Papers by Simon Swaffield
Applied Geography, 2013
ABSTRACT Public policy interventions concerning rural landscapes have grown significantly in rece... more ABSTRACT Public policy interventions concerning rural landscapes have grown significantly in recent decades in many developed countries and internationally, in response to a range of imperatives. These include concern for declining biodiversity, heritage and social wellbeing in the face of urbanisation, and structural change in rural economies involving both agricultural intensification and extensification. The public policy response has been a fragmented array of measures, both horizontally (across policy sectors) and vertically (across political-administrative-organisational levels). Against this background, rural landscape policy approaches are analysed in respect to their instrumentality and spatial logic, informed by Hägerstrand's concepts of territorial and spatial competence. A framework for local policy making and policy integration inspired by landscape strategy making approaches is presented and illustrated through four Danish experiments in rural landscapes of various scale and with different policy issues. Results suggest that landscape strategy making represents a promising way to improve policy integration in rural contexts but research is needed to find suitable ways to engage large scale intensive farming with the community based process.
Landscape and Urban Planning, 2000
Practical steps using landscape ecological concepts to better integrate nature and culture within... more Practical steps using landscape ecological concepts to better integrate nature and culture within New Zealand's agricultural landscape are proposed. In New Zealand, nature conservation is typically seen as distinct from agri-business, and the two goals are pursued in different places Ð with nature having steadily retreated from public view and experience. As a result, the New Zealand agricultural landscape is largely exotic, with little to indicate the rich biogeographical history of the land. In contrast, a productive cultural landscape in which indigenous species (and hence biodiversity) are both present and regenerating is projected. Ecological integrity is de®ned both in terms of life processes and indigenous content. Several examples are presented of spontaneous regeneration of indigenous species within the context of familiar landscape elements such as hedgerows, roadsides, shelterbelts, woodlots, gardens, and riparian margins. In combination, these elements have the potential to create a new landscape, culturally familiar, non-threatening and productive, yet also achieving biodiversity goals. Creation of such transitional landscapes can reinforce a sense of identity with the unique characteristics of New Zealand-Aotearoa, and in the longer term this will transform the way landscapes are perceived, valued and utilised. #
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Papers by Simon Swaffield