Landscape of culture and culture of landscape: does landscape ecology need culture?

摘要

The objects of study in landscape ecology become increasingly “cultural.” Humans now appropriate about 24% the Earth’s terrestrial net primary productivity (Haberl et al. 2007), and almost all ecosystems and landscapes around the world have been influenced or even “domesticated” by humans (Kareiva et al. 2007). Landscapes are endowed with, and continue to foster the development of, cultures, legacies, and stories. Landscape ecology needs to incorporate the different dimensions of landscapes, especially those concerning human–environmental relationships. However, the cultural dimension of landscapes has been neither adequately studied nor considered “mainstream” in contemporary landscape ecology. To move forward, we need to develop a deeper understanding of cultural landscapes, and connect culture with nature more consciously and more effectively in landscape ecological research.