Topicality of Cuba’s heritage, thinking over sustainable development and preventive conservation

Abstract

Recent changes in Cuba’s economic and social policies foresee implications in local heritage sites. Current challenges determine the need to examine opportunities for sustainable development within the new socioeconomic context. In this regard, scholars analyze the positive and negative effects of today’s circumstances. The analyses exposed in this paper start by noting the links between culture, sustainable development, and preventive conservation (first section). The latest as a new paradigm within the heritage field that articulates the social, economic, and environment pillars. The second section addresses the main issues of Cuban heritage sites; as well as the challenges that both, integral development plans and management plans still have to cope with. Considering the topicality of Cuba’s heritage, the third section exposes possible alternatives that can contribute to sustainable development by referring to actions undertaken in the Academia.Keywords: heritage sites, Cuba, sustainable development, preventive conservation