Abstract

DORMAELS, Mathieu. Identity, communities and local heritage: a new social legitimacy. Alteridades [online]. 2012, vol.22, n.43, pp.9-19. ISSN 2448-850X.

We have seen a growing relevance of local issues in our global world. The globalized economy has shifted the paradigms in culture and heritage and in other sectors from powerful states and institutions into communities that have more legitimacy to decide what their culture, "roots" and heritage are. This paper uses a multidisciplinary approach to discuss the evolution of the concept of heritage, from its origins to current local empowering of its social construction. In order to understand this process we propose a new concept: eco-heritage, that will allow us to integrate the local active role of communities in the construction of their heritage, exemplified in two communities in Costa Rica that have constructed their own strategy of economic and social development.

Keywords : eco-heritage; eco-museum; heritage; cabecar; chorotega; Costa Rica.

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