Perceptions of stewardship in Norwegian agricultural landscapes

The importance of the landscape as a tourism asset is well known, and the significance of perceptions of landscape is increasingly being recognized in policy and planning, in Europe thanks largely to the implementation of the European Landscape Convention. The abandonment of agricultural land is one of the ongoing processes of landscape change that are having a profound impact not only in Norway – the subject of this article – but across Europe. The article presents the findings from a study of perceptions of stewardship in Norwegian agricultural landscapes and the ways in which perceived stewardship is linked to landscape preference. The results of the study show that there are differences between landscape professionals and the general public with regards to the perception of stewardship and cues used for assessing stewardship, and suggests that stewardship is a stronger factor in shaping the general public's preferences. The implications of these results are discussed in relation to the European Landscape Convention and need for methods to assess and monitor landscape change processes.

► The paper presents the results from a study of perception of stewardship in Norwegian agricultural landscapes using photographs.
► The results show differences between landscape professionals and the general public with regards to the perception of stewardship and cues used for assessing stewardship.
► The study suggests that stewardship is a stronger contributor in the formation of preference for the general public.
► The results have implications when designing methods for assessing and monitoring landscape change processes in relation to perception.