Sense of place & community empowerment in bioregional planning - A proposed conceptual framework

Abstract

Dynamic landscape change affects and is affected by human attitudes. The effect of pattern and process has been investigated mainly in landscape ecological sciences, focusing on whether and how spatial organization of landscape creates stable, functioning ecosystems. Humans have been treated as an independent, separate entity despite the fact that within space they connect and embed their values, perception and attitudes when delineating a place. Equally, the ecological imperative expressed through operational models of conservation planning changes the physical organization of landscape in such a way that it affects public connection to landscape and influences views and attitudes towards ecosystem governance. It will be argued in this paper, that a more comprehensive understanding is needed of these two phenomena, addressing the linkages between ecosystem conservation and how people respond to dynamic change. This will include an assessment of how people shape their responsiveness to place through a collaborative bioregional planning approach. A conceptual framework is proposed, with the intention of exploring the linkages of social and ecological systems through a ‘sense of place’ concept in order to understand the community effect on, and response to, conservation planning initiatives. It is viewed that this research will provide a new insight for a collaborative bioregional planning process by revealing whether and how sense of place empowers communities by mobilizing stewardship that directs actions towards environmental policies, and how this in turn shapes ecosystem functioning that enhances the experience of land.