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Understanding the current state and dynamics of any forest is
extremely difficult - if not impossible - without recognizing its
history. Bialowieza Primeval Forest (BPF), located on the border
between Poland and Belarus, is one of the best preserved European
lowland forests and a subject of myriads of works focusing on
countless aspects of its biology, ecology, management. BPF was
protected for centuries (15th-18th century) as a game reserve of
Polish kings and Lithuanian grand dukes. Being, at that time, a
part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, BPF was subject to
long-lasting traditional, multi-functional utilisation
characteristic for this part of Europe, including haymaking on
forest meadows, traditional bee-keeping and fishing in rivers
flowing through forest. This traditional model of management came
to an abrupt end due to political change in 1795, when Poland and
Grand Duchy of Lithuania ceased to exist in effect of partitioning
by neighbouring countries, and the territory of BPF was taken over
by the Russian Empire. The new Russian administration, influenced
by the German trends in forestry, attempted at introducing the new,
science-based forestry model in the BPF throughout the 19th
century. The entire 19th century in the history of BPF is a story
of struggle between new trends and concepts brought and implemented
by new rulers of the land, and the traditional perception of the
forest and forest uses, culturally rooted in this area and
originating from mediaeval (or older) practices. The book will show
the historical background and the outcome of this struggle: the
forest's history in the long 19th century focusing on tracking all
cultural imprints, both material (artificial landscapes, introduced
alien species, human-induced processes) and immaterial (traditional
knowledge of forest and use of forest resources, the political and
cultural significance of the forest) that shaped the forest's
current state and picture. Our book will deliver a picture of a
crucial moment in forest history, relevant not only to the Central
Europe, but to the continent in general. Moment of transition
between a royal hunting ground, traditional type of use widespread
throughout Europe, to a modern, managed forest. Looking at main
obstacles in the management shift, the essential difference in
perceptions of the forest and goods it provides in both modes of
management, and the implications of the management change for the
state of BPF in the long 19th century could help in better
understanding the changes that European forests underwent in
general.
Like one of the ancient trees he wrote about so elegantly and
perceptively, Oliver Rackham’s roots run deep while his influence
branches far. He was undoubtedly the leading scholar in landscape
history and historical ecology, and his work continues to resonate
not just with his peers but with a much wider public audience too.
His combination of extensive archival research, meticulous
fieldwork and place-name analysis were truly ground-breaking. He
not only changed the way we think about the landscape; he in fact
altered that landscape in turn – enriching, clarifying, bringing
it to life. This book, which honours Rackham’s memory, is a
unique collection of contributions from leading global authorities
on countryside and landscape history. A number of chapters come
from individuals who were his friends and collaborators, and they
each share a debt to his scholarship and methods. Ranging all over
Europe from Białowieża Forest in Poland to the Mediterranean, and
across the world from New England to northern Japan, the wealth of
perspectives gathered here makes for a diverse and weighty
discussion. Collectively, the contributions represent an
acknowledgment of Rackham’s huge impact and influence at the same
time as offering a benchmark for current thinking in countryside
history worldwide. This volume will appeal to researchers,
postgraduate students, final-year undergraduates, lecturers and
scholars on the one hand, but also to anyone who loves the
countryside and is fascinated by its complex history. As we lose
irreplaceable heritage landscapes to climate change and
development, an understanding of what they are and what they mean
only becomes more vital.
This major book explores commons, lands and rights of usage in
common, traditional and customary practices, and the cultural
nature of landscapes . Importantly, it addresses now critical
matters of cultural severance and largely unrecognized impacts on
biodiversity and human societies, and implications for
conservation, sustainability, and local economies. The book takes
major case studies and perspectives from around the world, to
address contemporary issues and challenges from historical and
ecological perspectives. The book developed from major
international conferences and collaborations over around fifteen
years, culminating "The End of Tradition?" in Sheffield, UK, 2010.
The chapters are from individuals who are both academic researchers
and practitioners. These ideas are now influencing bodies like the
EU, UNESCO, and FAO, with recognition by major organisations and
stakeholders, of the critical state of the environment consequent
on cultural severance."
For at least half a century since the emergence of Country Parks
and Forest Parks, countryside services have provided leisure,
tourism, conservation, restoration and regeneration across Britain.
Yet these services are currently being decimated as public services
are sacrificed to the new era of austerity. The role and importance
of countryside management have been barely documented, and the
consequences and ramifications of cuts to these services are
overlooked and misunderstood. This volume rigorously examines the
issues surrounding countryside management in Britain. The author
brings together the results of stakeholder workshops and
interviews, and in-depth individual case studies, as well as a
major study for the Countryside Agency which assessed and evaluated
every countryside service provision in England. A full and
extensive literature review traces the ideas of countryside
management back to their origins, and the author considers the
wider relationships and ramifications with countryside and ranger
provisions around the world, including North America and Europe.
