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Role of Stakeholder Collaboration in Innovation in Cultural Heritage Tourism

Matobo Hills — 2026 — WHE33959C1E85

Stakeholder collaboration is pivotal in driving innovation within cultural heritage tourism, particularly in developing countries like Zimbabwe. A systematic review of 100 peer-reviewed journals from 2000 to 2025 reveals that multi-stakeholder engagement—encompassing local communities, government agencies, private sector players, and international organizations—enhances site management, visitor experiences, and sustainable development. The study highlights the transformative potential of digital technologies such as virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR), which can overcome infrastructural deficits while deepening visitor engagement. Case studies from Great Zimbabwe and Matobo Hills underscore the benefits of participatory governance and the integration of indigenous knowledge systems. Additionally, public-private partnerships (PPPs) and inclusive policy frameworks are identified as critical in mobilizing resources and ensuring equitable benefits for local communities.

Rolf Hammel-Kiesow i jego badania nad historią Hanzy i miast hanzeatyckich

Hanseatic City of Lübeck — 2026 — WHEF9BD32D577

Rolf Hammel-Kiesow's scholarly work on the history of the Hanseatic League and its cities, particularly Lübeck, is highlighted for its critical approach to historiographical tradition and deep engagement with historical sources. His research, spanning over three decades, focused on the spatial and socio-topographic structure of Lübeck, comparative economic studies of the Hanseatic region from 1300 to 1800, and synthetic analyses of the Hanseatic League's organization. Key contributions include his doctoral dissertation on property ownership in late medieval Lübeck and his leadership in significant research centers. His methodology combined rigorous source analysis with advanced methodological reflection, setting a benchmark for historical studies in the field.

Romanians and Mount Athos

Mount Athos — 2026 — WHE2C1C16D10C

For five centuries, the Romanian Principalities of Moldavia and Wallachia played a pivotal role as cultural and material supporters for Christian communities across the Balkan Peninsula and Near East. This volume, comprising 21 studies, delves into the intricate connections between Romanians and Mount Athos, exploring themes such as the Holy Mountain's general history, ties with specific Athonite monasteries, Romanian sketes, monastic life, saints linked to Romanian lands, pilgrimages from the 19th–20th centuries, artistic relations, and the administration of Romanian monasteries under Mount Athos. The research employs a multidisciplinary approach, integrating historical analysis, art history, and cultural studies to illuminate Romania's significant place in European and world history through its enduring relationship with Mount Athos.

Rome (un)changing: persistence and peculiarities of its population

Historic Centre of Rome, the Properties of the Holy See in that City Enjoying Extraterritorial Rights and San Paolo Fuori le Mura — 2026 — WHEE623361AE2

Rome's population dynamics reveal a delayed transition to demographic decline compared to national trends, with international migration offsetting natural decrease. As of 2025, Rome's aging profile mirrors Italy's but stands out due to its low child population and high internationalization. The study, combining long-run census data and annual population stocks, highlights extreme heterogeneity among Rome's 15 administrative subdivisions, where peripheral areas grow while the historic center declines. Migration patterns—positive for international but variable for internal mobility—play a pivotal role in shaping these shifts.

Rome’s First Frontier. The Failure of Germania Magna and the Development of the Lower Rhine limes

Frontiers of the Roman Empire – The Lower German Limes — 2026 — WHEFAAEA00CC7

Rome's frontier strategy in northern Europe underwent a significant shift by the mid-1st century AD, with the Rhine and Danube rivers emerging as pivotal natural boundaries for the Roman Empire. A study reveals that the initial ambition to establish a vast German province (Germania Magna) extending to the Elbe was abandoned after Augustus's defeat at the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest in AD 9. Tiberius then redirected military efforts, deploying legions along the Rhine and constructing strategic installations, including a frontier road in the Rhine delta by the mid-80s AD. This shift culminated under Domitian, who formalized the provinces of Germania Superior and Inferior, effectively declaring the 'German problem' resolved. The research highlights how logistical imperatives and territorial marking shaped Rome's northern frontier, with rivers serving as both barriers and lifelines.

Romuliana-Gamzigrad. Palace and/or villa?

