Agricultural Heritage Landscapes of Greece: Three Case Studies and Strategic Steps towards Their Acknowledgement, Conservation and Management

A new governance model for the conservation and enhancement of Italian ancient transhumance routes

Transhumance routes mark the natural path followed by herds during their seasonal movements. These routes are disappearing in many European countries. In Italy, a few fragments survive in Molise, in southern Italy, called Tratturi and run along grassy paths. The Tratturi are considered to be of archaeological, economic and landscape interest, sources of cultural and environmental attraction, protected by a national law. However, the landscapes connected to the Tratturi are disappearing both as a consequence of non-use and as a consequence of the advancement of wooded areas, and this poses a problem related to the governance system that involves many stakeholders, both at international, national and local level. The study, through the use of the combined approach of Stakeholder Basic Analysis and Social Network Analysis, identifies the role of the stakeholders involved, their power, their interest and their ability to support the decision-making system. Furthermore, the paper uses multivariate statistical analysis to detect the key stakeholders. A new model of governance, allowing to preserve the Tratturi and to enhance the services they can provide, is introduced, and it is named Authority for the Conservation and Enhancement of Tratturi (ACET). This study can help to identify appropriate management models for ancient routes based on all stakeholders involved, and more generally to implement shared and co-responsible planning choices in socio-ecological systems.

How Are Historical Villages Changed? A Systematic Literature Review on European and Chinese Cultural Heritage Preservation Practices in Rural Areas

Background: In the past century, the importance of historical villages has been highly recognized, as they serve aesthetic, functional, and environmental values and can foster local socioeconomic development through the heritagization process. The purpose of this paper is to outline the core features of the preservation and management of historical villages in the European and Chinese contexts. Methods: Using a qualitative systematic literature review, the research was based on international academic papers covering 73 case studies from the two contexts, addressing the fact that little work has been carried out comparing European and Chinese realities. Results: Similarities and differences in rural cultural heritage preservation and management between Europe and China were compared and discussed, paying particular attention to historical villages in both contexts. Using this method, rural heritage preservation in China can be better framed and analyzed for scholars engaged in both the Chinese and international contexts. Conclusions: Inspired by the European case studies, the research suggests that capacity building of different types of stakeholders, contextualized financial mechanism and multiple values the civic society perceived and recognized during the Chinese rural heritage preservation and management process should be further studied and implemented case by case based on a historical-sensitive approach. In addition, the issue of the lack of social capital and policy arrangements in rural areas should be further addressed to stimulate community resilience.

Does Agroforestry Correlate with the Sustainability of Agricultural Landscapes? Evidence from China’s Nationally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems

Compared with industrial monoculture, agroforestry has been perceived as a more sustainable approach to landscape management that provides various landscape-specific benefits. However, little is known about agroforestry’s influence on the comprehensive sustainability of agricultural landscapes. This study focused on the importance of agroforestry and its influence on landscape sustainability, using 118 China National Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (China-NIAHS) as cases. In each China-NIAHS, we evaluated the importance of agroforestry and the landscape’s comprehensive sustainability and explored their correlation. The findings indicate that agroforestry is important in most China-NIAHS. Agroforestry’s importance is strongly correlated with most sustainability indicators, including biodiversity, income diversity, resource utilization, hydrogeological preservation, and water regulation. Based on the findings, we discuss the role of agroforestry in promoting sustainability and provide suggestions for sustainable management and policymaking for agricultural landscapes on a national scale.

Evaluation of Landscape Quality in Valencia’s Agricultural Gardens—A Method Adapted to Multifunctional, Territorialized Agrifood Systems (MTAS)

Multifunctional agrifood systems with noteworthy roots in a territory are the result of a historical yet dynamic specialization. They are present in the place’s knowledge, social connections, collective action, the organization of institutions, innovation and capital. These systems are seen in the landscape, which becomes a resource as well as cultural and environmental heritage. In this regard, it is necessary to study the significance of the many aspects of heritage and landscape in agrifood systems to suitably manage and appreciate them as a territorial resource. This study develops and applies a quantitative method with various criteria to enable the landscape values of multifunctional, territorialized agrifood systems (MTAS in Spanish) to be evaluated, paying attention to essential matters such as the process of heritage recognition and the quality of their landscapes. To do so, a method designed by the authors for evaluating landscapes has been adapted to the peculiarities that define such systems, made up of criteria such as representativeness, authenticity, ecological integrity, vulnerability, accessibility and historical, social and symbolic values. The method has been applied to an exemplary Mediterranean landscape, the agricultural gardens of Valencia, which combine features of MTAS in metropolitan and coastal flatland contexts.