The ‘land-based rural’ – land, landscape and ecosystems

Discussions of the land-based rural reflect on the complexity of managing the environment for nature in conjunction with ensuring agricultural productivity and the maintenance of access to the countryside. The chapter debates how alternative perceptions of nature in rural areas are influenced by cultural, ecological, and socio-economic factors. It goes on to discuss a series of tensions between landowners, users of rural areas and impacts of political decision making on the ways in which planning policy and environmental designations shape these relationships. The chapter then presents three case studies of landscape management in Cambridgeshire (England), the development of the North West Greenway Network in Ireland/Northern Ireland, and the coastal rainforest of Taynish (Scotland) to examine how thinking on land-based capital varies geographically and socio-culturally. The chapter concludes by reflecting on future directions for the planning of the land-based rural and considers how best to shape praxis to support ecological and socio-economic interests in rural areas.