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NOTICE BOARD:- PAGE ONE PAGE TWO PAGE THREE  

Our Notice Board brings you up to date news on the activities of Landscape Alliance Ireland, together with news regarding the landscape way in Ireland, Europe and elsewhere.

Landscape Alliance Ireland calls for a dedicated European Landscape Convention unit in the Department of Environment, Heritage & Local Government.

Since Landscape Alliance Ireland (LAI), as a small progressive non-governmental organisation first called in1995 for a National Landscape Policy, it has influenced decision makers and many others with 7 national landscape forums and proceedings, a proposal for an interdepartmental committee on landscape, surveys, a website, insightful consultation submissions, European and Irish research projects and partnerships: encouraging and fostering an awareness of landscape as a unifying framework for environmental, heritage and social concerns in the context of economic development. Its strategy has aimed to encourage informed landscape management and to move landscape up the national agenda ensuring that all legislation was 'landscape proofed'.

LAI has since 1996 worked with the Council of Europe in developing and advancing the European Landscape Convention, influencing the Irish decision to sign and ratify in March 2002. The European Landscape Convention has been one of the success stories of the Council of Europe, its workshops and conferences are very well attended and initiatives inspired by the convention are being implemented in many countries, with considerable inter-state collaboration.

Following some uncertainty, responsibility for the convention in Ireland was appropriately vested in the Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government.

June 2005 represented an important milestone for Landscape Alliance Ireland when it forged a unique partnership with the Doehlg, local authorities, heritage and landscape bodies to have Cork, 2005 European City of Culture, host the Third Meeting of the Council of Europe European Landscape Convention Workshops.

The Cork workshops, the first held outside Strasbourg were regarded by delegates as an exceptional success and have since led to similar workshops in Slovenia and Spain in 2006 and that scheduled for Romania in 2007.

Whether due to ministerial lack of interest or other factors, the Doehlg was a reluctant workshop participant from the beginning; this despite the fact that as the workshops were a Council of Europe event, the Doehlg had to be involved. In response to pressure from LAI they agreed in late 2003 that Ireland would host the event. Landscape Alliance Ireland, having initiated the proposal, undertook the formidable task of organising the event. But in 2004 and again in the immediate lead-up to the event in June 2005, not only did the Doehlg fail to actively participate in the preparatory work they even partially withdrew support on two separate occasions. LAI were required to appeal for assistance to ministers, ministers of state and MEPs to this negative attitude.

Such was the success of the Cork workshops that certain delegates suggested that the LAI representative might be proposed for the position of president/chairperson of the European Landscape Convention. This possibility emerged at the Cork workshop in 2005 and the election in question took place in March of this year at the Council of Europe Landscape Convention conference in Strasbourg. For protocol and financial reasons this proposal required the support of the Doehlg. The Doehlg decided not to support this proposal at the last minute. They may well have had very good reasons for their decision, but the manner in which the decision was taken appeared to show little respect for the excellent work of LAI over the past 12 years or the constraints faced by such a voluntary organisation. For a government department to treat a small but effective voluntary organisation in this manner is destructive to the spirit of active citizenship that underpins a healthy, democratic, constitutional society.

As Ireland signed and ratified the convention, surely it is incumbent on the Government and its officials to work with all citizens in the full implementation of the convention. To do otherwise is irresponsible and damaging to the European Landscape Convention, the Council of Europe and the very important work it undertakes on behalf of all the citizens of Europe.

LAI believes that the poor record of the department may in part be due to the absence of a dedicated unit of suitably qualified people with an appreciation and understanding of landscape. The ratifying states that are embracing the convention successfully already appear to have such units.

LAI therefore calls for the establishment of such a unit, accompanied by a ministerial commitment to proactively implement the European Landscape Convention. Such a unit would be cost effective, leading to improved landscape management with fewer inappropriate, controversial planning decisions and a quality Irish landscape that will enrich the lives of citizens and visitors alike.

