Agricultural heritage tourism development and heritage conservation: a case study of the Samaba Rice Terraces, Yunnan, China

ABSTRACT Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (GIAHS) attract large numbers of tourists and are therefore seen as financially lucrative heritage spaces with the potential to drive heritage conservation. This case study of the Samaba Rice Terraces in Yunnan, China revealed that GIAHS practices are currently framed by a top-down approach that is influenced by a Chinese authorized heritage discourse, which problematically emphasizes the discourses of government authorities, thereby detracting from vernacular narratives of silence. Although a small number of residents have benefited from agricultural heritage tourism development, most are now excluded from local heritage practices. The removal of local opinions and livelihoods may lead to both emigration and depopulation, which ultimately threatens the sustainability of the heritage site.