Negotiating Heritage, Shaping Futures: Women's Agency in Palestinian Conservation Practices and Cultural Preservation

Abstract

This study examines how Palestinian women contribute to the preservation of cultural heritage through everyday practices, community initiatives, and heritage-related work. It focuses on both tangible and intangible forms of heritage and asks how women continue these practices despite social, economic, and institutional constraints. The study draws on semi-structured interviews with 28 Palestinian women involved in heritage-related activities in Gaza and the West Bank, including artisans, NGO practitioners, and conservators. The study complemented the interviews with observations of women-led initiatives and an analysis of policy and media documents.

The findings show that practices such as Tatreez (embroidery), oral storytelling, and community-based restoration serve several purposes simultaneously. They help transmit cultural knowledge between generations, maintain connections to place and identity, and, in some cases, provide sources of income and community support. The study also identifies significant barriers to women’s participation in formal heritage structures, particularly limited institutional recognition, restricted access to funding, and the dominance of male-led decision-making spaces.

Rather than viewing these activities as the preservation of traditions from the past, this study considers them as continuing forms of cultural practice shaped by present social and political conditions. The findings suggest that heritage policies in Palestine would benefit from greater recognition of women’s knowledge and stronger support for community-based initiatives. More inclusive approaches to conservation could therefore strengthen the preservation of cultural heritage and the role of local communities in deciding how that heritage is maintained and transmitted.