Landscape Strategies for Terraced Landscapes in the European Alpine Region Using a Mixed-Method Analysis Tool

Enrico Pomatto, Paola Gullino, Silvia Novelli, Marco Devecchi and Federica Larcher ()
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Enrico Pomatto: Department of Agricultural, Forest and Food Sciences, Research Centre for Rural Development of Hilly Areas, University of Turin, Largo Paolo Braccini 2, 10095 Grugliasco, Italy
Paola Gullino: Department of Agricultural, Forest and Food Sciences, Research Centre for Rural Development of Hilly Areas, University of Turin, Largo Paolo Braccini 2, 10095 Grugliasco, Italy
Silvia Novelli: Department of Agricultural, Forest and Food Sciences, Research Centre for Rural Development of Hilly Areas, University of Turin, Largo Paolo Braccini 2, 10095 Grugliasco, Italy
Marco Devecchi: Department of Agricultural, Forest and Food Sciences, Research Centre for Rural Development of Hilly Areas, University of Turin, Largo Paolo Braccini 2, 10095 Grugliasco, Italy
Federica Larcher: Department of Agricultural, Forest and Food Sciences, Research Centre for Rural Development of Hilly Areas, University of Turin, Largo Paolo Braccini 2, 10095 Grugliasco, Italy

Land, 2023, vol. 12, issue 6, 1-21

Abstract: Terraced landscapes are anthropic landscapes that need continuous management. Future planning policies need to develop bottom-up approaches in order to be able to take into consideration the perspectives of decision makers (DMs) and civil society stakeholders (CSs). Using a participatory mixed-method approach, this research work identified and prioritized the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT analysis) perceived as key factors for setting future landscape strategies. The aims were (i) to develop a methodological framework for the enhancement of the terraced landscapes using a bottom-up approach, (ii) to identify and rank the favorable and unfavorable factors affecting their management in the European Alpine Region, and (iii) to develop alternative and future landscape strategies. The methodology was applied in nine Italian and Swiss cross-border terraced landscapes. An online focus group was organized together with a decision maker from each study area in order to identify the SWOT items for their enhancement. Subsequently, a focus group for each study area was organized with civil society stakeholders. They prioritized the SWOT items based on the local context and territorial issues using a cumulative voting method. The results were normalized, and these allowed for the development of local and supralocal landscape strategies that were both common to the cross-border terraced landscapes and specific to the main land uses characterizing them.

Keywords: UNESCO cultural landscape; agricultural systems; bottom-up approach; focus group technique; landscape planning; historical rural landscape (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jlands:v:12:y:2023:i:6:p:1252-:d:1174149

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