Machu Picchu: Interdisciplinary Research & Management

Jose M. Bastante, archaeologist and director of the Machupicchu National Archaeological Park, was a guest speaker at USI's Master in International Tourism to present his most recent publication "Machupicchu Investigaciones Interdisciplinarias".

His work in Machupicchu is focused on sustainable tourism management. The book is the first comprehensive scientific publication on Machupicchu and was co-edited with Fernando Astete (previous director of the Park) and published by the Peruvian Ministry of Culture in 2021.

According to Prof. Lorenzo Cantoni, director of the Master in International Tourism and of the USI UNESCO Chair, "it was a great opportunity for our students to experience first-hand the case of Machupicchu, one of the most famous World Heritage sites in the world, and to reflect on how sustainable tourism, respectful of this heritage, can be developed. The USI UNESCO Chair, in collaboration with the UNESCO Chair of the University of Genoa, has been collaborating with Machupicchu for some time, in particular through the digitalisation of Fernando Astete's photographic archive, a work in progress, hosted by the Iconoteca of the USI Academy of Architecture (https://iconoteca.arc.usi.ch/en/collection/1824) and the creation of the website 'Machupicchu. Seen through the eyes of Fernando Astete': https://www.machupicc.hu".

Jose M. Bestante is an archaeologist with a Master in Cultural Heritage Management and a PhD in Social Sciences focusing on history from the National University of San Marco of Lima, Peru. He is currently a member of the College of Archaeologists of Peru, the American Society of Archaeology, and the Board of Directors of ICOMOS, Peru. He has been invited as a guest speaker at numerous academic events in Peru, the US, Mexico, Poland, Ecuador, Indonesia and Italy. Since 2013 he has been director of the Archaeological and Interdisciplinary research Program in the Historic Sanctuary of Machupicchu, and since 2019 he has served as the youngest ever WHS Head there. He has been implementing a new sustainable management model based on the conservation of the property's Outstanding Universal Value. He is the author of numerous publications on the Machupicchu archaeological heritage.