Issued on the 16th May 2007 by:
Terry O'Regan, Founder/Co-coordinator,
Landscape Alliance Ireland,
Old Abbey Gardens,
Waterfall, Near Cork City.
Tel. 021 4871460 Fax. 021 4872503
E.mail. bhl@indigo.ie
www.lai-ireland.com

Landscape Alliance Ireland calls for a European Union Landscape Policy reflecting the aims, objectives and measures of the Council of Europe European Landscape Convention.

On the 22nd March Ireland signed and ratified the European Landscape Convention. The convention entered into force on the 1st March 2007.

A majority of EU member states have now signed and ratified the convention namely - Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia and the United Kingdom. Member state than have signed but have yet to ratify include - Greece, Hungary, Latvia, Malta, Spain and Sweden. Only Austria, Estonia and Germany have yet to sign or ratify.

It is obvious therefore that a majority of the citizens of the European Union support the aims and principles of the European Landscape Convention and it is reasonable to conclude that they would wish to have all legislation affecting their landscape guided by the measures contained in the convention.

At present the EU does not have a Landscape Policy and its decisions and actions are greatly compromised by this oversight. At the Council of Europe Landscape Convention workshops and conferences, there is an increasing recognition that this weakness in the EU policy portfolio is likely to act as an obstacle to the full implementation of the convention in member states.

Having lead the way in Ireland with its call in1995 for a National Landscape Policy, Landscape Alliance Ireland (LAI), a small progressive non-governmental organisation has influenced decision makers and many others with 7 national landscape forums and proceedings, a proposal for an interdepartmental committee on landscape, surveys, a website, insightful consultation submissions, European and Irish research projects and partnerships: encouraging and fostering an awareness of landscape as a unifying framework for environmental, heritage and social concerns in the context of economic development. Its strategy has aimed to encourage informed landscape management and to move landscape up the national agenda ensuring that all legislation was 'landscape proofed'.

LAI has since 1996 worked with the Council of Europe in developing and advancing the European Landscape Convention, influencing the Irish decision to sign and ratify in March 2002. The European Landscape Convention has been one of the success stories of the Council of Europe, its workshops and conferences are very well attended and initiatives inspired by the convention are being implemented in many countries, with considerable inter-state collaboration.

Directly and indirectly EU legislation has an over-arching and increasing influence on the management of the landscape of member states. It is therefore vital that it has a framework policy in place to ensure that all EU legislation is 'landscape-proofed'.

As Ireland has signed and ratified the convention, it is incumbent on the it's representatives to support the full implementation of the convention across Europe. This would be greatly assisted through an informed and integrated EU landscape policy and strategy.

LAI therefore calls on all Irish MEPs to work together in support of the formulation and adoption of a European Union Landscape Policy, informed by the European Landscape Convention and the wealth of European research and co-operation invested in the process of the convention over the past 12 years.

Issued on the 16th May 2007 by:
Terry O'Regan, Founder/Co-coordinator,
Landscape Alliance Ireland,
Old Abbey Gardens,
Waterfall, Near Cork City.
Tel. 021 4871460 Fax. 021 4872503
E.mail. bhl@indigo.ie
www.lai-ireland.com

European Landscape Convention Workshop
Cork, Ireland 16/17/18th June 2005


Landscape Alliance Ireland in partnership with the Council of Europe, Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government, Cork City Council, Cork County Council, Cork 2005, The Heritage Council and the South West Regional Authority hosted a Council of Europe European Landscape Convention Workshop in the Concert Hall, City Hall, Cork in June. 

It was most appropriate that the workshop met in Cork this year, Cork being the European City of Culture for 2005 and the workshop was one of the key cultural events in the programme. 
This workshop will provided an opportunity for Ireland to demonstrate how it is  implementation of the European Landscape Convention which came into force on the 1st of March 2004 whilst concurrently providing the Irish and visiting delegates with the opportunity to benefit from the exchange of points of view and experience of delegations from 33 European countries.

Exhibitions and public lectures on landscape issues were organised in association with the workshop.
The proceedings of the workshops are currently being prepared and will be avilable in due course from the Council of Europe.  We will place the Irish presentations on this website in the near future. 

