Relationships between visual landscape preferences and map-based indicators of landscape structure

There is increasing awareness of the need to monitor trends in our constantly changing agricultural landscapes. Monitoring programmes often use remote sensing data and focus on changes in land cover/land use in relation to values such as biodiversity, cultural heritage and recreation. Although a wide range of indicators is in use, landscape aesthetics is a topic that is frequently neglected. Our aim was to determine whether aspects of landscape content and configuration could be used as surrogate measures for visual landscape quality in monitoring programmes based on remote sensing. In this paper, we test whether map-derived indicators of landscape structure from the Norwegian monitoring programme for agricultural landscapes are correlated with visual landscape preferences. Two groups of people participated: (1) locals and (2) non-local students. Using the total dataset, we found significant positive correlations between preferences and spatial metrics, including number of land types, number of patches and land type diversity. In addition, preference scores were high where water was present within the mapped image area, even if the water itself was not visible in the images. When the dataset was split into two groups, we found no significant correlation between the preference scores of the students and locals. Whilst the student group preferred images portraying diverse and heterogeneous landscapes, neither diversity nor heterogeneity was correlated with the preference scores of the locals. We conclude that certain indicators based on spatial structure also have relevance in relation to landscape preferences in agricultural landscapes. However, the finding that different groups of people prefer different types of landscape underlines the need for care when interpreting indicator values.     

Relationships between visual landscape preferences and map-based indicators of landscape structure

There is increasing awareness of the need to monitor trends in our constantly changing agricultural landscapes. Monitoring programmes often use remote sensing data and focus on changes in land cover/land use in relation to values such as biodiversity, cultural heritage and recreation. Although a wide range of indicators is in use, landscape aesthetics is a topic that is frequently neglected. Our aim was to determine whether aspects of landscape content and configuration could be used as surrogate measures for visual landscape quality in monitoring programmes based on remote sensing. In this paper, we test whether map-derived indicators of landscape structure from the Norwegian monitoring programme for agricultural landscapes are correlated with visual landscape preferences. Two groups of people participated: (1) locals and (2) non-local students. Using the total dataset, we found significant positive correlations between preferences and spatial metrics, including number of land types, number of patches and land type diversity. In addition, preference scores were high where water was present within the mapped image area, even if the water itself was not visible in the images. When the dataset was split into two groups, we found no significant correlation between the preference scores of the students and locals. Whilst the student group preferred images portraying diverse and heterogeneous landscapes, neither diversity nor heterogeneity was correlated with the preference scores of the locals. We conclude that certain indicators based on spatial structure also have relevance in relation to landscape preferences in agricultural landscapes. However, the finding that different groups of people prefer different types of landscape underlines the need for care when interpreting indicator values.     

Social Landscape Metrics: Measures for Understanding Place Values from Public Participation Geographic Information Systems (PPGIS)

Landscape metrics are used in landscape ecology to quantify landscape characteristics related to structure, function and change by quantifying the structure and distributional pattern of landscape elements such as plants, animals and other physical landscape features. To date, there has been little published research on landscape metrics that include social perceptions of landscape. In this paper, we introduce the concept of social landscape metrics that quantify human perceptions of place resulting from the use of public participation geographic information systems (PPGIS). We present and explain a set of social landscape metrics that measure the composition and configuration of human perceptions of landscapes from multiple study areas using empirical data from PPGIS studies. We distinguish between two classes of social landscape metrics, boundary and inductive, present methods to develop them, and describe some of their applications to land use planning and management. We conclude with a discussion of future research needs for advancing knowledge about social landscape metrics.     

Our visual landscape: Managing the landscape under special consideration of visual aspects

Comprehensive landscape valuation requires an integration of ecological, economical and social values. Landscape image does not only comprise its spatial and structural parts but also the formal visual and cultural aesthetic expression of the landscape. In accordance with this holistic image of the landscape the manifestation of these special elements and visual functions is reflective of the natural and cultural coherence and beauty of long functioning natural and cultivated landscape systems.Landscape image and identity on the one hand and its natural or cultural variety (singular appearances of elements, local peculiarities or particulars) on the other hand are the most important criteria for evaluation, classifying and protecting against possible impacts on the local and regional landscape.However, in addition to the desirability of preserving existing landscape identity, the protection of existing elements, space and functions should not blindly rule out the possibility of new developments emerging with new values.Based on this basic idea value ranking of landscape features and individual expression of partial image sectors can be performed on the level of ecological and sustainable land use and planning culture. In landscape planning it is recognised that such a ranking requires a combination with professional judgement, informed opinion and public preferences as well.To ensure the aims of preservation and development of a high-quality nature and culture beauty special methods of analysis and demonstration of the landscape structure and image are requested. The demonstrated methodical steps should correspond to the objective of a sustainable nature and landscape preservation and development on an aesthetic landscape planning level with guidelines and helpful data for the impact assessment and intervention rule (German nature conservation act).     

