INTERACTIONS OF LANDSCAPE ECOLOGY, PLANNING AND DESIGN

Landscape ecology provides planners and designers with two kinds of information. First, landscape ecology describes the structure of the physical and biological environment at a scale that is practical for humans. Second, landscape ecology describes dynamic processes in time and space, and explores the ways in which structures shape processes. An understanding of processes allows us to extrapolate patterns into the future and, therefore, to plan and to predict the consequences of design. Building a strong connection between landscape ecology, planning and design requires special training and experience. The Institute of Mediterranean Agronomy of Zaragoza, Spain, which is part of the International Center of Higher Studies in Mediterranean Agronomy, Paris, has been teaching courses on rural planning and the environment for over 12 years. This course experience, and the research associated with it, provides an example of how these separate disciplines can be integrated. © 1991.