ABSTRACT
This chapter introduces the edited collection, describing its aims, its position in the debate on landscape as heritage, and the methodology that has been used to select the contributions included in the volume. The importance of the diversity of the contributions in terms of disciplines and geographical and cultural context is particularly stressed.
The second part of the chapter is divided in two sections. The first outlines the long-time dialogue between landscape and heritage studies, trying to answer the call of critical heritage studies for a historically, socially, and politically processual understanding of heritage-making. It specifically focuses on the co-evolution between the conceptualization of space, culture, and landscape, particularly in the field of cultural geography.
The second section outlines some of the cornerstones of a critical perspective on landscape heritage-making, emphasizing the urgent need for it, as a way for understanding how landscape and its values are changing in the contemporary world. It specifically highlights the importance of a critical perspective on how landscape is identified and managed as heritage, in order to tackle some urgent challenges concerning heritage management, sustainability, and social inclusion, such as migrations; tourism; digital spaces; decolonization and climate change.