Click here for programme 

National Landscape Forum 2003


The Sixth National Landscape Forum convened in the Firkin Crane, Shandon, Cork on Friday the 2nd of May 2003 and featured what many delegates regarded as one of the most realistic and dynamic debates on housing in Ireland in recent years.


The opening address by Maurice Moloney, Cork County Manager was frank and honest and gave a valuable overview to the planning scenerio with regard to housing. This was followed by a very cosmopolitan presentation from Sean Kearns, Architect with Murray O' Laoire Architects on Housing in Cities and Large Towns chaired most ably by John Andrews, Senior Planner with Waterford City Council.


The second presentation on Housing in Rural and Coastal Areas by Dr. Harriet Emerson, Former Project Manager on the Bantry Bay Charter was acclaimed by the delegates and Richard Webb the then President of Irish Landscape Institute contributed greatly to the proceedings as he chaired the session.


The closing address on housing involved a very proactive presentation by Emer O Siochru of EOS Architects on Housing in Small Towns and Villages and this session chaired by Colin Sage, Department of Geography, UCC provided the essential counterbalance between the two extremes of dense urban housing and isolated rural housing.

This was an important debate and we are currently working on the proceedings and would hope to start placing sections of same on the website shortly with the full proceeding being available towards the end of 2004.

Housing development in Ireland over the past 30 years, be it suburban housing estates, one-off rural housing, and latterly apartments or holiday villages, has attracted its share of criticism and indeed condemnation at times from environmental bodies, the media and others.

The fact that the criticism and condemnation is as vociferous today as it was 30 years ago would suggest an unchanged scenario. Indeed it could be said that the bungalow, the Tiffany Downs, the shoebox apartment and holiday village rural suburbiana in an unlikely alliance have comfortably won the war.

Have we really failed so dismally? Is there a better way? Does anyone really care? Who is in control?

In view of the fact that housing often defines our landscape and that our houses are our homes and that the spatial relationship between our homes, our service/leisure sectors and our work places define our communities, it is irresponsible and indeed a national tragedy that there has been so little interactive and productive debate.

It is inappropriate and counterproductive to address urban and rural housing in isolation, because the degree of interaction and exchangeability between the two must be confronted, if a better outcome is to be achieved. The 2003 Landscape Forum provided the opportunity for such joined up thinking.

The forum provided speakers and delegates with the opportunity to focus on solutions and successful models for the design, planning and construction of our housing in order to meet the needs of a home hungry population in an aesthetic, sustainable, social and functional manner, with the people for once calling the shots.

The forum opened with a session on the implementation of the European Landscape Convention with presentations by Terry O' Regan of Landscape Alliance Ireland on the convention itself and a presentation by Cathy Buchanan of U-one-R Partnership Solutions on Landscape Alliance Ireland's participation in the EU funded European Landscape Characterisation Assessment Initiative which is still on-going and should provide valuable information before the end of this year.

The National Landscape Forum was organised in association with Cork Environmental Forum

The National Landscape Forum 2003 was supported by The Heritage Council.

"Heidegger called language the house of being, but the language of landscape truly is the house of being; we dwell within it. To dwell - to make and care for a place- is self expression."
from The Language of Landscape, by Anne Whiston Spirn.


National Landscape Forum 2001

National Landscape Forum 2001, 'Managing Landscape Locally', convened in Fota House, Fota Island, Cork, on Friday 16th November and the event proved to be extremely successful with excellent presentations demonstrating the importance of landscape to all our lives, and illustrating the difficulties involved in bringing together 'top-down' measures and 'bottom-up' concerns.

There was great participation from the delegates and the workshop sessions were lively and proactive with the difficulties of addressing the gap between top down and bottom up concerns being illustrated again and again.

The proceedings of the 2001 Forum are currently available in printed format from Landscape Alliance Ireland and will be available on the web-site later this year.

National landscape Forum 2001 was supported by the Department of the Environment and Local Government, Cork County Council,
An Bord Glas and The Heritage Council


National Landscape Forum 1998 - Proceedings

We have recently recommenced adding papers to the 1998 Landscape Forum Proceedings and this process will continue on a monthly basis from now on.