Terraced Landscapes Regeneration in the Perspective of the Circular Economy

Abstract

Terraced landscapes were for centuries forms of sustainable and multifunctional land management, results of a long and intimate relationship between peoples and their environment. They demonstrated a rich cultural diversity and agrobiodiversity through sustainable land-use systems. These productive cultural landscapes in many cases were expressions of a pre-industrial circular model of rural development, where no resource was wasted. However, not all terraced landscapes have to be considered sustainable in themselves: in recent times, the terraces have undergone changes that have threatened their sustainability with abandonment and degradation as well as exclusively productive exploitation. This paper explores whether and how terraced landscape can recover an active role in modern society, analyzing emerging terraces recovery practices from the perspective of the circular economy. Innovative circular and productive uses of abandoned terraced landscapes aim at reducing the waste of natural and cultural resources, enlarging the lifetime (use value) of landscapes and preserving cultural and natural values for present and future generations. Results show that new functional uses of terraced landscapes are able to enhance in different ways their role as “middle landscapes” or places of mediation among economic, ecologic, ethical and aesthetic needs through circular adaptive reuse practices, becoming key drivers of new “circular” economies and a new pact between rural and urban regions.

Forsvik, Sweden: Towards a People–Public–Private Partnership as a Circular Governance and Sustainable Culture Tourism Strategy

“…Parallelly, using a circular economy (CE) helps develop a participatory governance or management system, mitigating financial risks and pressure. Thus, a CE fosters the socioeconomic contexts including equity, social inclusion and exchanged and/or joint responsibility in a sustainable manner [4].…”

“…These activities can preserve cultural asset(s) by providing multifunctionality on the ecological, social, cultural, and economic ground with less negative impacts on the host communities and slower/controlled modifications in the local economy. This could provide an authentic tourism experience with respect to the heritage community [4,7].…”

Coevolution between Terraced Landscapes and Rural Communities: An Integrated Approach Using Expert-Based Assessment and Evaluation of Winegrowers’ Perceptions (Northwest Piedmont, Italy)

“…Modica et al [16] observed a drastic reduction (−85.4%) in cultivated terraces between 1955 and 2014 in Costa Viola (Calabria, Italy), confirming the negative trend and highlighting the importance of maintaining sustainable agriculture and enhancing terraced systems. In effect, enhancing terraced landscapes using an innovative regeneration approach from a past-to-future perspective is an important challenge to developing sustainable agriculture and reactivating a local circular economy [17]. Indeed, this particular type of rural landscape needs sustainable practices that highlight historical value and mitigate threats [18].…”

OBIA-Based Extraction of Artificial Terrace Damages in the Loess Plateau of China from UAV Photogrammetry

“…Terracing can increase arable land and agricultural production [3,4] and contribute to soil and water conservation [5,6] by changing the local topography of slopes and their corresponding water flow process [7] and soil properties [8]. The artificially terraced landscapes that have been developed widely around the world [2,9] can enhance biodiversity and landscape diversity [10,11] and provide aesthetic, cultural, and tourism landscape value [12][13][14]. However, localised movement and erosion are likely to occur on terraced fields due to steep ridges, as manifested by the micro-landforms of terrace damages, including collapse and sinkholes [15][16][17][18].…”

“…J. Geo-Inf. 2021, 10, x FOR PEER REVIEW 2 of 19 versity and landscape diversity [10,11] and provide aesthetic, cultural, and tourism landscape value [12][13][14]. However, localised movement and erosion are likely to occur on terraced fields due to steep ridges, as manifested by the micro-landforms of terrace damages, including collapse and sinkholes [15][16][17][18].…”