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The 2016 Federal Budget: How did Large Landscapes Fare?

After months of uncertainty, weeks of negotiations and two short-term extensions to keep the government open, Congress passed and the President signed the 2009 page omnibus spending Bill, titled the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2016. How did federal initiatives that support landscape scale work and fund our natural and cultural conservation program fare?

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Jeju Island Korea Hosts International Experts on Cultural Landscapes

Jeju Island Korea offers a remarkable landscape of scenic beauty, rich heritage and future opportunities. It was the setting for the November 2015 Annual Meeting of the ICOMOS-IFLA International Scientific Committee on Cultural Landscapes (ISCCL). A meeting at which the conversation centered around the aesthetics of landscapes, connecting the practice of nature and cultural conservation, and an initiative to advance the understanding and conservation of world rural landscapes .

Read More »

The U.S. Biosphere Reserve Program: Can the challenges of the past contribute to the resiliency of the future?

It is easy to acknowledge our current state in UNESCO’s international Man and the Biosphere (MAB) program, but neglect to see how we got to this point. As one of the pioneers in large landscape conservation, biosphere reserves paved the path for many future landscape-scale efforts over the past several decades. Yet, most people in the United States are unfamiliar with the term, biosphere reserve, or assume the program has dissolved because of its long period of inactivity. Some people are trying to change this perception.

Read More »

Revealing a Lost Landscape

Urban areas have been and continue to be dramatically shaped by the intersection of human and non-human nature. Yet, these relationships are often hidden, with cities labeled as somehow unnatural or “less-than” areas where the influence of humans is perhaps not as visible. Recent work in Seattle seeks to challenges these narratives through the use of innovating mapping and artistic interpretation.

Read More »

Invisible Landscapes: Why Historic Site Interpretation is Needed for Today’s Narrative

With the face of historic preservation changing from house museums with a specific perspective on society, it is important that we address those changes by countering it through the narrative of the other. Diversity in the field of historic preservation is something that we are just beginning to deal with, and by understanding the role of diverse people and communities in our past for what it was, we can encourage people to recognize themselves in today’s continued narrative. Having visited both Monticello and Mount Vernon quite recently, there was a distinct difference in the atmosphere between the slave memorial and Washington’s tomb at Mount Vernon, and at Mulberry Row at Monticello. Read More.

Read More »

The 2016 Federal Budget: How did Large Landscapes Fare?

After months of uncertainty, weeks of negotiations and two short-term extensions to keep the government open, Congress passed and the President signed the 2009 page omnibus spending Bill, titled the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2016. How did federal initiatives that support landscape scale work and fund our natural and cultural conservation program fare?

Read More »

Jeju Island Korea Hosts International Experts on Cultural Landscapes

Jeju Island Korea offers a remarkable landscape of scenic beauty, rich heritage and future opportunities. It was the setting for the November 2015 Annual Meeting of the ICOMOS-IFLA International Scientific Committee on Cultural Landscapes (ISCCL). A meeting at which the conversation centered around the aesthetics of landscapes, connecting the practice of nature and cultural conservation, and an initiative to advance the understanding and conservation of world rural landscapes .

Read More »

The U.S. Biosphere Reserve Program: Can the challenges of the past contribute to the resiliency of the future?

It is easy to acknowledge our current state in UNESCO’s international Man and the Biosphere (MAB) program, but neglect to see how we got to this point. As one of the pioneers in large landscape conservation, biosphere reserves paved the path for many future landscape-scale efforts over the past several decades. Yet, most people in the United States are unfamiliar with the term, biosphere reserve, or assume the program has dissolved because of its long period of inactivity. Some people are trying to change this perception.

Read More »

Revealing a Lost Landscape

Urban areas have been and continue to be dramatically shaped by the intersection of human and non-human nature. Yet, these relationships are often hidden, with cities labeled as somehow unnatural or “less-than” areas where the influence of humans is perhaps not as visible. Recent work in Seattle seeks to challenges these narratives through the use of innovating mapping and artistic interpretation.

Read More »

Invisible Landscapes: Why Historic Site Interpretation is Needed for Today’s Narrative

With the face of historic preservation changing from house museums with a specific perspective on society, it is important that we address those changes by countering it through the narrative of the other. Diversity in the field of historic preservation is something that we are just beginning to deal with, and by understanding the role of diverse people and communities in our past for what it was, we can encourage people to recognize themselves in today’s continued narrative. Having visited both Monticello and Mount Vernon quite recently, there was a distinct difference in the atmosphere between the slave memorial and Washington’s tomb at Mount Vernon, and at Mulberry Row at Monticello. Read More.

Read More »