The Vigan Heritage Charter: Toward a Value-Based Interdisciplinary Approach to Heritage Development

A heritage charter defines the concepts, principles and practices for conserving the natural, tangible, and intangible heritage of a place. With no standard formula to heritage charter development, international and national heritage charters evolved out of various situations and different operations. In the case of the World Heritage City of Vigan, legislation and organizations ensured a robust conservation system for the built environment but overlooked other heritage elements of the urban landscape. This study sought to formulate a value-based, interdisciplinary approach to Vigan’s heritage charter development. Contextual, archival, and fieldwork research were conducted to define the concepts, principles and practices of conservation pertinent to it. For the content, cultural mapping, and textual analysis of relevant international charters were undertaken to surface local heritage resources and protectionist strategies. The study eventually produced a seminal Vigan Heritage Charter, based on a rigorous value-based and interdisciplinary paradigm of heritage charter development.