Cultural landscape refers to spaces that have experienced interventions by human activities to meet their needs. Changes in the natural environment reveal a complex relationship between humans and the environment, which can be studied from different perspectives. Based on the environmental perspective, nature plays a crucial role in shaping cultural landscapes. Areas with various natural resources tend to support agricultural and housing development, while areas with limited resources tend to restrict development. From an economic perspective, industry and mining often cause pollution, while tourism and agriculture sectors can contribute to environmental conservation. The policy perspective regulates which economic activities are allowed so that they do not harm the environment.
The complexity of the cultural landscape is the background for the symposium on ‘Cultural Landscape: Insights from Environment, Economy, Policy and Health’. The symposium aims to explore the complexity of human-environment relationships from different perspectives. There are several aspects that considered, such as cultural heritage, environment, economic, policy frameworks, and public health. These aspects are interrelated and influence each other, which ultimately makes the cultural landscape influential in the process of shaping societal characteristics and human well-being. Sustainable practices in cultural landscape management were also discussed.
This symposium is a collaboration between the Urban Design and Development Laboratory, Department of Regional and Urban Planning, Faculty of Engineering, Universitas Diponegoro, with the Asian Cultural Landscape Association (ACLA), International Cultural Foundation (ICF), Indonesian Association of Landscape Architects (IALI) Central Java and the Government of Semarang City. The 13th ACLA International Symposium & 2nd ICF Cultural Diversity Forum was held at the Oudetrap Building, Semarang City on 16 June 2024, which was attended by ACLA participating countries, academics, and cultural landscape practitioners. The keynote speakers of this symposium came from Indonesia and abroad, namely Prof. Ir. Bambang Susantono MCP., MSCE., Ph.D. (Head of the Nusantara Capital City Authority), Prof. Chun Hyun Jin (Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, China), Prof. Nappy L. Navarra, D.Eng (University of the Philippines Diliman), Prof. Zenaida DC. Galingan (University of the Philippines Diliman) and Semarang City Government. This activity is related to the Sustainable Development Goals, in particular the eleventh goal, namely the creation of sustainable cities and communities.
