1. An Approach to Cultural Landscapes in the Age of Resilience

Landscapes represent dynamic, ever-evolving entities where the concepts of permanence, identity, and the safeguarding of cultural values necessitate the incorporation of co-evolutionary principles into their management strategies. Consequently, it becomes imperative to address primary and secondary threats, as well as factors that impact the Outstanding Universal Value of diverse UNESCO productive landscapes, in order to actively preserve them. To explore the associations and boundaries between enduring transformations and community-level identity within social resilience, a set of five research inquiries has been formulated. Two case studies have been utilized, namely the ‘Vineyard Landscape of Piedmont: Langhe-Roero and Monferrato’ and the ‘Cultural Landscape of Honghe Hani Rice Terraces’. Both of these culturally rich landscapes have evolved organically over time, and they are linked through an institutional twinning arrangement among their respective management bodies. The outcomes of this investigation aim to identify potential risks to the continued viability of the agricultural systems, which could also undermine the integrity and authenticity of the sites. Hence, in order to establish an effective framework for landscape conservation, this study proposes landscape resilience as an approach to reinforce territorial inputs and processes, as well as to foster innovation. It entails managing attributes and values through the development of strategic plans that encompass both short-term and long-term actions.