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Brenda Barrett, Editor | Eleanor Mahoney, Associate Editor | Deanna Beacham, Outreach Assistant
October/November 2020 | Vol. 10, No. 8
The Case for Landscape Scale Revitalization

Economic recovery may be the catch phrase for 2021. The pandemic has hit communities hard across the country, with small businesses disproportionately impacted. The pain is especially severe in marginalized rural areas and older rust belt regions. Yes, things will improve at some point, but is there a way we can accelerate the recovery process and make it more effective? One idea is to turn to landscape scale revitalization programs. The National Heritage Areas, now numbering 55, are a well-tested model of community-led redevelopment that is a proven catalyst for regional economic development. Not every place can be designated a heritage area, but states and local partnerships can adopt many of their strategies - see for example the Pennsylvania Conservation Landscapes initiative.
However, to be truly impactful programs and redevelopment tools, such as the Main Street program, need to go big with a commitment to long term and substantial support. While business owners and small entrepreneurs can provide the energy and ideas, they need the framework to promote and capitalize on their hard work. Let’s make this happen!
About Us
The Living Landscape Observer is a website, blog and monthly e-newsletter that offers commentary and information on the emerging field of large landscape conservation.
In Case You Want More Information...
In February of this year, we featured a review of the Pennsylvania’s Conservation Landscapes program. This initiative was launched more than a decade ago to connect residents and visitors to the Commonwealth’s rich heritage of parks and forests. Today, with seven designated Conservation Landscapes, it is a model of landscape scale resource management and community redevelopment.
Creating and implementing programs to jump start community and economic development on the ground is never easy. However, there are many benefits to doing so at a landscape scale. The opportunity for regional promotions, sharing capacity building initiatives, and assembling a critical mass of attractions are strategies with a record of success. What are some examples of this approach and why is it more critical than ever? 
Lyman Run State Park in the Pennsylvania Wilds Region. Image: PA DCNR
The Pennsylvania Wilds is rural region roughly the size of Massachusetts. It is home to a tremendous concentration of public lands, two National Wild & Scenic Rivers, the largest wild elk herd in the Northeast, and some of the darkest night skies in the country. It is also one of Pennsylvania's eight Conservation Landscapes. In this Featured Voice interview, we talk with Ta Enos, the Founder and CEO of the PA Wilds Center for Entrepreneurship, about a 15+ year effort to expand outdoor recreation, diversify rural economies, create jobs, improve quality of life and inspire stewardship in the region.
Naturecultures Dialogue:
The Perspective from Argentina
This dialogue session features three presentations on the entanglement of nature and culture. The presenters explore a number of key ideas. These include: the importance of cultural routes; the future of large-scale landscapes in defining the identity of a region; and significance of the Indigenous natureculture vision. 
What We are Watching: The Nature-Culture Community on PANORAMA
The World Heritage Leadership Programme is launching the Nature-Culture thematic community on the PANORAMA platform, coordinated  jointly by ICCROM, IUCN and ICOMOS. PANORAMA – Solutions for a Healthy Planet is a partnership initiative to document and promote examples of inspiring, replicable case studies. The new thematic community will become a space for practitioners to share and reflect on their experiences and to learn with their peers how similar challenges have been addressed around the globe. 

News and Notes
Coming soon is a new publication, Main Street's Comeback, by the founder of the Main Street idea and the 2020 National Trust Crowinshield Award winner Mary Means. The book reviews the development of this successful program and why it is more important than ever!
Upcoming Events

US ICOMOS Annual Symposium, 'World Heritage and Social Justice in the 20th Century," is coming up on November 12-13, 2020. Registration is now open!

The following conferences have been rescheduled! Visit the event web sits for the latest information.


ICOMOS 2023 Triennial General Assembly, October 2023, in Sydney, Australia


NATURE, CULTURE,COMMUNITY www.livinglandscapeobserver.net