World Heritage, Grassroot Management: A Community Participation Experience Inventorying Six “Milongas” in Buenos Aires

Resumo

This paper reflects on the pilot experience of community participation in the inventory of six “milongas” (tango dance venues) in Buenos Aires. Coordinated by the UNESCO Regional Office for Latin America in 2013, it led to the active participation of the community through six “milongueros” as representatives of the milonga scene. Led by two UNESCO coordinators, they established which milongas would be treated, what elements to register and the community implied. Through participant observation of the process and further interviews with some of the partakers, this paper aims to inquire about the opportunities and limitations of a participatory experience, and how it can be improved in order to empower the community involved to make decisions regarding their heritage.