The cultural and natural heritage of caves in the Lao PDR: prospects and challenges related to their use, management and conservation

This paper introduces the human uses for and values placed on caves and karst environments in the Lao People's Democratic Republic (Lao PDR), and discusses some of the prospects and challenges related to their use, management, and conservation based on their value as cultural and natural heritage. In the Lao PDR, caves and karst have a broad range of uses and meanings, formed over long time periods that include prehistoric, historic, and contemporary phases. These uses have generated distinct values and meanings for diverse groups, including the Lao government, local communities, international researchers, and tourists. Caves are unique in that they fulfill, at least to some extent, all of the criteria for natural, tangible, intangible and historical heritage protection, making management of them difficult. The past, present and future importance of caves and karst and their multiple users and meanings has not been consistently taken into account in measures to protect or manage them. The increasing pressure from economic development practices, including logging, mining, and tourism, also compounds management and conservation. In order to sustainably manage and conserve caves and karst in the Lao PDR, they must be viewed as 'living places.' This will require the acknowledgment of their unique and crosscutting significance, their natural and cultural heritage and their current and historic uses and meanings. These characteristics should be identified and valued as part of any future conservation, social and economic development planning.