Zdeněk Kučera, Silvie Kučerová

Heritage in Changing

Landscape – Selected

Examples from Czechia

Charles University in Prague, Faculty of Science,Department

of Social Geography and Regional Development

The contribution is based on results of research grant projects supported by The Grant Agency of Charles University (No. 150007 ): Areal Preservation – Barrier or Tool of Areal Development? and by the VaV

project MMR ČR (No. WD-01-07-1): Regional differenciation of rural municipalities in Czechia: Disparities and developmental opportunities.

CONSIDERABLE QUESTIONS

1) Is landscape heritage either the combination of cultural

and natural heritage or is it something specific?

(see Lowenthal 2005)

2) For whom and for what is landscape heritage

important?

3) How much is areal preservation important in landscape

management? And why?

4) Does, or at least may, areal preservation positively

affect development and future landscape changes

in certain area as a platform for cooperation, or is it

rather a source of conflicts?

WHAT IS LANDSCAPE rather felt than strictly defined meaning

sometimes confused with other terms

→ e.g. region (Hägerstrand 1995), environment

(Baker 2003), place (Setten 2006)

long debate on the meaning of landscape in

geography central concept (Sauer 1925)

rejected (Hartshorne 1939); scenic nature (Cosgrove

1985, 1998) territorial aspect (Olwig 2002)

object of interest for many disciplines “landscape

as a (…) trendy catch-all term” (Lowenthal 2007)

the need to develop one general definition (Jones

1991)

EUROPEAN LANDSCAPE

CONVENTION

ELC´s definition of landscape: “An area,

as perceived by people, whose character is the

result of the action and interaction of natural and/or

human factors.”

1) has not only a visual (scenery), but also

a spatial aspect (territory)

2) because it is a territory, it has definite borders

3) we perceive it, we can develop a certain

relation to it → can become part of our identity

or we can perceive it as a symbol or a part of

identity of something (someone) different

LANDSCAPE VALUES

perceived as a heritage especially on the 2

levels (Kučera, Kučerová 2008):

1) individual experience ... lived environment,

give landscape meanings and values, part of

individual´s identity

2) societal ideology ... corporate values,

expressed through political decisions e.g.

designation of protected areas

LANDSCAPE AND REGION landscape can become a part of regional identity as defined

by Paasi (1986) → basis for regional consciousness, part of

idenity of region

influences how we perceive region not unambiguous

relationship:

1) regions defined more on the basis of relationships than

homogeneity, landscapes usually defined according to its

homogeneity and consistency of structural characteristics

2) discrepancy can exist between the definition of a given

region and the landscape by which we identify the region

→ their territorial definitions do not have to be identical

3) the way we perceive a certain area on the basis of its given

scenery is not only dependent on where we define its

borders but also on how we perceive the significance

of these borders in relation to others

THE BORDERLAND

simple typology of potential local attachment of

inhabitants in districts of municipalities

simple model of reality based on quantitative

indicators further discussion and evaluation

through the research in case study areas

main presumption: Valuable is the landscape in

which people want to live.

Individuals develop a certain kind of relationship to it

(part of their identity)

Direct expression of this value:

a) wants to stay and live there

b) wants to participate actively on its future development

Component 1: Traditional non-transfer municipalities

inland resettled borderland

main contributors:

+ share of natives and believers,

- share of other nationalities

most important component

Fig. 2: Change in population density, 1869 – 2001, municipalities, Czechia

THE BORDERLAND entire areas can differ from each other according to

the strength of the relationship between people and

the place in which they live

we may state that:

1) significant conditions continue to exist for

perceiving the former German border regions as

independent territorial units → as “the Borderland”

2) in spite of the fact that it is not a homogenous unit

and borderland means areas around certain borders

in general

subsequent changes to the landscape do not have to

be perceived negatively today, ethnic characteristics

have been replaced with environmental factors

AREAL PRESERVATION

more or less successful management of certain

characteristics or elements in particular areas

selected and delimited for its protection

areas defined by law that are believed to have

some exceptional value which is worth of

protection

sometimes perceived as being connected with

posing unnecessary restrictions on areal

development

shows where the most valuable landscapes

on the national level are

Fig. 3: Areal preservation in Czechia, 2007

MOST VALUABLE LANDSCAPES

simple typology for districts of municipalities

main presumption: Landscape is most valuable

there, where it is most intensively protected.

based on the data about protected areas of

natural as well as cultural heritage information

about number and extent per municipality

protected areas very heterogenous in their

meanings and purposes (aims and goals of its

protection)

typology is rather mean than result of research

needs further discussion

Fig. 4: Importance of areal preservation (Most valuable landscapes)

medium and high values in

“the Borderland”, around

major regional borders, in

areas with intersection of

natural and cultural values,

in core areas

COMPARISON OF TYPOLOGIES

1) both characteristics significant … E and SE

parts of Moravia, tendency to extend the

impression of these areas to remainder of the

wider territorial unit

2) small potential for the relationship, landscape

value high … borderlands of S, W, N Bohemia,

outward symbols extending far into the interior

(Šumava S Bohemia), influence of positive

landscape values can be quite small due to

dominant negative feature (lignite mining in N

Bohemia)

3) other areas … image founded on other values than

landscape, image is weak (central Bohemia)

relationships between regions and their

landscapes can be manifold

our view depends primarily on which landscapes

we consider at a given moment to be valuable

areal preservation has a very significant role in

its reproduction → (e.g. Němec, Pojer, eds. 2007)

while speaking about regions divided by borders,

we should also consider the influence of other

types of borders in addition to administrative

or political ones

CONCLUDING REMARKS

THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION