Aims

The aims of this case study are to outline:

• initiatives employed so far to mitigate them

• Its tourism development through the 1990s with specific regard to the legislation, policies and strategies that seek to retain these unique characteristics

• The impact of the 1996 earthquake and UNESCO World Heritage inscription on the heritage asset

• A growing number of studies undertaken on visitor impacts by anthropologists and other analysts, because of their potential to provide lessons for authorities elsewhere in China concerned about their heritage assets and for the management World Heritage Sites generally.

Introduction

The rationale behind exploring this case study is primarily that it is one of the best managed and most studied World Heritage Sites in the People s Republic of China. This is due to the partnerships and initiatives that have provided major advances in conserving tangible and intangible heritage. However, some problems still remain requiring on-going attention, particularly with regard to minimizing visitor impacts on the local community, which are common to many such sites around the world.

Key historical and cultural characteristics

Lijiang lies in Northwest Yunnan, a province in the Southwest of China. It is currently divided into Lijiang New Town and Ancient Town (also known as Dayan Ancient Town). The latter was first recognized as an administrative unit by the imperial authorities in 1253 AD during the Yuan Dynasty. However, Lijiang had served as a meeting place for Chinese and Tibetan groups before this date, being a market town and trading...