A comprehensive inventory of the Hakke sites in Huiyang: a tool to know and to preserve an important cultural landscape Heritage

The territory of the city of Huiyang is characterized by the presence of numerous Hakka sites which constitute an architectural, historical, and cultural heritage of undoubted significance. Unfortunately the level of awareness of the value of Hakka sites and landscape is low and there is the risk of losing this important system, due to the intense urban expansion of the area, linked more to economic development choices than to conservation and rehabilitation policies. The recent urban development often does not consider these historic sites of tangible and intangible value like important resources. Knowledge of the past is the first step to define any planning and preservation action. Without an adequate knowledge of cultural heritage, considering also its territorial context, it is not possible to issue conservation and valorization goals for historic sites and to establish effective and aware policies and strategies to manage the territorial transformation. The inventory of Hakka sites in the Huiyang region represents a fundamental step to learn about this heritage, as it provides the data to better understand these sites in order to issue conservation treatments, to define reuse and valorization goals and to increase awareness of the historic value, setting compatible uses, according to the current social needs. The inventory presented here is therefore directly aimed at safeguarding the Hakka sites of the Huiyang region: it is not limited to the identification and description of the sites, but also highlights the conservation and use problems of each site. This investigation can therefore provide the administrations with useful suggestions and recommendations for the management of this heritage.