The European Landscape Convention

Adopted in Florence (Italy) on 20 October 2000, the European Landscape Convention is aimed at promoting the protection, management and planning of European landscapes and organising European cooperation on landscape issues. It is the first international treaty to be exclusively concerned with all dimensions of European landscape. It applies to the entire territory of the Parties and relates to natural, urban and peri-urban areas, whether on land, water or sea. It therefore concerns not just remarkable landscapes but also ordinary everyday landscapes and blighted areas. The Convention represents an important contribution to the implementation of the objectives of the Council of Europe: these seek to protect Europeans' quality of life and well-being, taking into account landscape, cultural and natural values. The member states of the Council of Europe signatory to the European Landscape Convention declared their concern to achieve sustainable development based on a balanced and harmonious relationship between social needs, economic activity and the environment. The cultural dimension is also of fundamental importance.     

The European Landscape Convention

Adopted in Florence (Italy) on 20 October 2000, the European Landscape Convention is aimed at promoting the protection, management and planning of European landscapes and organising European cooperation on landscape issues. It is the first international treaty to be exclusively concerned with all dimensions of European landscape. It applies to the entire territory of the Parties and relates to natural, urban and peri-urban areas, whether on land, water or sea. It therefore concerns not just remarkable landscapes but also ordinary everyday landscapes and blighted areas. The Convention represents an important contribution to the implementation of the objectives of the Council of Europe: these seek to protect Europeans' quality of life and well-being, taking into account landscape, cultural and natural values. The member states of the Council of Europe signatory to the European Landscape Convention declared their concern to achieve sustainable development based on a balanced and harmonious relationship between social needs, economic activity and the environment. The cultural dimension is also of fundamental importance.     

胸藏丘壑,城市不异山林——传统文化的“山水情结”在当今景观设计中的价值与意义

本文从山水画和古典园林两方面分析了中国传统文化中的"山水情结"所蕴含的自然观。通过反映自然山水在体现自然观的绘画以及中国古典园林中的运用,挖掘艺术与园林中的"山水情结"的指导价值与文化意义,以期在当今景观设计中体现这种文化思想。同时指出"山水情结"与生态理念道并行而不相悖,"山水情结"是我们具有特色的文化财富,在当代的城市建设与景观设计中不应该忽视"山水情结"的价值。     

Towards Harmonisation in Landscape Unit Delineation: An Analysis of Spanish Case Studies

The European Landscape Convention has encouraged member states to develop tools for landscape planning and management. Landscape character assessment is the most widespread approach. The aim of this paper is to identify the main trends in landscape unit delineation in Spain. For this purpose, 29 works are analysed by the Multiple Correspondence technique (MCA). Each work is characterised by a category of the variables: scale, type of extent, geomorphology, land matrix and visual boundaries. Results show that there is an implicit hierarchy in the way Spanish professionals are mapping landscape units. It is more apparent in variables related to geomorphology and less evident in variables related to land matrix. Regarding visual boundaries, they are not usually used at small scales and are more frequent at intermediate and large scales. The definition of clear criteria that allow comparable classifications and the increased consideration of cultural and perceptual factors is encouraged for future landscape character classifications.     

Place names and landscape character: a case study from Otago Region,New Zealand

Landscape characterisation has become an important tool in the interpretation of the distinctive features, patterns and identity of a region for planning purposes. However, conventional assessment methods that focus upon visual character may overlook some cultural values. This study investigates how toponymy—the analysis of place names—can be undertaken as a contribution to landscape characterisation. The study focus is Otago Region, New Zealand, which has a diverse landscape and a reliable database of place names. The study reported here involves analysis of 696 place names relating to 31 types of landscape feature derived from maps. The majority of names were connected with symbolic historic and cultural associations, mainly people. Biophysical characteristics including landform and hydrological features were also prominent. Names associated with the indigenous culture, Maori, were layered with those from European colonisation. Systematic analysis of place names highlights both presence and displacements of cultural memory and offers potential for an additional rich layer of interpretation in landscape characterisation.     

