La diffusion d’une culture du paysage par les ateliers pédagogiques

This article analyses the relationship between higher education teaching establishments and their local authorities based on a retrospective evaluation of the workshops attended by the students in their final year at the Ecole national supérieure de paysage Versailles-Marseille (Versailles-Marseilles National School of Landscape Architecture) in partnership with public and private sector stakeholders from the PACA region. It re-examines the context and the objectives of the workshops, their impact in the field, their effectiveness and their long-term organisation. In addition to making it possible to initiate local operational approaches, the workshops often resulted in recurring partnerships, and in local stakeholders being made aware of landscape issues and of the importance of the specific approach of landscape architects. The pedagogical nature of these workshops provides a framework conducive to dialogue and to training commissioning authorities and elected representatives. This suggests that universities and establishments of higher education have a special role to play in providing a wider perspective to local and regional authorities absorbed by operational aspects. The long-term establishment of partnerships could, however, be improved to provide local authorities with more support in addressing local issues and in helping develop competence in the field of landscape development