Aardkundig erfgoed herdenken: betekenis, machtsverhoudingen en plaats in geoparkbestuur en toerisme

Geoheritage refers to geological and geomorphological features of significance for understanding earth history and representing the planet's geodiversity. In recent decades, geoheritage has been increasingly institutionalised through the geopark movement, where its conservation and promotion are linked to geotourism for sustainable regional development. Current geoheritage and geopark research has largely focused on the intrinsic and material values of geological features, and on expert-led processes of identifying, protecting and promoting geoheritage. This thesis argues that such approaches overlook the complex processes through which geoheritage is perceived, constructed, and mobilised for realising socio-economic benefits. The thesis aims to investigate the meanings, governance practices, and tourism dynamics of geoheritage within geoparks. Using a process-oriented and reflexive perspective to examine geoheritage, the thesis addresses a central question: 'How is geoheritage perceived, constructed, and institutionalised through governance and tourism by different stakeholders, and what are the implications for sustainable development in geoparks?' The thesis combines theoretical analysis with an empirical case study of the Zhangjiajie UNESCO Global Geopark in China. It employs a predominantly qualitative mixed-methods approach, including in-depth interviews, policy and document analysis, questionnaire surveys and public participation mapping to answer the research question. The findings reveal the nature of geoheritage as co-constructed, dissonant, and power-loaded. At the governance level, authoritative geoheritage interpretations were institutionalised within a fragmented multi-level governance framework in Zhangjiajie Geopark, which marginalises community participation in geopark decision-making. In the tourism system, influential tourism brokers mediated between the geopark's conservation objectives and tourism sector's market-driven interests. Their focus on visitor numbers and economic returns shaped a homogenised, hegemonic narrative of geoheritage that undermines the geopark's conservation and education mission. Meanwhile, tourists primarily engaged with geoheritage through aesthetic experiences. Their visits and understandings of the geopark were centred on the core scenic area while overlooking peripheral rural areas. Together, the findings reveal that dissonant nature of geoheritage, the underlying power dynamics, socio-economic complexities, and stakeholder interactions collectively shape the construction and institutionalisation of geoheritage, as well as its sustainable development outcomes. As an alternative, the thesis proposes a relational reinterpretation of geoheritage. It highlights that geoheritage meanings are produced within the interactions of abiotic, biotic and human entities. In this process, the material affordances of landscapes are entangled with the institutional, economic and cultural practices, giving rise to situated and continually reworked valuations. The thesis further advances 'critical-relational geoheritage studies' to call for an enhanced reflexive, process-oriented approach to geoheritage research and practice. In practice, the thesis calls for the reorientation of geoheritage management objectives from static preservation towards collaborative governance. To realise the objectives of environmental protection, earth science education and economic development, geoparks should be built as collaborative, inclusive platforms that facilitate dialogue, knowledge integration and adaptive co-management among diverse stakeholders.