Vanishing Ice


Book Description

Introduces the artistic legacy of the planet's frozen frontiers now threatened by a changing climate. Tracing the impact of glaciers, icebergs, and fields of ice on artists' imaginations, this book explores the connections between generations of artists who adopt different styles, media, and approaches to interpret alpine and polar landscapes.--




Geomorphology of Proglacial Systems


Book Description

This book discusses the recession of alpine glaciers since the end of the Little Ice Age (LIA), which has been accelerating in the past decades. It provides an overview of the research in the field, presenting definitions and information about the different proglacial areas and systems. A number of case studies are from the PROSA project group which encompasses the expertise of geomorphologists, geologists, glaciologists and geodesists. The PROSA joint project (High-resolution measurements of morphodynamics in rapidly changing PROglacial Systems of the Alps) is determined to tackle the problems of geomorphic activity on sediment export through a quantification of sediment fluxes effected by the aforementioned geomorphic processes within the forefield of the Gepatschferner glacier (Central Alps, Austria).




Yagnob Valley – Nature, history, and chances of a mountain community development in Tadjikistan / Долина р. Ягноб – природа, история и возможности развития горной общины в Таджикистане


Book Description

Долина р. Ягноб в своей верхней части представляет собой пример изолированного периферийного района, типичного для высокогорных районов Азии и в особенности Таджикистана, где почти каждая высокогорная долина имеет свой неповторимый этнокультурный уклад и формы ресурсопользования с высокой степенью адаптации к природным условиям. Объективная природная изолированность Ягнобской долины способствовала сохранению в ее верховьях уникального народа – ягнобцев, язык которых близок к древнесогдийскому языку, относящемуся к восточно-иранской языковой группе. Жесткая зависимость характера природопользования от природных условий и процессов, а также удаленность и низкая доступность ограничили развитие и применение новых методов хозяйствования. В работе делается акцент на исследование пространства существования (экзистенциального пространства) ягнобцев, модель которого описывает характер использования земель, сопровождаемые при этом риски и возможные пути к их преодолению. В пределах нынешнего характера природопользования имеются четыре наиболее важных типа риска, угрожающих разрушению сложившихся природно-хозяйственных связей: агроклиматический риск, риск склоновых процессов, антропогенная деградация ландшафтов, социально-политический риск.The Yagnob Valley represents in its upper part an example of isolated peripheral area very typical for highlands of Asia and especially for Tadjikistan, where each mountain valley has its own unique ethnic and cultural style of life and land use structure highly adapted to natural conditions. The natural isolation of the Yagnob Valley was conductive to the preservation in its upper part of an unique ethnic group – the Yagnobis whose language is very similar to the Ancient Sogdian language attributed to the East-Iranian language group. A strict dependence of land use type on natural conditions and natural processes as well as the peripheral positions and low accessibility limited the development and application of new economic methods. The study is undertaken with respect to model of the existential space of Yagnobi community affecting land use, risks and possibilities for survival. Within the limits of the existing structure of the natural resources use there are four very important types of risks that threaten to destroy existing relationship between the natural environment and the local economy: agroclimatic risk, risk of slope processes, anthropogenic degradation, the social andpolitical risk.




Alpine Views


Book Description

Probably the most influential and popular Swiss landscape painter of the 19th century, Alexandre Calame (1810-1864) is renowned for his grand Alpine views. Painted with dramatic effects of light and atmosphere, these paintings were based on sharply observed details taken from close natural study and depict recognizable locations. Calame visited France, the Netherlands, Germany, Italy, and England, making outdoor oil sketches from which he then created finished paintings in his studio. Calame first exhibited at the Paris Salon in 1835, and his works appealed to the growing number of Alpine tourists and were purchased by King Louis-Philippe and Napoleon. This handsome book focuses on Calame’s oil sketches--many of which have never been published in color--in addition to several paintings and related drawings and prints. With essays that discuss Calame's landscapes in the context of 19th-century trends in European art and culture, it also features works by Swiss artists Fran�ois Diday, Barth�lemy Menn, and Robert Z�nd.




