Cultural Heritage Conservation and Sustainable Development

Dear Colleagues,

Cultural heritage and sustainability intersect in the preservation of material culture, forming a crucial nexus for a sustainable future. Safeguarding historical artifacts, architecture, and traditional craftsmanship not only grounds communities in their past but also contributes to environmental and economic resilience. Integrating heritage preservation into urban development and tourism fosters responsible growth. Sustainable practices in conservation ensure the longevity of valuable cultural assets against environmental threats. By balancing progress with the protection of material culture, societies can forge a path that cherishes their roots, fostering a harmonious coexistence between tradition and progress for generations to come.

This Special Issue aims to collect works related to new possibilities for studying objects of cultural interest that align with sustainability in terms of materials, costs, use, and analytical procedures. Equal importance is given to classical analysis (i.e., microscopy and spectroscopy), preventive conservation, and new digital technologies that could play a key role in bridging the gap between researchers and public stakeholders.

In this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are welcome, covering the following research areas:

• Conservation sciences: Methods and technologies aimed at the sustainable conservation of objects of cultural interest. The works can highlight how the experimental procedure was conducted with a view to sustainability.
• Preventive conservation: Strategies of proactive measures such as climate control, proper storage, and handling practices to mitigate deterioration.
• Augmented and virtual reality: Innovative methods for the use and dissemination of cultural heritage. Works that combine analytical data with the digital or virtual rendering of the object are particularly welcome.

Dr. Francesca Di Turo
Dr. Giacomo Fiocco
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• conservation science
• cultural heritage technologies
• digital humanities
• sustainable development