Gamzigrad-Romuliana, Palace of Galerius — 2026 — WHE00F6D09128

Recent discussions challenge the long-standing classification of Romuliana-Gamzigrad as a palace associated with Emperor Galerius, instead suggesting it may better fit the criteria for a villa. The study critically examines the site's characteristics against established palatial indicators from the Tetrarchic period (late 3rd to early 4th century AD), identifying features that support both interpretations. By analyzing architectural elements, spatial organization, and functional aspects, the research highlights inconsistencies in the traditional 'palace' attribution while proposing a nuanced framework for distinguishing between villae and palatial structures in the Balkans during this era.

Ropalidia crassipunctata Giordani Soika 1981

Dja Faunal Reserve — 2026 — WHEE2F568BAF9

A rare wasp species, Ropalidia crassipunctata Giordani Soika 1981, has been documented within the Dja Faunal Reserve. The study highlights the discovery of a single female specimen with a distinctive black nest featuring masticated green and reddish-brown chips, mimicking the wasp's coloration. The nest, observed in Cameroon, exhibited up to ten cells with vertical cell direction and downward openings, suggesting an adaptive camouflage strategy. This finding contributes to the understanding of wasp nesting behavior and biodiversity within protected areas.

Runer: Fra historiske bellegg til en handlingsarkitektur med 27 noder

Bryggen — 2026 — WHEDEB6D3A540

A groundbreaking study reveals that rune inscriptions on sandstone fragments from the Svingerud field, dated to 50 BCE–275 CE, represent the earliest radiocarbon-dated context for a runestone. These fragments suggest a dynamic history of rune use, where inscribed stones could be divided, moved, and repurposed over time. The research traces the evolution of rune symbols from paleolithic engravings to complex scripts like the Vinča–Tordoš and eldre futhark, integrating Norwegian runic sources with broader Indo-European traditions. Notably, it introduces a hypothesis of 'strategic legibility resistance,' proposing that reduced orthography in younger futharks may have served as culturally protected communication. The study also explores Johannes Bureus' dual role in documenting Swedish runes and shaping modern rune cosmology. By combining historical runology, comparative linguistics, and relational ontology, the research constructs a novel 27-node action architecture (Livstre) that reinterprets rune symbols through verbs, challenging conventional interpretations of their form and function.

Rutidea viridiflora Jongkind 2026, sp. nov.

Ivindo National Park — 2026 — WHE9AE0AB1EC0

A new species of liana, Rutidea viridiflora Jongkind 2026, has been discovered in Gabon's Ivindo National Park and surrounding regions. This species is distinguished by its greenish corolla with a shorter tube (8–11 mm) compared to the white corolla and longer tube (12–18 mm) of its closest relative, R. hispida Hiern. The discovery was made through morphological analysis of 11 specimens collected between 1907 and 2023, revealing unique traits such as fewer flowers in the inflorescence (<30 vs often >60) and a slender, up to 3 m high growth habit. Rutidea viridiflora inhabits understorey closed evergreen forests, secondary forests, and forest edges from 70 to 730 m elevation. Preliminary IUCN assessment suggests it is Vulnerable (VU B2 ab(ii, iii)), with a small area of occupancy (44 km²) but found in two protected areas, Ivindo National Park and Lopé National Park. The species may also thrive in disturbed zones, though large-scale disturbances like oil palm plantations pose risks.

Rutidea wieringae O. Lachenaud 2026, sp. nov.

Ivindo National Park — 2026 — WHE613D8135A4

A new species of liana, Rutidea wieringae, has been discovered in Gabon's Ivindo National Park and surrounding regions. This species is distinguished by its fulvous indumentum on inflorescences, sparsely hairy corolla, and numerous secondary leaf veins, setting it apart from related species like R. lujae and R. ferruginea. The discovery was made through detailed morphological analysis of herbarium specimens, confirming its unique characteristics and intermediate traits between previously described species. Rutidea wieringae is endemic to Gabon, found in evergreen forests at elevations of 100–500 meters. Preliminary IUCN assessment suggests it may be Endangered (EN B2 ab) due to habitat threats like urban expansion and shifting agriculture, with one occurrence protected within Ivindo National Park.

