Assessing the proportions of economic values in the Trang An Scenic Landscape complex using an improved fuzzy AHP approach

A novel study quantifies the economic value of Vietnam's Trang An Scenic Landscape Complex, revealing that cultural heritage contributes 49.31% to its total economic value (TEV), followed by natural heritage at 38.99%, and settlement heritage at 11.71%. The research employs an improved Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (Fuzzy AHP) with integral values ranking, addressing limitations of traditional models for more precise weight determination. Notably, archaeological value was found to be underestimated at just 1.05%, despite evidence of early human occupation dating back circa 20,000 years. The findings underscore the dominance of non-market values and provide actionable insights for policymakers, UNESCO, and local authorities to balance heritage preservation with economic resilience. This holistic framework offers a new approach to assessing the multifaceted contributions of heritage features in World Heritage Sites.

Ha, N. T. V., Han, T. T., Quan, P. M., Hai, L. D., Van Hieu, N., & Dat, L. Q. (2025). Assessing the proportions of economic values in the Trang An Scenic Landscape complex using an improved fuzzy AHP approach. Environmental and Sustainability Indicators, 27, 100751. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.indic.2025.100751