The book provides a critical overview of the history and importance
of countryside management, detailing the achievements of a largely
forgotten sector and highlighting its pivotal yet often
underappreciated role in the wellbeing of people and communities.
It serves as a challenge to students, planners, politicians,
conservationists, environmentalists, and land managers, in a
diversity of disciplines that work with or have interests in
countryside, leisure and tourism, community issues, education, and
nature conservation.
From antiquity until today, trees and woods have inspired artists,
writers and scientists; they have shaped cultures and reverberated
through belief systems. Yet worldwide forest cover has declined
dramatically over the last 1,000 years. Now, primeval forests are
only to be found at a few sites unreachable by humans, and even
then they are affected by climate change, atmospheric pollution and
species extinctions. Nonetheless, ancient woods, trees and
forests are at the core of many global landscapes. Understanding
the vital resources that they provide requires genuinely
multidisciplinary research. With contributions from major
authorities in the field such as Oliver Rackham, Frans Vera,
Elisabeth Johann, George Peterken and Melvyn Jones among others,
this timely volume reflects on the importance of our oldest trees
from a range of perspectives and varied geographical locations.
Individual chapters consider eco-cultural heritage, the archaeology
of trees, landscape history, forest rights, tree management,
saproxylic insects, the importance of deadwood, practical
conservation and monitoring, biodiversity, wood-pasture and more.
Fresh insights are provided from across Europe as far as Turkey.
Given the urgent need to understand, conserve and restore ancient
woodlands and trees, this book will do much raise awareness, foster
enthusiasm and inspire wonder.
In this comprehensive book, the critical components of the European
landscape - forest, parkland, and other grazed landscapes with
trees are addressed. The book considers the history of grazed treed
landscapes, of large grazing herbivores in Europe, and the
implications of the past in shaping our environment today and in
the future. Debates on the types of anciently grazed landscapes in
Europe, and what they tell us about past and present ecology, have
been especially topical and controversial recently. This treatment
brings the current discussions and the latest research to a much
wider audience. The book breaks new ground in broadening the scope
of wood-pasture and woodland research to address sites and
ecologies that have previously been overlooked but which hold
potential keys to understanding landscape dynamics. Eminent
contributors, including Oliver Rackham and Frans Vera, present a
text which addresses the importance of history in understanding the
past landscape, and the relevance of historical ecology and
landscape studies in providing a future vision.
In this comprehensive book, the critical components of the European
landscape - forest, parkland, and other grazed landscapes with
trees are addressed. The book considers the history of grazed treed
landscapes, of large grazing herbivores in Europe, and the
implications of the past in shaping our environment today and in
the future. Debates on the types of anciently grazed landscapes in
Europe, and what they tell us about past and present ecology, have
been especially topical and controversial recently. This treatment
brings the current discussions and the latest research to a much
wider audience. The book breaks new ground in broadening the scope
of wood-pasture and woodland research to address sites and
ecologies that have previously been overlooked but which hold
potential keys to understanding landscape dynamics. Eminent
contributors, including Oliver Rackham and Frans Vera, present a
text which addresses the importance of history in understanding the
past landscape, and the relevance of historical ecology and
landscape studies in providing a future vision.
Understanding the current state and dynamics of any forest is
extremely difficult - if not impossible - without recognizing its
history. Bialowieza Primeval Forest (BPF), located on the border
between Poland and Belarus, is one of the best preserved European
lowland forests and a subject of myriads of works focusing on
countless aspects of its biology, ecology, management. BPF was
protected for centuries (15th-18th century) as a game reserve of
Polish kings and Lithuanian grand dukes. Being, at that time, a
part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, BPF was subject to
long-lasting traditional, multi-functional utilisation
characteristic for this part of Europe, including haymaking on
forest meadows, traditional bee-keeping and fishing in rivers
flowing through forest. This traditional model of management came
to an abrupt end due to political change in 1795, when Poland and
Grand Duchy of Lithuania ceased to exist in effect of partitioning
by neighbouring countries, and the territory of BPF was taken over
by the Russian Empire. The new Russian administration, influenced
by the German trends in forestry, attempted at introducing the new,
science-based forestry model in the BPF throughout the 19th
century. The entire 19th century in the history of BPF is a story
of struggle between new trends and concepts brought and implemented
by new rulers of the land, and the traditional perception of the
forest and forest uses, culturally rooted in this area and
originating from mediaeval (or older) practices. The book will show
the historical background and the outcome of this struggle: the
forest's history in the long 19th century focusing on tracking all
cultural imprints, both material (artificial landscapes, introduced
alien species, human-induced processes) and immaterial (traditional
knowledge of forest and use of forest resources, the political and
cultural significance of the forest) that shaped the forest's
current state and picture. Our book will deliver a picture of a
crucial moment in forest history, relevant not only to the Central
Europe, but to the continent in general. Moment of transition
between a royal hunting ground, traditional type of use widespread
throughout Europe, to a modern, managed forest. Looking at main
obstacles in the management shift, the essential difference in
perceptions of the forest and goods it provides in both modes of
management, and the implications of the management change for the
state of BPF in the long 19th century could help in better
understanding the changes that European forests underwent in
general.
