Culture is a fundamental domain of social life. However, there are currently no developed guidelines for assessing the cultural impact, sustainability or vibrancy of cultural development. While well-established economic and environmental impact assessments exist, in the domain of culture there are no more than a series of beginnings in the fields of heritage and indigenous studies. The overall goal of this project was to develop the principles, protocols, indicators and tools for a cultural impact assessment process. Within that goal we had a number of objectives:
- To ensure that the cultural assessment process works for urban-based projects and is applicable in
different towns and cities across the world, taking into account their very different forms; - To ensure that the process meets the needs of local municipalities in respect of a number of basic
requirements such as being accessible, learning-based, graphically simple, built around participatory engagement and so on; and - To provide a research base that underpins good practice in this area.