Tourism, Residents Agent Practice and Traditional Residential Landscapes at a Cultural Heritage Site: The Case Study of Hongcun Village, China

Abstract

The contradiction between tourism development and sustainable heritage is a topic of academic debate. Taking Hongcun village, a UNESCO World Heritage site in China, as a case study, this paper focuses on the role of resident spatial practice and provides the possibility of balance between capital-driven and sustainable development and local culture, which has important implications for the sustainable development of cultural heritage. The study used archival research, non-participatory observations, and semi-structured interviews, following Pierre Bourdieu’s theory of practice to analyze the practical logic of local residents who transform their dwellings to achieve the aim of landscape sustainability. This study found that in the development of Hongcun tourism, the residential landscape has been adaptively transformed at both the material and non-material levels, due to residents’ habitus and the capital brought in by tourism. This material transformation was mainly manifested in the change of residential function, the courtyard structure, and the alienation of residential space. The non-material transformation was mainly manifested in the relationships between residents and other actors. Residents who tended to conduct protection actions positively were more likely to achieve a sustainable livelihood that contributes to a sustainable cultural landscape. This paper argues that the sustainable development of heritage requires that attention be paid to the positive role of grassroots agents and practices. Bottom-up agency is the key to realizing the adaptation of living heritage to external changes.