This major book explores commons, lands and rights of usage in
common, traditional and customary practices, and the cultural
nature of 'landscapes'. Importantly, it addresses now critical
matters of 'cultural severance' and largely unrecognized impacts on
biodiversity and human societies, and implications for
conservation, sustainability, and local economies. The book takes
major case studies and perspectives from around the world, to
address contemporary issues and challenges from historical and
ecological perspectives. The book developed from major
international conferences and collaborations over around fifteen
years, culminating 'The End of Tradition?' in Sheffield, UK, 2010.
The chapters are from individuals who are both academic researchers
and practitioners. These ideas are now influencing bodies like the
EU, UNESCO, and FAO, with recognition by major organisations and
stakeholders, of the critical state of the environment consequent
on cultural severance.
Sherwood Forest is arguably the most famous historic landscape in
the world, immortalized through storytelling, mythology, romantic
books, and ultimately by Hollywood. This is the setting for Robin
Hood, Little John and the rest of the 'Merry Men'. Yet behind the
glamorous legends are equally fascinating places, people and
histories. An important and vast medieval 'Forest' and extensive
heath, the area was farmed and settled before that time. After the
break-up of the Royal Hunting Forest came the famous establishment
of great halls, houses and parks of the aristocracy, the so-called
'Dukeries', and then industry, with deep coal mining, wartime
military training, and twentieth-century forestry. From the
nineteenth century onwards, the region was a notable tourism and
leisure destination, and the sites of famous oak trees such as the
Major Oak were places one could visit to touch the past. Tourism
continues today as visitors from around the world come to
experience the forest's nature, history and myth. This book is not
a guide to the region but a companion to the area, its history, its
people and its landscape. As such, this volume will be of great
interest to visitors to the region, to residents and to all those
fascinated by the history and the legends of Sherwood and the
Dukeries. The book focuses on Sherwood Forest and the Dukeries
area, but in the context of the surrounding towns and villages and
is richly illustrated with images from the past, including
photographs, postcards, paintings and antique prints from over two
hundred years.
For at least half a century since the emergence of Country Parks
and Forest Parks, countryside services have provided leisure,
tourism, conservation, restoration and regeneration across Britain.
Yet these services are currently being decimated as public services
are sacrificed to the new era of austerity. The role and importance
of countryside management have been barely documented, and the
consequences and ramifications of cuts to these services are
overlooked and misunderstood. This volume rigorously examines the
issues surrounding countryside management in Britain. The author
brings together the results of stakeholder workshops and
interviews, and in-depth individual case studies, as well as a
major study for the Countryside Agency which assessed and evaluated
every countryside service provision in England. A full and
extensive literature review traces the ideas of countryside
management back to their origins, and the author considers the
wider relationships and ramifications with countryside and ranger
provisions around the world, including North America and Europe.
The book provides a critical overview of the history and importance
of countryside management, detailing the achievements of a largely
forgotten sector and highlighting its pivotal yet often
underappreciated role in the wellbeing of people and communities.
It serves as a challenge to students, planners, politicians,
conservationists, environmentalists, and land managers, in a
diversity of disciplines that work with or have interests in
countryside, leisure and tourism, community issues, education, and
nature conservation.