景观特征评估—LCA体系与HLC体系比较研究与启示

发端于英国的LCA和HLC这2套体系日益成为景观特征评估的重要方法和工具。从发展历程、方法步骤及其在不同尺度上的实践与应用等方面比较分析,发现LCA体系在跨国区域、国家尺度上的景观特征类型识别与区划具有明显优势,评估结果能包容更多的景观特征,但公众参与评估的深度和对景观历史维度的关注存在局限;HLC专注于历史景观的特征识别,在地方行政和场地尺度上对景观演变和历史景观特征类型识别优于LCA体系,但评估结果不及后者全面,二者存在互补性。合理借鉴和融合2套体系,进行景观特征类型识别和区划,将有助于指导中国国土景观、乡村景观的合理管护和利用。     

田的艺术——白话景观与新乡土

作为一种生存的艺术,田,是真善美的和谐统一,是千百年来人类对土地及自然过程和格局的适应的智慧结晶;作为乡土的文化景观,田承载了特定地域人们的生存与生活的历史,同时也为当代人应对生态环境和能源危机带来新希望.田,既是我们的记忆,也是我们的希望景观设计师因此可以从田的艺术中吸取无穷的营养,创造丰产、健康而且美丽的新景观,一种白话的、新乡土景观.     

Eye-tracking Analysis in Landscape Perception Research: Influence of Photograph Properties and Landscape Characteristics

Abstract

The European Landscape Convention emphasises the need for public participation in landscape planning and management. This demands understanding of how people perceive and observe landscapes. This can objectively be measured using eye tracking, a system recording eye movements and fixations while observing images. In this study, 23 participants were asked to observe 90 landscape photographs, representing 18 landscape character types in Flanders (Belgium) differing in degree of openness and heterogeneity. For each landscape, five types of photographs were shown, varying in view angle. This experiment design allowed testing the effect of the landscape characteristics and photograph types on the observation pattern, measured by Eye-tracking Metrics (ETM). The results show that panoramic and detail photographs are observed differently than the other types. The degree of openness and heterogeneity also seems to exert a significant influence on the observation of the landscape.     

从《职业展望手册》看美国风景园林师的职业发展现状

美国风景园林师在土地资源利用以及自然和文化景观的规划、设计、保护与管理等方面发挥着重要的作用,他们与其他相关职业人员合作,为社会大众创造出了优美、健康而舒适的工作与生活环境.通过对1996-1997年至2010-2011年以来《职业展望手册》的分析,探寻该职业的发展与变化情况.具体分析的内容包括职业的工作性质与领域、就业的方式与条件、职业准人条件与教育、职业规模与薪酬等方面,并由此提出对我国风景园林师职业发展的几点启示.     

How Do Policies Shape Landscapes? Landscape Change and its Political Driving Forces in the Limmat Valley,Switzerland 1930–2000

Over the past few decades, urbanization, agricultural intensification, and greening have enormously changed the traditional cultural landscape of the study area in the Swiss lowlands. The aim of this research is to quantify the importance of political driving forces, to identify the most important ones, and to describe the landscape changes associated with them. The landscape changes were quantified based on the comparison of historical maps and driving forces were compiled and linked with changes based on document analysis and expert interviews. We found that political driving forces contributed 26% to landscape change. Landscape changes such as new roads and buildings, changes in the agricultural and forestry network, the loss of elements of the traditional agricultural landscape, new solitary trees, and new roadside slopes have been associated with political driving forces. Though many political driving forces shaped the landscape, depending on the question, a few crucial ones might be appropriate for understanding and managing many aspects of landscape change.     

Integrated landscape management and the complicating issue of temporality

Abstract

Landscape has become widely accepted as a concept for embracing the natural sphere as well as human society. There are, however, challenges in implementing the somewhat overarching rhetoric. This article takes a conceptual and deconstructive approach and elucidates complications in integrated landscape management, with a certain focus on landscape and time. Cases from some European areas, where integrative planning instruments are applied, serve as examples. The drawing of borders and the categorisation of areas are central aspects in understanding what constitutes integration, implying that negotiations and the weighing of different values are vital elements in integrated landscape management. Landscape management is inevitably an activity in the present, which is why landscape management needs to be based on good knowledge about the present conditions. In order to retain landscape qualities it is necessary to continuously reveal contemporary processes and reconsider and elaborate on functions and contexts that connect humans and their physical environment.     

