Craft Knowledge as Cultural, Social, and Ecological Capital : Rethinking Heritage in Addressing Ageing

Fakin Bajec, Jasna (author)

The article examines the role of traditional craft knowledge in addressing contemporary development challenges, moving beyond the dominant economic approaches to heritage as highlighted in EU development projects. It conceptualises heritage as cultural, social, and ecological capital within a more-than-human perspective. Based on ethnographic research in the Vipava Valley (Slovenia), it presents narratives of knowledge bearers who use craft practices to cope with ageing, loneliness, and stress while fostering preservation and empathetic relationships with nature.

• Language: English
• Keywords: heritage, craft knowledge, cultural and social capital, ecosystem approach, more-than-human, ageing
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Geographic coverage: Vipava (Slovenija ; občina)
• Organization: FF - Faculty of Arts
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Publication date: 01.07.2026
• Year: 2026
• Number of pages: Str. 67-83
• Numbering: Letn. 4, št. 2
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-185078
• UDC: 39:745/749:316.7(497.4Vipava)
• ISSN on article: 2820-6088
• DOI: 10.4312/svetovi.4.2.67-83
• COBISS.SI-ID: 285652995
• Publication date in RUL: 22.07.2026

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: Svetovi
• Publisher: Založba Univerze v Ljubljani
• ISSN: 2820-6088
• COBISS.SI-ID: 148550403

Licences

• License: CC BY-SA 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/
• Description: This Creative Commons license is very similar to the regular Attribution license, but requires the release of all derivative works under this same license.

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian
• Title: Rokodelsko znanje kot kulturni, socialni in ekološki kapital : ponovni razmislek o dediščini pri soočanju s staranjem

Abstract

Prispevek raziskuje vlogo tradicionalnega rokodelskega znanja v soočanju s sodobnimi razvojnimi izzivi, pri čemer presega prevladujoče ekonomske pristope k dediščini, kakršne spodbujajo evropski razvojni projekti. V okviru več-kot-človeške perspektive dediščino koncipira kot kulturni, socialni in ekološki kapital. Na podlagi etnografske raziskave v Vipavski dolini v Sloveniji predstavlja pripovedi nosilk in nosilcev znanja, ki se s pomočjo rokodelstva soočajo s staranjem, osamljenostjo in stresom ter s tem hkrati gojijo ohranitvene prakse in empatične odnose z naravo.

• Keywords: dediščina, rokodelsko znanje, kulturni in socialni kapital, ekosistemski pristop, več-kot-človeško, staranje

Projects

• Funder: ARIS - Slovenian Research and Innovation Agency
• Project number: J7-4641-2022
• Name: Dediščina za vključujočo trajnostno preobrazbo - HEI-TRANSFORM

• Funder: ARIS - Slovenian Research and Innovation Agency
• Project number: P6-0347-2026
• Name: Historične interpretacije 20. stoletja