Panel 11 Reading Rural Landscapes as Heritage

The workshop will provide an overview of methods and tools necessary for the identification, documentation and interpretation of rural landscapes, as articulated in the ICOMOS-IFLA Principles Concerning Rural Landscapes as Heritage. Three short presentations will be followed by 30 minutes of discussion. Paper 11.1: Rural landscapes and the World Heritage List. This presentation provides a preliminary overview of a research project to identify and document rural landscapes within the 1,121 properties inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. The presentation highlights some issues including: contradictions among the range of protection mechanisms; matters related to the separation of cultural and natural heritage; and challenges in engaging local communities. Paper 11.2: The inventory and mapping of rural landscapes. This presentation provides an update on the ICOMOS-IFLA ISCCL World Rural Landscape Initiative (WRLI) (www.worldrurallandscapes.org). The WRLI components (Principles, Atlas, Glossary, Bibliography) reveal the methods and processes relevant to the inventory, classification and interpretation of rural landscapes, both outstanding and ordinary or representative landscapes. Although complicated and challenging, local application of the methods and processes are necessary for World Heritage management regimes. Paper 11.3: The need for diverse lenses to support rural landscape heritage. The ICOMOS-IFLA 2017 Principles provide a comprehensive outline of the fields and work required to better recognize and safeguard rural landscape heritage. This presentation will consider the scope of disciplinary expertise required to apply the Principles and outline some of the ways that diverse disciplines can best work together to achieve the aspirational goals stated in the Principles document