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The book analyses the landscape as a geosystem in all its complexity (from the abiotic environment, and land use to socio-economic character) as an integrated natural resource, as society’s life space, as well as an object of planning and decision making on sustainable land use. It presents the landscape properties in the form of databases that comply with the INSPIRE Directive 2007/2/EC (INSPIRE – Infrastructure for Spatial InfoRmation in Europe) requirements, which can be used for a variety of purposes and can serve as a national spatial information database for the needs of applied landscape-ecological research and real-world spatial planning processes. The book also provides overview legends with complete domain values of selected attributes of all three landscape structures (primary, secondary and tertiary) routinely used in Slovakia. Lastly, the book offers an example of the construction and mapping of geocomplexes as well as the database creation on the model territory at the regional level.
Growth in the field of landscape ecology has included the development of methods and results that can be applied to an impressive range of environmental issues. This book addresses a broad spectrum of political, theoretical and applied aspects that often arise in the design and execution of landscape studies. The concepts of geographical scale and hierarchy arising within the confines of landscape ecology are examined, and a series of techniques are presented to address problems in spatial and temporal analysis. This book will provide the reader with a current perspective on this rapidly evolving science.
This book provides a comprehensive description of the landscape-ecological planning system LANDEP, and introduces the methodical procedure. LANDEP was developed at the Institute of Landscape Ecology of Slovak Academy of Sciences in Bratislava and has been applied in various planning processes at home and abroad. Despite the fact that the LANDEP methodology was defined in 1979, the methodological content, sequence of procedures and the application of concept in practice are still valid. The first two steps – analyses and syntheses – have the nature of fundamental research and result in the design and characteristics of complex landscape-ecological-spatial units. The final two steps – evaluations and proposals – address the needs of planning practice. The intermediate step – interpretations – has the character of applied research and forms the arguments and criteria for the assessment of landscape for its utilisation by humans.
This open access book presents current knowledge about ecosystem services (ES) in urban planning, and discusses various urban ES topics such as spatial distribution of urban ecosystems, population distribution, and physical infrastructure properties. The book addresses all these issues by: i) investigating to what extent ecosystem services are currently included in urban plans, and discussing what is still needed to improve planning practice; ii) illustrating how to develop ecosystem services indicators and information that can be used by urban planners to enhance plan design; iii) demonstrating the application of ES assessments to support urban planning processes through case studies; and i...
This practice-oriented and up-to-date monograph provides a sourcebook and reference guide to key trends and issues of sustainable spatial development and to the different approaches applied in European countries. The authors explore landscape consideration practice in European countries, with a special focus on Slovakia.
Landscape pattern is generated by a variety of processes, including disturbances. In turn, the heterogeneity of the landscape may enhance or retard the spread of disturbance. The complex relationship between landscape pattern and disturbance is the subject of this book. It is designed to present an illustrative analysis of the topic, presenting the perspectives of several different disciplines. The book includes conceptual considerations, empirical studies, and management examples. Important features include: hypotheses about the spread of disturbance and the effects of scale changes in landscape studies; the multidisciplinary approach; and the explicit focus on the landscape level. The intended audience comprises graduate students, academics, and professionals interested in landscape ecology. The reader will receive a state-of-the-art treatment of a current topic in landscape ecology.
A Framework for Geodesign: Changing Geography by Design, published by Esri Press, details the procedures that pioneer landscape architect and planner Carl Steinitz developed for the implementation of geodesign in the planning process. Geodesign is a methodology that provides a design framework and supporting technology to leverage geographic information, resulting in designs that more closely follow natural systems. Describing A Framework for Geodesign, author Steinitz says, "This book should be seen as a discussion with examples, intended to illustrate the issues and choices involved in the organization and management of large and complex geodesign studies and projects." Steinitz' framework is shaped by a set of six key questions he developed while analyzing and refining the geodesign process: How should the study area be described?; How does the study area function?; Is the current study area working well?; How might the study area be altered?; What difference might the changes cause?; How should the study area be changed?
This book takes as its starting point the need to examine critically the case for landscape reconnection. It looks at alleged disconnections and their supposed consequences. It explores the arguments about reconnecting the natural and human elements of whole landscapes. More broadly, it considers landscape as an arena within which science, humanities and professions can find common ground, and in which vivid social learning can occur about key social and environmental issues. It takes a dynamic view of landscape, in contrast to the popular image of timeless, traditional scenery. It accepts that even the most cherished cultural landscapes will change and, indeed, it views ‘change drivers’ as a potentially positive means of creating new connectivities between people and place. It recognises the growing interest in promoting resilience and ecosystem services across extensive landscapes - such as by creating new 'space' for water and wildlife.
Landscape ecology is a relatively new area of study, which aims to understand the pattern of interaction of biological and cultural communities within a landscape. This book brings together leading figures from the field to provide an up-to-date survey of recent advances, identify key research problems and suggest a future direction for development and expansion of knowledge. Providing in-depth reviews of the principles and methods for understanding landscape patterns and changes, the book illustrates concepts with examples of innovative applications from different parts of the world. Forming a current 'state-of-the-science' for the science of landscape ecology, this book forms an essential reference for graduate students, academics, professionals and practitioners in ecology, environmental science, natural resource management, and landscape planning and design.
With land planning, socioeconomics and natural systems as foundations, this book combines urban planning and ecological science in examining urban regions. Writing for graduate students, academic researchers, planners, conservationists and policy makers, and with the use of informative urban-region color maps, Richard Forman analyzes 38 urban regions from 32 nations, including London, Chicago, Ottawa, Brasilia, Cairo, Seoul, Bangkok, Canberra, and a major case study of the Greater Barcelona region. Alternative patterns of urbanization spread (including sprawl) are evaluated from the perspective of nature and people, stating land-use principles extracted from landscape ecology, transportation and hydrology. Good, bad and interesting spatial patterns for creating sustainable land mosaics are pinpointed, and urban regions are considered in broader contexts, from climate change to biodiversity loss, disasters and sense of place.