Rural Landscape, Nature Conservation and Culture

Dear Colleagues,

The development model promoted in the last decades has not only shown to be ineffective to solve the economic problems of many rural areas, but also contributed to the loss of cultural values associated to rural communities. This has brought to the degradation of valuable landscapes shaped by several generations of farmers, to the abandonment of millions of hectares of farmed land and to urbanization processes, creating social degradation and increasing urban sprawl. As one of the human activities which has a direct relationship with nature and environment, agriculture and forestry are  often considered as some of the main drivers of the negative trend that is being followed, representing the greatest immediate threat to species and ecosystems. In fact, unsustainable farming and forest practices result in land conversion leading to soil erosion and degradation, habitat loss, genetic erosion, inefficient use of water, pollution impacting wild and human life. Nevertheless, when agriculture is practiced in a sustainable way, it can preserve landscape, biocultural diversity, protect watersheds, and improve soil health and biodiversity. In fact, the use of sustainable ecological practices is a key feature distinguishing resilient rural landscapes developed over centuries, based on cultural values and proven traditions. This kind of landscapes may be considered as less productive from modern-intensive systems, but it has ensured sustainable yield over time, thanks to time-tested technologies and traditional know-hows, using reduced external energy inputs. Furthermore, food production practices associated to the quality of landscape and tourism, may represent a fundamental added value for the competitiveness of many rural areas not suited for industrial agriculture. Considering the sustainable development goals and the need to combine human development with the conservation of the environment, reducing global warming, there is the need identify new models capable of integrating economic, social and environmental process, providing a new vision for the future of the planet. The special issue aims at collecting research papers discussing these topics.

Prof. Dr. Mauro Agnoletti
Guest Editor

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