ABSTRACT
Landscape professionals have been involved in community-based projects for some years. In doing so they have begun to experiment and adapt methods commonly used by other professions to encourage public participation. An examination of the experience of past and present projects which involve the community in a variety of ways and of research carried out concerning the success of participatory processes forms the basis for the discussion in this chapter. It is apparent from this that the nature of the professional–client relationship in many landscape projects is changing and the landscape professional is having to take on new roles and responsibilities. There is a great potential for practitioners to be at the forefront of these exciting developments within the profession, but professionals need to develop new areas of expertise and a toolbox of techniques in order to respond to the opportunities which are arising. Chapter 4 discussed the links between concepts of social sustainability and landscape projects. This chapter provides the next step in commenting on the problems and opportunities that arise from the practice of community landscape architecture.
