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The rural spaces in Europe are undergoing complex processes of transition, at multiple scales, and rhythms. In order to grasp and understand the changes occurring, the need emerges for new, conceptual approaches that make it possible to combine the different factors that shape spaces. Recent, literature on the multifunctional character of rural spaces and their transition pathways shows the, need for spatially based approaches, where the natural characteristics of a landscape are combined, with the socio-economic and cultural drivers that affect its changes. Experience shows how practical, questions on the changes affecting the rural, addressed by society to the scientific community, are of a, new character and require novel research approaches. This paper argues that landscape based, approaches can be useful basis for the required conceptual innovation. The paper presents and, discusses a set of examples of practice driven research developments, in contrasting regions of Europe. And it proposes a conceptual model which aims to contextualize empirical research driven by, problems set up in practice, and combining the ecological and structural dimensions with the socioeconomic, and cultural ones, all converging in the rural landscape, at multiple scales. The landscape, as, the spatial entity, in its material and immaterial dimensions, is presented in this paper as the most, comprehensive basis for the required step forward. This does not mean a disciplinary landscape, analysis revisited, but a new multi-scale and multi-domain place based approach, where the place is, the rural landscape.

Public policy interventions concerning rural landscapes have grown significantly in recent decades in many developed countries and internationally, in response to a range of imperatives. These include concern for declining biodiversity, heritage and social wellbeing in the face of urbanisation, and structural change in rural economies involving both agricultural intensification and extensification. The public policy response has been a fragmented array of measures, both horizontally (across policy sectors) and vertically (across political-administrative-organisational levels). Against this background, rural landscape policy approaches are analysed in respect to their instrumentality and spatial logic, informed by Hagerstrand's concepts of territorial and spatial competence. A framework for local policy making and policy integration inspired by landscape strategy making approaches is presented and illustrated through four Danish experiments in rural landscapes of various scale and with different policy issues. Results suggest that landscape strategy making represents a promising way to improve policy integration in rural contexts but research is needed to find suitable ways to engage large scale intensive farming with the community based process.

Agri-Environment Schemes (AES) to maintain or promote environmentally-friendly farming practices were implemented on about 25% of all agricultural land in the EU by 2002. This article analyses and discusses the actual and potential use of impact models in supporting the design, implementation and evaluation of AES. Impact models identify and establish the causal relationships between policy objectives and policy outcomes. We review and discuss the role of impact models at different stages in the AES policy process, and present results from a survey of impact models underlying 60 agri-environmental schemes in seven EU member states. We distinguished among three categories of impact models (quantitative, qualitative or common sense), depending on the degree of evidence in the formal scheme description, additional documents, or key person interviews. The categories of impact models used mainly depended on whether scheme objectives were related to natural resources, biodiversity or landscape. A higher proportion of schemes dealing with natural resources (primarily water) were based on quantitative impact models, compared to those concerned with biodiversity or landscape. Schemes explicitly targeted either on particular parts of individual farms or specific areas tended to be based more on quantitative impact models compared to whole-farm schemes and broad, horizontal schemes. We conclude that increased and better use of impact models has significant potential to improve efficiency and effectiveness of AES.

Recent landscape changes in a farmed landscape are analysed and related to farm and farmer characteristics. It is assumed that farm and farmer characteristics serve as mediators of large scale or macro driving forces of change-in the present case, a changing farming context including demands for a more environmentally friendly farming practise and a reduced output. The results are based on multivariate analyses of data collected from structured interviews of 160 farmers in a case study area, in central Jutland, measuring 5000 ha. The analysis shows that farmers are highly involved in landscape changes. The investigated landscape changes include creation and removal of landscape elements as well as certain management changes. The most common activity was creation of elements: hedgerows, small woodlands and conversion of rotational arable land to permanent grassland, whereas removal of elements, mainly hedgerows and semi-natural grasslands, were seen less frequently. Management changes like abandonment of permanent grassland were widespread. The results indicate a general extensification of the land use and the authors interpret the results partly as an indication of a change from productivism to a more multifunctional agricultural regime. The observed landscape changes at the farm level show a low, but structured relationship with the current farm and farmer characteristics, meaning that landscape changes were undertaken by various farmers and on various farms. On a general level, however, the age of the farmer and the duration of farm ownership seem to have a major influence on the landscape changes.