Sacred nature in a changing world: How sacred forests in the Konso Cultural Landscape World Heritage Site, Ethiopia, persisted amidst historical and contemporary challenges

Konso Cultural Landscape — 2026 — WHE6D2CECC452

Despite rapid economic and cultural transformations, sacred forests within the Konso Cultural Landscape World Heritage Site in southern Ethiopia have shown remarkable resilience from 2004 to 2023. This persistence highlights how indigenous beliefs in reciprocity with nature can contribute significantly to biodiversity conservation and climate change mitigation. The study mapped 66 sacred forests using GPS field inventory and satellite imagery, combined with qualitative research involving focus group discussions and key informant interviews with chiefs, elders, religious leaders, and management committee members. These findings underscore the importance of integrating sacred forests into national biodiversity strategies and climate action plans to protect this unique biocultural heritage.

Sacred Shelters: Hindu Temple Architecture as Disaster Resilience Infrastructure Through Vāstu Vijñānam

Kakatiya Rudreshwara (Ramappa) Temple, Telangana — 2026 — WHE00A0D057BC

Hindu temple architecture, particularly through the lens of Vāstu Vijñānam, demonstrates remarkable disaster resilience, outperforming modern structures during earthquakes, floods, and cyclones. This study reveals that traditional temples incorporate systematic strategies for hazard mitigation, including geometric regularity, hierarchical mass distribution, layered foundations, friction-based masonry joinery, and material selection optimized for durability. Empirical evidence from events like the 2013 Kedarnath disaster and the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami supports these findings, showing that temples not only withstand extreme conditions but also serve as temporary refuges. The research synthesizes these principles into a framework for contemporary disaster-resilient design, highlighting the potential of traditional architectural knowledge in modern resilience planning.

Safeguarding World Heritage Under Recurrent Flooding: A Sustainable-Development Policy Framework for the Historic City of Ayutthaya, Thailand

Historic City of Ayutthaya — 2026 — WHEF47AEE2853

Despite mitigation efforts following Thailand's severe 2011 floods, the UNESCO-listed Historic City of Ayutthaya remains vulnerable to recurrent flooding, as evidenced by the 2025 central-Thailand floods. This policy analysis frames heritage flood protection as a sustainable-development imperative, aligning it with SDG 11.4 and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction. It introduces a six-pillar framework—governance mainstreaming, proactive water detention, Earth-observation monitoring, financing and risk transfer, community and tourism resilience, and international partnership—to safeguard riverine cultural heritage under climate-driven flood risks. The study leverages documented flood events, conservation reports, and satellite evidence to propose a transferable model for other at-risk World Heritage Sites.

San Cristóbal de la Laguna as a Trial Colonial City Prior to the Founding of Spanish American Settlements: The Influence of Convent Life on the City-Territory

Colonial City of Santo Domingo — 2026 — WHE6825CB2B9A

San Cristóbal de la Laguna (1496) served as a pivotal trial colonial city, bridging the gap between peninsular Spanish urban planning and early American settlements. This study reveals its role as an intermediate model that enriched colonial urban planning principles before their application in the Americas. Unlike defensive designs of mainland cities, San Cristóbal's grid adapted to insular terrain, with religious architecture—particularly convents, churches, hermitages, and hospitals—acting as structural elements shaping the city's social order and territory. By comparing it with UNESCO World Heritage Sites like Santo Domingo (1502) and Panama Viejo (1519), researchers confirm its influence on the evolutionary process of early colonial urban planning, highlighting convent foundations as key territorial organizers.

SANDPUTER: An Integrated Desert-Native Computing Architecture Combining Crystalline Substrate Processors, In-Situ Sand-Based Thermal Management, and Persian-Derived Passive Cooling Infrastructure

The Persian Qanat — 2026 — WHE52AC31F349

SANDPUTER introduces a groundbreaking, closed-loop distributed computing architecture tailored for arid environments, leveraging local silicon dioxide substrates for semiconductor fabrication, thermal management, and waste heat recovery. This integrated system combines crystalline spherical processors with Persian-derived passive cooling techniques—such as qanat channels, badgir windcatchers, and yakhchal cold storage—to create a geographically-integrated solution. While individual components are based on existing technologies, the novelty lies in their synergistic combination, offering significant advantages: eliminating geographic decoupling penalties associated with semiconductor manufacturing, reducing data center water consumption by 91-98%, achieving power usage effectiveness (PUE) comparable to immersion cooling, and enabling waste heat recovery at high temperatures. Designed for deployment in Middle Eastern and North African regions—where data center capacity is projected to grow substantially—SANDPUTER represents a defensive publication under CC-BY-SA 4.0 to safeguard this concept in the global commons.

