Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
influence management policies. It would appear
that the work of Harrison
et al
. (1986) had an
impact on the review of UK national countryside
recreation policy in the 1980s, while at a regional
level, Kirby (1993) highlights impending
management problems. She demonstrates a
divergence in values between residents and the
strategic management authority for the South
West New Zealand (Waahipounami) World
Heritage Area (Plate 16.2). This divergence
presents critical management choices, particularly
in the way that the area is interpreted to visitors.
More fundamentally, it points to the need for
changes in the management style and structures.
Researchers from this school have also informed
and perhaps led the world debate on the criteria
for designating cultural landscapes. The redrafted
cultural criteria for world heritage properties was
finally produced in 1992 (see Box 16.1).
This change led directly to the Tongariro
National Park in New Zealand being designated
as the first associative cultural landscape under
the new guidelines. The park itself was established
in 1887, when the Maori donated the three
sacred mountain peaks to the Crown for
conservation purposes. To date, the government
has prioritised the management of the natural
qualities and the recreational use of the area.
However, the newly affirmed recognition of
Tongariro as an associative cultural landscape
provides the government with the opportunity
to take greater account of the spiritual meaning
of the place in its practical management
strategies. The World Heritage Committee
insisted that the National Park Management Plan
and related processes should reflect and involve
Maori concerns more than they have in the past
(Department of Conservation 1990). But it still
remains to be seen whether and how the spiritual
values of Tongariro impact on its management
(Kirby 1997).
Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park in Australia
may be perceived by non-aboriginals as a unique
natural feature, and Ayers Rock is indeed an icon
of Australia. It was listed as a world heritage natural
site in 1986. However, the evolving world debate
on the social and cultural values of land-
Summary of the nature of the problem
It is clear that research cannot give policy makers
the clear, unambiguous answers that they seek. It
is not the role of research to make value
judgements or political decisions on behalf of the
policy makers. Landscape evaluation research,
however, can provide information about, and
interpretations of, the general population's
landscape values that can clarify the nature of the
decisions that face policy makers and landscape
managers (Sidaway 1990). Research can help
practitioners to understand the political nature and
practical implications of the decisions they do
make.
CASE STUDIES
Evidence of how research has influenced policy is
difficult to obtain by those outside the planning
and management process. The case studies
presented here are not necessarily 'best practice'
in research terms, but they do illustrate the ways
in which research appears to have influenced
management at site level, and policy at strategic
level.
Photo preference studies have frequently been
used to aid practical site management. At Cannock
Chase it was an integral part of the site
management plan (Box 16.2). More recently,
Karjalainen (1996) has used a similar methodology
to investigate stakeholders' preferences for
landscapes produced by different forms of forest
management in Finland. The emphasis was on
measuring respondents' preferences for the visual
characteristics of the vegetation patterns produced
by different methods of clear felling. Evidence of
the practical application of this example is less
direct, but it once again shows the potential for
this type of research to feed into forest
management at both site and forest level.
Landscape evaluation research has also had
some effect on strategic policy making. The
evolution of ethnographic and phenomenological
research into the social and cultural values and
meanings of landscapes has the capacity to
