Book excerpt: Heritage Planning: Principles and Process provides a comprehensive overview of heritage planning as an area of professional practice. The book first addresses the context and principles of heritage planning, including land-use law, planning practice, and international heritage doctrine, all set within the framework of larger societal issues such as sustainability and ethics. The book then takes readers through the pragmatic processes of heritage practice including collecting data, identifying community opinion, determining heritage significance, the best practices and methods of creating a conservation plan, and managing change. Heritage Planning recognizes changing approaches to heritage conservation, particularly the shift from the conservation of physical fabric to the present emphasis on retaining values, associations and stories that historic places hold for their communities. The transition has affected the practice of heritage planning and is important for those in the field. It is essential reading for both professionals that manage change within the built environment and students of heritage conservation and historic preservation.