Stakeholder collaboration in a prospective World Heritage Area: The case of Kokoda and the Owen Stanley Ranges

The process of listing a World Heritage Area (WHA)c in developing countries is often much more complex than in the West. Often all stakeholders are not taken into consideration and there is a lack of understanding of the concept of World Heritage and what it entails. This is particularly true for stakeholders who live in or adjacent to the proposed WHA, such as local communities. This paper presents a case study of Kokoda and the Owen Stanley Ranges, currently a tentative World Heritage site, to show the complexities in stakeholder collaboration and attribution in the process of World Heritage designation. Six key stakeholders were identified in the study. Upon examination of four attributes of stakeholders: power; legitimacy; urgency; and proximity, it was found that all stakeholders in this case study have a high legitimacy in the listing process however only the local community holds high levels of power, urgency and proximity. Additionally it was found that several stakeholders, like the private sector, have too many weak relationships with other stakeholders, resulting in a lack of communication. These findings present the first step in understanding how it might be possible to improve the listing process of World Heritage Sites in developing countries through effective stakeholder collaboration