ABSTRACT

The European Landscape Convention (ELC) aims to promote protection, management and planning of the European landscape. It is designed to organize European cooperation around landscapes to achieve sustainable development based on a balanced and harmonious relationship between social needs, economic activity and the environment (ELC, 2000). The ELC was adopted in 2000, ratifi ed by 33 member states of the Council of Europe, and came into force on 1 March 2004. It is the fi rst international treaty to be exclusively concerned with all dimensions of the European landscape in aiming to increase awareness among civil society, private organizations and public authorities on the value of landscapes (Article 6).