There have been many well-publicized cases of invasive species of
plants and animals, often introduced unintentionally but sometimes
on purpose, causing widespread ecological havoc. Examples of such
alien invasions include pernicious weeds such as Japanese knotweed,
an introduced garden ornamental which can grow through concrete,
the water hyacinth which has choked tropical waterways, and many
introduced animals which have out-competed and displaced local
fauna. This book addresses the broader context of invasive and
exotic species, in terms of the perceived threats and environmental
concerns which surround alien species and ecological invasions. As
a result of unprecedented scales of environmental change, combined
with rapid globalisation, the mixing of cultures and diversity, and
fears over biosecurity and bioterrorism, the known impacts of
particular invasions have been catastrophic. However, as several
chapters show, reactions to some exotic species, and the
justifications for interventions in certain situations, including
biological control by introduced natural enemies, rest
uncomfortably with social reactions to ethnic cleansing and
persecution perpetrated across the globe. The role of democracy in
deciding and determining environmental policy is another emerging
issue. In an increasingly multicultural society this raises huge
questions of ethics and choice. At the same time, in order to
redress major ecological losses, the science of reintroduction of
native species has also come to the fore, and is widely accepted by
many in nature conservation. However, with questions of where and
when, and with what species or even species analogues,
reintroductions are acceptable, the topic is hotly debated. Again,
it is shown that many decisions are based on values and perceptions
rather than objective science. Including a wide range of case
studies from around the world, his book raises critical issues to
stimulate a much wider debate.
There have been many well-publicized cases of invasive species of
plants and animals, often introduced unintentionally but sometimes
on purpose, causing widespread ecological havoc. Examples of such
alien invasions include pernicious weeds such as Japanese knotweed,
an introduced garden ornamental which can grow through concrete,
the water hyacinth which has choked tropical waterways, and many
introduced animals which have out-competed and displaced local
fauna. This book addresses the broader context of invasive and
exotic species, in terms of the perceived threats and environmental
concerns which surround alien species and ecological invasions. As
a result of unprecedented scales of environmental change, combined
with rapid globalisation, the mixing of cultures and diversity, and
fears over biosecurity and bioterrorism, the known impacts of
particular invasions have been catastrophic. However, as several
chapters show, reactions to some exotic species, and the
justifications for interventions in certain situations, including
biological control by introduced natural enemies, rest
uncomfortably with social reactions to ethnic cleansing and
persecution perpetrated across the globe. The role of democracy in
deciding and determining environmental policy is another emerging
issue. In an increasingly multicultural society this raises huge
questions of ethics and choice. At the same time, in order to
redress major ecological losses, the science of reintroduction of
native species has also come to the fore, and is widely accepted by
many in nature conservation. However, with questions of where and
when, and with what species or even species analogues,
reintroductions are acceptable, the topic is hotly debated. Again,
it is shown that many decisions are based on values and perceptions
rather than objective science. Including a wide range of case
studies from around the world, his book raises critical issues to
stimulate a much wider debate.
Sheffield is the fourth largest city in England and was where the
Industrial Revolution began in earnest. It is renowned for its
high-quality steel and fine cutlery, for its two large universities
and for having the biggest shopping centre in Europe, yet there is
so much more to know about this proud South Yorkshire city. In
Secret Sheffield, the authors pull back the carpet of history to
reveal what lurks beneath. They delve into Sheffield's murky and
mysterious past, its dark secrets and forgotten tales, introducing
us to some interesting characters along the way.
AN ACCESSIBLE INTRODUCTION TO BIODIVERSITY, CONSERVATION AND THE
ECO-CULTURAL NATURE OF LANDSCAPES Key issues are addressed in
short, focused chapters, supported by a detailed thousand-year
timeline based on the British Isles. Rotherham is convinced that to
conserve wildlife or ecology, and to heal the wounds of human
impacts, we must understand our own history and how, over countless
centuries, we have forged today's ecologies from our impacts on,
and utilisation of, nature. He argues that the interlinked concepts
of biodiversity, nature conservation and of sustainability are too
often mixed with notions of 'wilderness' and 'nature' and
'naturalness'. Much of the biodiversity that we hope to conserve is
the result of long-term interactions between people and nature. It
is a 'cultural ecology', the product of the environment, history
and tradition. Recognising that the landscapes around us are
'eco-cultural' not 'natural' is, Rotherham suggests, the key to
understanding contemporary biodiversity and major challenges for
ideas of future conservation and sustainability. The book
introduces the background to humanity's interactions with Nature
and the forces at work in shaping today's world. It is essential
reading for anyone wishing to understand the nature of the global
environmental crisis and how we got here. In particular, it will be
a stimulating guide to students and teachers or lecturers from
sixth form and college to university. It will also appeal to the
ordinary wildlife enthusiast wishing understand the past, and to
gain insight into what might be in store for the future.
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War & Peat (Paperback)
Ian D. Rotherham, Christine Handley
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R1,298
Discovery Miles 12 980
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Ships in 10 - 15 working days
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