Landscape Ecology

Landscape Ecology Brief illustration

Landscape Ecology: History Milan Ruzicka 1975 IALE Czechoslovakia Landscape Ecology has been energized by key contributions from landscape architects,  foresters,  planners,  geographers,  artists,  environmentalists,  philosophers… Inclusive rather than Exclusive

Landscape ecology: what is it?

Landscape ecology is the study of spatial variation in landscapes at a variety of scales. It includes the biophysical and societal causes and consequences of landscape heterogeneity. Above all, it is broadly interdisciplinary. The conceptual and theoretical core of landscape ecology links natural sciences with related human disciplines.

On the official website of IALE, 2011 http://www.landscape-ecology.org/

„Geography“ period Where it is?  What this is?  Look on the landscape at a time in great scale  Carl Troll, 1936, using air/born photo of landscape 

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LANDEP, Ruzicka, 1980, tools for landscape planing

„THE“ period Zev Naveh, Isaak Zoneveld 1975 .....1980, 1990 geography, humanity explicity ecumenical 

„Do not draw boundaries around the field too soon. Welcome to use the insight of all relaled fields that chaose to build liknages“

Integration, THE, intedisciplinarity...

• Bridge between science and humanities (Zev Naveh)

Spatial period Forman R.T.T. and Godron, M. 1986. Landscape Ecology. Mosaic patterns, process and change Patch – corridor – matrix model LE offers methodologically opportunities for reserch and theory LE spatially integrating people and nature Balance between land-use and human culture

„Out of human system“ period J.I. Nassauer, R. G. H. Bunce, 1990 Spatial details Models

Landscape sociology period? Advanced illustration

Shift towards landscape (and) sociology? Landscape ecology • • • • • •

Tools for better landscape planning Balance between land-use and human culture Filling societal demands Societal demands ….carrying capacity Landscape as narrative system Landscape as valuable system itself

…landscape (and) sociology? 

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Spatial problems of landscape – no human phenomenon Human as the other ecological factor – external effect Human as demands system, aim, strategy – planning Human as a system itself, culture, perception, values – very rare in landscape ecology

Integration, THE, intedisciplinarity... Proclamations and facts

• Bridge between science and humanities (Zev Naveh)

Our Research: Metodology Content analyses 1999-2008 leading LE journals Landscape Ecology:   

Landscape Ecology Landscape and Urban Planning Ekológia (Bratislava).

LE

708

LUP

930

Ekológia 890

Total

2528

no articles, proceeding papers, review articles

yes

editorials,

introductions,

prefaces, perspectives, comments, replies

Metodology We reviewed 2528 abstracts of scientific articles in LE and LUP journals. This number means all articles from the decade available through Web of Science (LE) and Science Direct (LUP). Articles were divided into 3 groups/categories according to the position of human system (Social, Natural & Technical management). All abstracts were read, not just checked according to keywords. In Social group all full version of articles were reviewed.

Categories 

Social 

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NT management 

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human system is an object of research

for human, but human system is not research object

Natural 

human system is not an object of reserach

Results Landscape Ecology 100% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0%

přírodní

technické sociální

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

Landscape Ecology

Natural 83%

Social 5%

NT mngmt 12%

Results Landscape and Urban Planning 100% 80% přírodní

60%

technické

40%

sociální

20% 0% 1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

Landscape and Urban Planning Natural 33%

Social 37%

NT mngmt 30%

Results Ekológia 100% 80% přírodní

60%

technické

40%

sociální

20% 0% 1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

Ekológia

8% 12%

80%

Results (%) LE

LUP

Ekológia

Social

5,5

36,2

8,4

NT mngm

11,9

30,3

11,5

Natural

82,6

33,4

80,1

LE

LUP

Ekológia

Discussion and conclusion •

While some other studies and reviews are focused on more criterias, i.e. Wiens (1992), Hobbs (1997) and Andersen (2008), we focused mainly on social system in landscape as primary research object, which requires connection with social sciences. From this point of view we can note that LUP has evidently better proportional concern on social aspects of landscape than LE, even higher than Antrop’s study shows (2001). Landscape Ecology, the house journal of IALE, doesn’t meet its proclamated role to be the bridge between nature and culture, between science and humanities. Analysis of our total sample of abstracts and articles shows Andersen’s (2008) conclusion about articles focusing on sociology in LE like overemphasized, maybe due to random sampling of 50 cases and classification of papers belonging to Social system following her very broad definition as „some aspect of sociology“.

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Results show that the real cooperation with social sciences (Golley, 1996), integrating humans into landscape ecology (Wu and Hobbs, 2002) and concept of Total Human Ecosystem (Naveh, 2000) are more proclamations and wishes than a real way of thinking among the group of landscape ecologists presenting their papers in the elite house journal of IALE. It looks like reductionism towards landscape science bears fruit.

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Isn´t it the right time for return to landscape ecology?

Conclusion I patterns

patterns

pattern s

scale

process

process

changes

patterns – process - changes disturbances

disturbances

Conclusion II Have humanities something valuable to offer to natural sciences? • Isn’t landscape too cultural construct?

• Reduction of landscape to too scientific term without any cultural context.

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Ecological reality

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Social construction

Next presentation: Landscape as nature - culture continuum 

Sociological perspectives

or Final essay concerns the possible future development of Landscape Sociology or Landscape Studies in general