Heritage resources are irreplaceable; they are non-renewable resources that become a subject of conservation and tourism. Heritage provides a tangible link between the past, the present and the future. Thus, having a good management is crucial in sustaining the resources. If it is done badly, we might lose a significant part of our heritage forever. There are many issues and challenges that threat the sustainability of heritage assets including the modernization, and tourism! Yes, tourism poses a threat to heritage 

The future of heritage lies on good planning and management with the mission linked closely to conservation. Planning for heritage can be broken into three parts: long-term planning, integrative planning, and conservation-focused. Long-term planning is in terms of markets and products, authority, policy and so forth. Whereas integrative planning refers to acknowledging other uses and users and within the region involved, be it heritage tourism, tourism in general or non-tourism uses, and lastly conservation-focused which is aiming at protecting built environment, maintaining integrity of ecological system, and caring for local community and aborigines. Management for heritage on the other hand, is about caring for property and maintaining it in as pristine state as possible, with issues such as financial solvency and public access entering into the decision making process only as secondary considerations.

This conference is the second series of the International Conference on Tourism and Hospitality (ICTH). This time the theme is on "Planning and Managing Heritage for the Future". The theme is chosen because heritage is diverse in terms of the resources and attractions, covering natural heritage (e.g. national parks and biosphere reserves), built heritage (e.g. artifacts, monuments and structures), and intangible heritage (e.g. culture and literature). Each segment is unique and poses different sets of management and planning requirements. Heritage is also becoming an important part of tourism industry and society as a whole, which is evident in Malaysia with the establishment of Ministry of Culture, Arts and Heritage. This development shows the government's recognition of this sector's role in generating income via tourism industry and in maintaining the national legacy.