaluation of management policies based on “realities” of the sites, considering local dynamics, values, and environmental conditions.

This research is motivated to reach an initial step towards public awareness and national consciousness of Jordan's cultural significance by obtaining realistic and workable management strategies and methods for cultural site management in the country.