Landscape protection, management and planning entail rights and responsibilities for everyone.

The Council of Europe Landscape Convention aims to promote the protection, management and planning of landscapes, and to organise international co-operation in this field. It applies to the entire territory of the contracting parties and covers natural, rural, urban and peri-urban areas. It concerns landscapes considered outstanding, as well as everyday or degraded areas.

This publication presents thoughts and proposals for the implementation of the convention and addresses a "mosaic" of key issues related to its future. It forms part of a process of reflection on major themes concerning the living environment.

Table of contents:

• Preface
• Chapter 1 – Towards a grammar of European landscapes
• Introduction
• Methodological references
• Methodological guidelines
• Conclusions
• Chapter 2 – Designing agricultural landscapes for a sustainable development
• Introduction
• Landscape and agriculture: a long story
• The contribution of landscape to agriculture
• Landscape diagnosis and the agroecological project
• Conclusions
• Chapter 3 – The rural landscape in transition: energy, agriculture and demography
• Introduction
• Rural landscapes in energy transition
• Rural landscapes in agricultural transition
• Rural landscapes in demographic transition
• Rural landscapes in digital transition
• Conclusions
• Chapter 4 – Experiences of rural landscape
• Experience of Tuscany, Italy
• The Manifesto for the beauty of rural landscape in Campania, Italy
• Chapter 5 – Urbanisation, town planning and landscape
• Introduction
• Urbanisation, urbanism and landscape: elements of a complex equation
• The negative effects of urbanisation and contemporary urbanism on landscape
• Landscape as the foundation, means and purpose of a new type of urbanism
• Principles for a new, landscape-based urbanism
• Conclusions
• Chapter 6 – A review of integrated approaches to landscape monitoring
• Introduction
• Theoretical background
• Principles of landscape monitoring
• Landscape monitoring bodies and initiatives
• Proposing a typology of landscape monitoring
• Future challenges for landscape monitoring
• Conclusions
• Chapter 7 – Experiences with public funds and the landscape
• Introduction
• Austria
• France
• Ireland
• Latvia
• Poland
• Switzerland
• United Kingdom
• Canada
• United States
• Chapter 8 – Landscape and responsibility
• Introduction
• The concept of responsibility
• Responsibility and landscape
• Towards shared responsibility
• Responsibility, landscape and well-being
• Conclusions
• Chapter 9 – Professional recognition of landscape architects
• Introduction
• Professional bodies and global recognition
• Professional training and practice
• Professional recognition
• Investment in landscape
• Conclusions
• Appendices
• Chapter 10 – Dry stone in the landscape, inheritance and innovation for rural sustainability
• Introduction
• Dry stone: timeless and universal
• The use of dry stone, a contribution to sustainable development
• A range of uses for this building method
• Conclusions
• Chapter 11 – Walking the landscape
• Introduction
• A short history of walking
• From walking to hiking: the effects of industrialisation
• The development of hiking organisations
• Walking the landscape: an impression
• Walking the industrial landscape
• Walking the urban landscape
• Organised walking of the landscape
• Conclusions
• Chapter 12 – Traditional forms of thought and spirituality
• Introduction
• The Waldviertel region in Austria
• Songlines in Australia
• Ise in Japan
• Traditional Chinese concepts
• Conclusions
• Chapter 13 – Urban landscapes and climate change: the contribution of Landscape Architects to improve the quality of life
• Quality of life in towns and cities – science-based studies
• Landscape solutions
• Learning from landscape
• Opportunities and issues
• Conclusions
• Chapter 14 – Landscape and responsibility of stakeholders for sustainable and harmonious development