This international, interdisciplinary conference brings together researchers and practitioners to explore the role of intangible culture and heritage in city branding and tourism marketing worldwide.Place branding is a complex process through which individuals or institutions seek to influence a place’s reputation or brand image. Tourism marketing is a particularly visible form of place branding but is just one tool for public diplomacy. Although a city’s residents may not always be aware of it, many place branding efforts target not only foreign publics (consisting of potential tourists, business visitors, policymakers, investors,etc.) but also the local population, nudging or urging city residents to be warm and welcoming, forward looking and innovative, proud of their traditions, or internationally oriented – all in accordance with the aims of the particular branding initiative. Urban place branding is thus more than just marketing the city as a product; it is also a form of product development.But where does urban culture fit into the picture? What happens when some local stakeholders desire a type of city that is difficult or unpalatable to market? Should urban planners, branders, and developers seek to build a market for the existing urban product or instead seek to change the product to fit a desired market? How do intangible aspects of culture (foodways, festivals, fashion, lifestyles,etc.) interact with city branding and economic developmentprocesses? Can (or should) expressions of local inheritance be integrated into the presentation of built heritage and cultural landscapes to tourists whose own interpretations of this heritage may differ from local ones? How can the multitude of voices, opinions, and practices among the local population be distilled into policies that benefit the community as a whole?