Citation

Law, Joey and Jeen, Wei Ong and Ab. Aziz, Kamarulzaman (2022) Safeguarding of Cultural Heritage Through Social Entrepreneurship. In: Postgraduate Social Science Colloquium 2022, 1 - 2 June 2022, Online.

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Abstract

Background - George Town was awarded the title of UNESCO World Heritage Site on July 7, 2008. Upon the listing, Penang was elevated to the international status of multiculturalism. As time goes by, changes in social fabric are inevitable but it has escalated the process of gentrification – thus, pose several threats to the cultural heritage. Apart from putting the cultural heritage on risk, the changes of social fabrics and gentrification will bring negative impacts to the society in long-run. On the other hand, social entrepreneurship activities are being practice worldwide to solve any social and/or environmental issues. However, there is a lack of studies that employ the social entrepreneurship activities to safeguarding the cultural heritage, in the context of George Town UNESCO WHS, specifically. Purpose - The purpose of this research is to examine the role of social entrepreneurship in safeguarding the cultural heritage in George Town UNESCO WHS. Apart from that, the role of external stakeholders such as the residents, traditional traders and craftsmen in the safeguarding process and efforts will also be investigated – after all, they are the cultural heritage bearers and practitioners, thereby, to safeguard the cultural heritage should be a collective effort. Design/methodology/approach - To gain an in-depth insight and understanding on the process of social entrepreneurship, case study method will be employed. First of all, external stakeholders will be categorized into four different segments based on the Power-Interest level they have towards organizations that are working actively to safeguard the cultural heritage in George Town UNESCO WHS. Secondly, organizations that shows social entrepreneurial tendencies will be included in this research, from there, the process of social entrepreneurship will be study and examine. Lastly, the role of external stakeholders that falls under the category of High Power and High Interest will be study. Findings/Expected Contributions - This research attempts to contribute a small part in the field of social entrepreneurship, especially on the process of social entrepreneurship in contributing positively in the process of safeguarding the cultural heritage in George Town UNESCO WHS. Apart from that, the very same final framework be adopted by other social enterprises to solve any social or environmental issues. Lastly, the final findings can serve as an input for both the government and policy-makers to enhance the policies to encourage social entrepreneurship activities and to set up a legal structure for social enterprises in Malaysia. Research limitations - This research only focuses on the cultural heritage in George Town and no attention is extended to the sister-site, Melaka UNESCO WHS. Same goes to the organizations – only organizations that are based in George Town will be included in the study. Therefore, it is hope that future researchers can extend the study in the context of Melaka UNESCO WHS. Originality/value - Till now there are no specific proven method, core business model or code of practice in the field of social entrepreneurship, despite it is widely practice and study across so many different fields and countries. Hence, this research hopes to add value to the field of social entrepreneurship through its final findings and framework that can be employ by organizations that wish to solve any contemporary social and environmental issues through social entrepreneurship.

Item Type:	Conference or Workshop Item (Paper)
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Social Entrepreneurship, Stakeholders, Cultural Heritage, UNESCO World Heritage Site
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labor > HD28-70 Management. Industrial Management > HD60-60.5 Social responsibility of business
Divisions:	Faculty of Management (FOM)
Depositing User:	Ms Suzilawati Abu Samah
Date Deposited:	11 Aug 2022 06:18
Last Modified:	19 Aug 2022 08:25
URII:	http://shdl.mmu.edu.my/id/eprint/10338

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