Written by Bo Jonk
The first edition of the Journal of European Landscapes was published on May 8, 2020. Two professors in Heritage Studies are in the editorial board, Hans Renes and Linde Egberts. Landscape is often described as a typical European theme, which is increasingly studied on a European level. The Journal of European Landscapes focuses on the international dimensions of landscape and heritage by stimulating and promoting both empirical research and reflexive thinking on the history and heritage of the landscapes of Europe.
Aims of the Journal of European Landscapes
The Journal of European Landscapes aims at stimulating and documenting transnational research, with an emphasis on Europe. In the opinion of the editors, there already exist sufficient journals for local and national studies. By focusing on transnational comparative studies, the Journal of European Landscapes wants to stimulate debate, research and other forms of international cooperation.
The Journal of European Landscapes also wants to document research projects. During recent decades, much research has been conducted that is not properly documented or is even lost when, after a few years, the website goes offline. The editors see the documentation of the main results of such projects as one of its main tasks. By publishing these results in a scientific journal, it enables the academic community to access, discuss and scrutinise the value and meanings of the outcomes for future landscape research, policy and practice.
The Journal of European Landscapes aims to offer a platform for interdisciplinary research into landscape. The historical and heritage dimensions of landscape are important, but the spatial, physical, visual, representational, philosophical and other landscape dimensions are also included. In many cases this requires interdisciplinary research across academic disciplines ranging from archaeology, anthropology and art history, to geography, earth sciences, economics, tourism studies and sociology.
The Journal of European Landscapes aims to publish studies on the historical and heritage aspects of landscape against the backdrop of challenges that Europe is facing today: the challenges of European unification, migration, climate change, energy transition, increase of tourism, digitisation and urbanisation.
Knowledge exchange
The Journal of European Landscapes offers a platform for knowledge exchange on the historical and heritage aspects of rural, urban and industrial landscapes of Europe, particularly for comparative, international and contextualising approaches. Both contributions with historical and heritage perspectives are welcomed.
Open access policy
The Journal of European Landscapes provides immediate open access to its content on the principle that making research freely available to the public supports a greater global exchange of knowledge. The first edition of the journal can be found here: Journal of European Landscapes 1 (2020)