Mixed World Heritage Listing at Khangchendzonga National Park, Sikkim: Heritagization, Institutional Continuity, and the Limits of Nature–Culture Integration

Despite Khangchendzonga National Park's designation as India's first mixed World Heritage Site in 2016, its governance structures remained largely unchanged. A critical analysis of nomination dossiers, management plans, and UNESCO reports revealed that the mixed status was superimposed on existing conservation frameworks rather than transforming them. Three key mechanisms—administrative fragmentation, tokenistic participation, and selective preservation—perpetuate nature-culture divides, with Indigenous narratives mobilized without decision-making authority. Divergent evaluations from IUCN and ICOMOS highlight how UNESCO's institutional architecture reinforces colonial-era governance structures, limiting the integration of nature and culture.

Kenny, E. (2025). Mixed World Heritage Listing at Khangchendzonga National Park, Sikkim: Heritagization, Institutional Continuity, and the Limits of Nature–Culture Integration. Conservation and Management of Archaeological Sites, 27(5-6), 410–431. https://doi.org/10.1080/13505033.2026.2640423