Rodney Harrison Heritage Priority Area Leadership Fellowship

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Central to my vision for the leadership of the priority area is the idea that heritage should not be understood as something which is 'stuck in the past', but rather as a series of highly variable practical and discursive fields which employ diverse and contingent strategies for building resilient and sustainable futures. Equally important is a commitment to interdisciplinarity, and the acknowledgement of the need to develop and expand existing and emergent networks which connect scholars, practitioners and publics in new and innovative ways as co-researchers. It is clear that it is not possible to study heritage from a single disciplinary vantage point. In the light of the acknowledgement of the Anthropocene epoch as one in which humans have become the primary geological force of change, it is similarly no longer possible to argue that the divisions between 'nature' and 'culture' are meaningful. My vision for the development of the theme draws on an expanded understanding of heritage which works across traditional boundaries, bringing 'natural' and 'cultural' heritage research and practice into closer conversation with one another, whilst simultaneously troubling and seeking to explore the connections between other conventional dichotomies; 'tangible' and 'intangible' heritage, and 'western' and 'non-western' approaches, for example. It is strongly comparative in approach, and aims to connect heritage with the most important global challenges of our time. The research project element would comprise the writing of one synthetic monograph; further development of a current pilot research project; and a new line of research into the implications of 'posthumanities' thinking for heritage studies. All three of these aim to complement the proposed leadership activity by making an argument for an expansive view of heritage; by showing how heritage intersects with key global challenges (particularly Global Food Security, Global Uncertainties/Security in a Changing World, Living with Environmental Change and Lifelong Health and Wellbeing); by demonstrating the value of comparative approaches to heritage research; by developing connections with key heritage international, national and regional organisations; and by modelling programmes of research in which heritage organisations and publics are engaged actively and creatively as co-researchers.