Landscape Conflicts


Book Description







Terraced Landscapes


Book Description

Terraced landscapes with agricultural terraces are cultural landscapes with a special value. They provide food and also have priceless scientific, cultural, historical. ecological, aesthetic, and even psychological, philosophical, and religious value. They form a unique agricultural and ecological system that can be found throughout the world. In some developed civilizations they were created in an organized manner over millennia, and in others they arose completely spontaneously as people adapted to natural conditions and improved their opportunities to make a living. They therefore reflect a harmony between man and nature, and in many cases also between people themselves. This volume presents them in pictures and words in all their diversity and attractiveness. After discussing the global and European dimensions of terraced landscapes and their agricultural terraces, the volume focuses on Slovenian terraced landscapes; they are discussed separately by landscape types and sample cases in the territory of selected settlements (pilot areas). The conclusion also draws attention to the exceptional value and appeal of non-agricultural terraced landscapes that have been shaped by nature and man. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Terasirane pokrajine, sestavljene iz kmetijskih teras, so kulturne pokrajine s posebno vrednostjo. Zagotavljajo hrano, imajo pa tudi neprecenljivo znanstveno, kulturno, zgodovinsko, ekološko, estetsko, celo psihološko, filozofsko in religiozno vrednost. So svojstven kmetijski in ekološki sistem po celem svetu. Ponekod so v razvitih civilizacijah organizirano nastajale skozi tisočletja, drugje pa povsem spontano, ko se je človek prilagajal naravnim razmeram in izboljševal svoje možnosti za preživetje. Zato se v njih zrcali sožitje med človekom in naravo, marsikje pa tudi med ljudmi. Knjiga jih v sliki in besedi predstavlja v vsej njihovi pestrosti in privlačnosti. Najprej so izpostavljene svetovne in evropske razsežnosti terasiranih pokrajin in njihovih kmetijskih teras, precej prostora pa namenja tudi slovenskim terasiranim pokrajinam, in sicer ločeno po pokrajinskih tipih in po vzorčnih primerih, ki obsegajo območja izbranih naselij. V sklepnem delu opozarja tudi na izjemnost in privlačnost nekmetijskih terasiranih pokrajin, ki sta jih oblikovala narava in človek.




Why is Landscape Beautiful?


Book Description

Lucius Burckhardt (1925-2003) taught architectural theory at Kassel University and, in the 1980s, coined the term "Promenadology" or the science of Strollology and developed this into a complex and far-sighted planning and design discipline. Given that "the landscape" as an idea only exists in our heads, Burckhardt's writings (and drawings) are not so much concerned with beautiful vistas, but focus instead on the multi-faceted interaction a simple walk-taker has with his environment. To those who observe the environment with their eyes wide open, interesting questions will arise again and again; for example, why "city" and "country" can no longer be separated so easily in the face of progressive urbanization. Or why we consider a viaduct to be beautiful, but a nuclear power station an intrusion. And also, why gardens are works of art and should therefore be appraised as such. This book contains 28 texts by the design and planning critic, for the first time in English, with the focus on landscapes, gardens as an art form and the science of strollology.




Nature Policies and Landscape Policies


Book Description

The book focuses on the relationship between nature conservation policies and landscape policies. This is a relevant subject due to the current need of reviving nature conservation policies, which are today affected by a general effectiveness deficiency. To this end, landscape policies can play a crucial role, bridging nature and culture, fostering more integrated approaches to nature conservation and stimulating the active participation of local communities. The book gathers reflections, researches and experiences developed on an international level on this subject by experts coming from different international contexts (Europe, U.S.A.), various disciplinary backgrounds (geographers, planners, biologists, historians, jurists, economists, etc.) and several institutional bodies (Universities, administrative bodies, international organizations such as IUCN, EUROPARC Federation, UNESCO, etc.). The overall reflections gathered in the book - which is divided in three main sections: regulations and institutional frameworks, policies, actions and tools - combine to suggest innovative visions about the relationships between nature policies and landscape policies.




Tourism and Climate Change


Book Description

Climate change is the single most important global environmental and development issue facing the world today and has emerged as a major topic in tourism studies. Climate change is already affecting the tourism industry and is anticipated to have profound implications for tourism in the twenty-first century, including consumer holiday choices, the geographic patterns of tourism demand, the competitiveness and sustainability of destinations and the contribution of tourism to international development. Tourism and Climate Change: Impacts, Adaptation and Mitigation is the first book to provide a comprehensive overview of the theory and practice of climate change and tourism at the tourist, enterprise, destination and global scales. Major themes include the implications of climate change and climate policy for tourism sectors and destinations around the world, tourist perceptions of climate change impacts, tourism’s global contribution to climate change, adaptation and mitigation responses by all major tourism stakeholders, and the integral links between climate change and sustainable tourism. It combines a thorough scientific assessment of the climate-tourism interrelationships with discussion of emerging mitigation and adaptation practice, showcasing international examples throughout the tourism sector as well as actions by other sectors that will have important implications for tourism. Written by three leading academics in this field, this critical contribution highlights the challenges of climate change within the tourism community and provides a foundation for decision making for both reducing the risks, and taking advantage of the opportunities, associated with climate change. This comprehensive discussion of the complexities of climate change and tourism is essential reading for students, academics, business leaders and government policy makers.