THEMES

 

The 21^st session of the Permanent European Conference for the Study of the Rural Landscape will feature six themes:

Theme 1

Cultural history of Mediterranean landscapes

 Since prehistoric times, various peoples and cultures have carved an indelible mark on the face of the earth around the Mediterranean sea. In what ways have cultural landscapes and the cultural representation of landscapes developed through the years in the Mediterranean region? What is the effect of different historical periods on present Mediterranean landscapes and in what ways can we interpret processes of continuity and change therein? How did cultural interaction bring in contact the people of the Mediterranean region on the one hand and of the European, Asian and African hinterlands on the other in the past? What kinds of relics are still recognizable in the landscapes of the Mediterranean hinterlands as a result of Mediterranean cultural influence and in what ways have they come into being? Finally, to what extent is it possible to talk about Mediterranean landscapes? Can we distinguish one general Mediterranean type, or is it preferable to talk about various Mediterranean types and how can cultural Mediterranean zones possibly be interlinked or bound?

Theme 2

Tourism and the landscape

Tourism has been a major force of change in the Mediterranean cultural landscape through its enormous impact on local economies, social life and the environment. How have locals’ and outsiders’ experiences, lessons and interventions through tourism affected Mediterranean landscape identity, diversity and richness in historical and geographical pespective? What policies, tools and approaches to tourism planning and management are employed in tourism landscape preservation, sustainability and development? What patterns, prospects, challenges and opportunities does the Mediterranean landscape pose as a tourism resource, destination and pole of attraction?  What experiences from other European countries can be useful in the Mediterranean context?

Theme 3

Local landscapes

Local landscapes grow out of material and nonmaterial elements of folk culture and physical geography and reflect long-held agricultural patterns and socio-cultural practices, as well as climatic particularities. In the short run, local economies, societies and environments impart a deep mark on them. How do contemporary cultural interlinkages, interaction and communication affect the degree of connection of locals with their landscapes in the Mediterranean region? How are Mediterranean local landscape knowledges, perceptions and uses balanced with global influences and perspectives? What strategies contribute to local awareness and global apprehension at different levels? How can locals in the Mediterranean region be reconnected to their landscapes towards the goal of sustainability and local identity preservation and development?

Theme 4

Islands

To a great degree, several of the particularities and challenges that Mediterranean landscapes have been facing in the duration of their history are due to the largely insular character of much of the Mediterranean region. What are the distinctive characteristics of island landscapes and seascapes? How do human/symbolic and physical geographical aspects of insularity contribute to Mediterranean landscape characteristics? How are islanders’ versus outsiders’ (tourists’ and others’) local geographies constructed, represented and experienced? What has the role of the Mediterranean, as a natural and cultural region, been in the construction and transformation of island landscape identities, cultures and economies in geographical and historical perspective?

Theme 5

Biodiversity and land use

Long-held human occupation and population growth in the Mediterranean have resulted in a landscape mosaic of cultural uses with few “wilderness” areas remaining. This process raises many questions. To what degree is the biodiversity in Mediterranean “cultural landscapes” influenced and maintained by “traditional” forms of land use? How do increases in productivity and new urban uses, gained to the detriment of ecosystem functions and values, modify land cover and impede biodiversity?  What are the impacts of new and traditional land use systems and landscape policies on the maintainance of biodiversity, landscape protection and sustainable land management? How do landscape ecology and biodiversity figure in land use planning and landscape policy? Issues of further investigation include landscape ecological impact assessment, cultural biogeography, organic agriculture and ornamental landscapes. 

Theme 6

Theory and methodology of landscape research

What new theoretical and methodological approaches have appeared in landscape research during the last few years? What are some of the current discourses and debates that revolve around landscape concepts, constructs, representations, measurement and assessment and in what ways are they understood, interpreted and used in landscape science? What is the relevance of these new theories and approaches for Mediterranean landscape studies and landscape interventions? Do specifically Mediterranean models or types of landscape research exist and how can they be transported to other geographical contexts? Inter-disciplinarity/ trans-disciplinarity as a challenge and impetus for new theoretical and methodological perspectives to landscape research.