Lionella Scazzosi

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Department of Architecture, Built Environment and Construction Engineering, Politecnico di Milano, Milan, Italy
Email: lionella.scazzosi@polimi.it

ABSTRACT  In 2011, the ICOMOS-IFLA International Scientific Committee on Cultural Landscapes (ISCCL) began a cultural project, the World Rural Landscapes Initiative (WRLI), with the goal of a complete and systematic approach to the question of cultural heritage for rural areas. Rural landscape has not been sufficiently studied, in terms of methodology and operation and of official internationally recognised documents: protection and promotion, knowledge, methodology and management at different levels (international, national and local). The goals of the WRLI are: a principles text containin theoretical, methodological and operational criteria; a website; a glossary; an atlas of rural landscapes; and a general bibliography. The first goal has been achieved: Principles Concerning Rural Landscape as Heritage was adopted as a doctrinal text by ICOMOS (2017). The paper presents the main cultural premises and contents of the Principles Text: the theoretical concepts (‘Rural Landscape’ and ‘Rural Landscape as Heritage’) of the Section I; the contents of the Section II (‘II. Action criteria’), providing criteria for the steps to be taken in the perspective of policies for rural landscapes as heritage and resource: knowledge, protection, sustainable ma of conservation and innovation and the concept of ‘appropriate’ transformation; the role of the stakeholders; the value recognition: knowledge, information, communication and public reception.

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KEYWORDS  rural landscapes, heritage, principles text, theoretical definitions, methodological issues, action criteria

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Received June 26, 2018; accepted August 14, 2018.

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