A Field Guide to Tactical Heritage Urbanism Volume 1: October 2016 | Page 29

The Workshop

On Friday May 6, 2016 the Canadian committee of the International Council on Monuments and Sites (icomos Canada) presented a one-day workshop called “Heritage and
Democracy: Bringing Heritage out of History and into the
City”/« De l’histoire à la ville contemporaine: le patrimoine
et démocratie ». In the morning, participants attended one
of eight specially curated Jane’s Walks – a conversational
walking tour model inspired by the ideals of the late urbanist
Jane Jacobs – that examined the idea of cultural heritage from
different, unexpected perspectives. The walks were a part of
the annual Jane’s Walk festival, which resulted in members
of the public joining the icomos walks and enriching the
conversations. Participants regrouped at 105 Bond Street,
Ryerson University’s School of Urban and Regional Planning,
and debated whether or not their morning Jane’s Walk constituted a “heritage” walk. Presentations on icomos by icomos
Canada president Christophe Rivet, on the Faro Convention by
Michael McClelland, and the Culture of Outports and ‘small’ by
Philip Evans followed. Participants discussed the meaning of
cultural heritage as defined in the Faro Convention, whether
or not it met their professional needs, and how they would
explain it to someone unfamiliar with the concept.
There was near universal agreement that the definition of
cultural heritage in the Canadian context is too narrow and
should be expanded similar to the Faro Convention.

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