Santiniketan ashram's political context

Santiniketan — 2026 — WHE552C579690

Rabindranath Tagore's Santiniketan ashram emerges as a pivotal laboratory for his political thought, offering alternative conceptual frameworks to dominant nationalist narratives of early 20th-century Bengal. Analyzing the Swadeshi Movement and post-partition politics (1905), this study identifies 'swadeshbhakti,' 'mukti,' and 'manush' as Tagore's proposed counter-narratives to prevalent notions like swaraj and parochial identities. By tracing influences from literary, religious, and national movements, the research situates Santiniketan within the complex political landscape of Swadeshi Bengal, providing a foundation for understanding its educational experiment's political dimensions.

Scale, Nature, and Timing of Agricultural Adaptations in Upland Kaʻū

Hawaii Volcanoes National Park — 2026 — WHEE2654DE7C3

Research reveals that the Kaʻū Field System, located within the Kahuku Unit of Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park, exhibited significant autonomy and adaptive agricultural practices. Unlike other regions such as the Kona Field System or the Leeward Kohala Field System, this area maintained local-scale management, persistent habitation, and continued access to forest resources even after formal agricultural infrastructure replaced traditional agroforestry systems. The study suggests that outlying areas with diverse environments were less influenced by centralized political changes compared to more densely populated regions, highlighting the resilience and adaptability of upland Kaʻū's agricultural practices.

Scaling innovative, low-impact tourism practices in African mixed world heritage sites post-COVID: perspectives from Maloti-Drakensberg Park and Ngorongoro Conservation Area

Maloti-Drakensberg Park — 2026 — WHE37DA6F2D5D

Mixed UNESCO World Heritage Sites (WHS) require tailored recovery frameworks to effectively scale low-impact tourism practices post-pandemic, according to new research. The study, focusing on Maloti-Drakensberg Park and Ngorongoro Conservation Area, reveals that while both sites demonstrated operational resilience through health protocols, digital engagement, and domestic tourism pivots, they face persistent systemic barriers such as governance fragmentation, limited innovation capacity, and cultural resistance to scientific adaptation. These findings underscore the need for integrated governance, diversified funding, and inclusive policy reform to strengthen long-term sustainability in African mixed WHS contexts. The research draws on qualitative interviews with 12 key informants in site management and planning roles, providing rare empirical insights from under-represented regions.

Seagrass composition shifts and declines associated with reduced light, high phosphate, and elevated water temperatures in Turneffe Atoll Marine Reserve, Belize

Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System — 2026 — WHE500EB3D3EE

A significant shift and decline in seagrass species composition at Turneffe Atoll Marine Reserve, Belize, has been documented between 2022 and 2025. Thalassia testudinum, a dominant seagrass species, showed steady declines while Syringodium filiforme became more prevalent. By 2025, shallow transects had lost all seagrass cover, attributed to reduced light availability, elevated phosphate concentrations, and water temperatures exceeding the thermal optimum for these species. This decline, observed even within a protected marine reserve, highlights the vulnerability of seagrass meadows to environmental stressors, with broader implications for the resilience of adjacent coral reef systems in the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System. The study used SeagrassNet global monitoring protocols to assess environmental and biological indicators, providing critical insights into the ecological impacts of shifting conditions on these foundational coastal ecosystems.

Secondary Teachers’ Experiences in International Professional Development for Convergence Research in STEM and Tradition

Piazza del Duomo, Pisa — 2026 — WHE40337D6D1B

A transdisciplinary professional development (PD) model, Convergence Research in STEM and Tradition (CReST), demonstrates significant potential for enhancing secondary teachers' instructional practices by integrating cultural heritage artifacts—such as Renaissance frescoes—as boundary objects. This approach fosters cross-disciplinary connections between chemistry, engineering, world history, and technology. Findings from an exploratory case study involving four secondary teachers reveal that CReST facilitated shifts toward problem-centered, artifact-anchored pedagogy, with teachers reporting the adoption of real-world conservation practices in their instructional planning. The study highlights the importance of sustained collaboration and shared tools for extending learning beyond immersive experiences. This work offers a promising framework for designing culturally grounded STEM education that bridges traditional subjects and real-world applications.