28 CONTEXT 180 : JUNE 2024 interest, shade, and spatial and visual identity.’ Although this definition highlights a number of natural elements in public parks, none of them seems to acknowledge their environmental value. They focus on their aesthetic values. While designed landscapes are considered as ‘living heritage’, they often belong exclusively to the ‘cultural heritage’ site category. In the Unesco world heritage system, to be considered as a ‘mixed’ site, there is a requirement to meet at least one of the natural criteria, which is often quite difficult – if not impossible – for sites that do not contain ‘superlative natural phenomena’ or ‘the most important… natural habitats for in-situ conservation of biological diversity’. To fill this gap, in 1992 the World Heritage Committee created the category of ‘cultural landscape’, intended for sites that represent the ‘combined works of nature and of man’. Even there, the dual character of historic urban public parks does not seem to be fully embedded. Birkenhead Park can be considered as being an ancestor of what we now call urban green spaces. Its importance as a historic urban park remains unparalleled. It delivers beyond its role as a heritage asset. It provides environmental benefits, and is a community asset as a place for sports, social gathering, enjoying nature, escaping from the town, learning, and meeting friends and family. As the park prepares itself to apply for the final listing in the Unesco heritage list, it must achieve its fullest potential. Heritage protection and enhancement go hand in hand with the protection and enhancement of our natural environment and social well-being. Created as social and environmental spaces, historic urban parks are assets in combating the impacts of climate change. It would be a mistake to focus solely on their designed and built character in terms of heritage conservation. Urmila Jha-Thakur is a senior lecturer in the school of environmental sciences, University of Liverpool, and editor of the journal, Impact Assessment and Project Appraisal. Marie Le Devehat is world heritage project officer at Birkenhead Park, Wirral Council. Fishing in front of the Boat House (Photo: Ron Thomas) Dog walkers in Birkenhead Park (Photo: Be Bold Studios) Birkenhead Park’s ranger looking after waterfowl (Photo: Be Bold Studios)
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