The role of vegetation science in the conservation of cultural landscapes

Cultural landscapes are defined as the results of the combined action of nature and humans on the territory. Millennia of human presence on most of the Earth resulted in the current existence of many different cultural landscapes, shaped by different civilizations across time. Vegetation plays a key role in shaping landscapes and in their development. This is especially the case of cultural landscapes, where plant communities are deeply influenced by the management of men. Socio-economic changes directly and indirectly affect cultural landscapes due to shifts in such management strategies. This implies that cultural landscapes, as all landscapes in general, are highly dynamic and constantly changing, to the extent that they might disappear after the cessation of human activities or radical shifts of them. In this talk, I will discuss the role of vegetation science in the study of cultural landscapes, with special reference to their management and conservation.