A Scoping Review of Geospatial Strategies for Resilience in Rural Heritage Communities
Muhammad Adib Akmal Azzihan and Norzailawati Mohd Noor

Department of Urban and Regional Planning, Kulliyyah of Architecture and Built Environment, International Islamic University Malaysia, 53100 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Abstract

Rural communities are increasingly exposed to social, economic, and climatic pressures that threaten their cultural heritage. Although geospatial technology is increasingly used in community planning and cultural heritage documentation, it has the potential in strengthening rural community resilience which remains underexplored. Therefore, this interdisciplinary approach is important for understanding how the integration of technology, cultural heritage, and community can contribute to long-term resilience. While geospatial and cultural heritage research are increasing, the integration of cultural heritage digitisation remains rarely systematically investigated. This gap hinders the understanding of technology^s application in holistic community development. Therefore, this study aims to identify global research trends related to strengthening rural cultural heritage resilience through geospatial data, to organise methodological and theoretical approaches of existing studies, and to identify gaps based on the analysis results. The research method used is based on a search of the Scopus database and subsequent analysis using thematic scoping review. The findings identify three main themes: the use of mapping technology in heritage conservation, community-based approaches to developing resilience, and the gap between technological innovation and social empowerment. This study thus contributes to an interdisciplinary understanding and highlights the need for a new framework that connects technology and cultural heritage in a community-centred manner. The findings suggest that future research offers great opportunities to develop more sustainable rural development policies and strategies through community-based geospatial approaches.

Keywords: Geospatial, Rural, Heritage, Resilience, and Rural Planning.

Topic: Topic E: Sustainable Development Goals