Contribution of Society and Owners of Buildings in Conservation of Architectural Heritage in the Arab World. (Case Study: ?Rawdat Sudair, Saudi Arabia?)

This research aims to study the experience of local people in conserving architectural heritage and to benefit from that in preserving other historical sites. The need for this study is important because: ? Conservation of cultural and architectural heritage is not merely a government responsibility. ? The participation of local people in architectural conservation has many benefits. ? Motivating people to preserve architectural heritage is the responsibility of cultural and educational bodies. The study discusses historical architectural sites in Saudi Arabia. It concentrates on the inhabitants' and owners' role in the conservation of architectural heritage, since, nowadays most of the historical sites were taken care of by the governments. The tools of this research are better than the previous working methods, because, previous models neglect the inhabitants' and owners' role in the conservation of architectural heritage, Methods of this study include literature review, site visits, and interviews with inhabitants and visitors of the Case Study. It also includes site visits to similar historical sites, lectures highlighting the importance of architectural heritage to improve public awareness and to motivate people to take part in the conservation of architectural heritage. The study found conserving, preserving, or rehabilitating traditional buildings cannot be the duty of the owner only or the responsibility of the governments alone.