Assessing landscape change and biodiversity values of the Middle Vistula river valley, Poland, using BIO-SAFE

This paper deals with the relation between legally protected biodiversity and riverine ecotopes and with the assessment of biodiversity values of the Middle Vistula river valley (Poland). Furthermore, it describes the effects of landscape change on spatial distribution of ecotope patches and biodiversity values in Kazimierski Landscape Park. Biodiversity values were calculated using BIO-SAFE, a model meant to quantify biodiversity and to value ecotopes based on legally protected species. Dissimilarity indices depict high uniqueness of ecotope types regarding their species assemblages (e.g., river dunes, banks and bars). The actual biodiversity values of the river valley in Kazimierski Landscape Park are high in comparison with floodplains of lowland rivers in Western Europe. GIS analyses of remotely sensed ecotope maps show remarkable differences in number, acreage and patchiness of ecotopes for the years 1953 and 2003. The total number of patches increased by almost 44%. Side channels and floodplain lakes became fragmented. The average and total surface area of bush, forest and arable land increased, but decreased for bare soil, pioneer vegetation and grassland. These landscape changes indicate natural vegetation succession, intensification of agriculture and progressive impacts of river regulation. The Vistula river valley still represents high biodiversity values for higher plants, birds, herpetofauna and fish. However, current landscape changes negatively affect potential values for protected and endangered species. Assessments with BIO-SAFE can help to balance biodiversity conservation, river management and landscape planning.     

基于整体性的古村落景观规划设计——以山西省郭壁、窦庄、上伏、南安阳村为例

中国的古村落是中国文化的产物,是中华民族最重要的文化遗产和财富.数量众多的山西省古村落景观具有浓郁的地方特色和很高的研究价值.古村落景观规划设计要从历史性、科学性、艺术性、对人的关怀等方面进行整体考虑,既要满足保护文化遗产的需要,也要兼顾科学发展的需要、群众生活的需要、改善生态环境的需要,要处理好保护、修复和发展的关系...     

Economy,Development, Landscape and Value

Landscape has various economic values. However, Udo Weilacher, the interviewee, argues that most drivers of the global economic development do underestimate the wide range of non-economic values of landscape. He points out that public awareness on the values of landscape and environment somehow depends on the societal developing phase of a country, and hopes that developing countries would not go through the same developments that caused irreversible environmental damage, as what most developed countries did. Weilacher further reflects that the benefits of landscape cannot be economically calculated and landscape architects need to discuss environmental values beyond economic calculation. Finally, he argues that in the current college education of Landscape Architecture, economic aspects of landscape have not been emphasized enough, and landscape design has to be enthusiastic to overwhelm and fascinate people in order to persuade them to invest for environmental improvement.     

结合专业知识背景的城乡规划专业植物景观课程内容设计——以北京林业大学为例

园林植物是构建城市生态或区域风貌的重要内容之一,也是城乡规划从业者需要掌握的基础知识。但传统城乡规划教学体系尚未对此模块有较为完善的设置。以北京林业大学为例,从城乡规划植物景观课程的变迁和实践探索入手,结合课题项目与教学经验,不断改进课程设置。以期从城乡规划知识背景为出发点,通过对“城乡规划植物景观”课程教学组织的优化,达到加强学生对树种类型及空间分布、植物生境及生长状态、树种类型与文化背景、居民生活与优势种植、历史发展与城市变迁以及植物景观与区域风貌等方面的认知和应用能力,实现从课堂教学到实践应用的转化。     

Beyond the romantic and naı¨ve: the search for a complex ecological aesthetic design language for landscape architecture in New Zealand

Landscape design is an expression and repository of cultural values and beliefs, and in Aotearoa, New Zealand, the designed landscape faces particular challenges. Globalization is seen as a potential threat to landscape identity, which is even more significant for a country which has built its economy and self-image from its unique natural landscape. The potential for resistance is limited by the small size and youth of the profession of landscape architecture in New Zealand. While traditions of farming and gardening extend back to early European settlement in the mid nineteenth century, and beyond to indigenous Maori practices of land modification, professional landscape design is a relatively recent development (the first tertiary course in landscape architecture began at Lincoln College (now Lincoln University) in 1969). Landscape design in New Zealand draws its vocabulary from the power of the country's natural heritage landscapes, convinced that a naturalistic aesthetic exclusively represents environmental health. Some of the core values of New Zealand society are, however, overlooked by designers. The need to develop a critically informed design language which includes the farming landscape along with the natural one is argued. The invention of such a language, referred to as a complex ecological aesthetic, is seen as a potential source of design expression that is invigorated by the tension between mechanistic and natural landscape aesthetics. It therefore has the potential to promote environmental health, while being regionally grounded, and can help face the challenges that globilization poses to the landscape.