Landscape identity, before and after a forest fire

Abstract

Our identity is tied to where we are and how we engage with the landscapes in which we find ourselves. But what happens if the landscape which we use for our everyday life is drastically altered by a catastrophic upheaval, for example, when forest fires ravage the landscape? In this paper, interviews with individuals affected by the largest forest fire in modern Swedish history are used to exemplify our conceptualisation of how landscape identity is impacted by dramatic change. We address the phases of stability, change and progression in relation to the case. Finally, we propose that landscape identity can be utilised as a central concept for engaging with the social aspects of the impact of forest fires.

Keywords

Landscape identity; forest fire; post disaster recovery; Sweden

Published in

Landscape Research
2018, Volume: 43, number: 6, pages: 878-889

SLU Authors

• Butler, Andrew

  • Department of Urban and Rural Development, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    
  • Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU)

• Sarlöv-Herlin, Ingrid

  • Department of Landscape Architecture, Planning and Management, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    

• Ångman, Elin

  • Department of Urban and Rural Development, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    

• Ode Sang, Åsa

  • Department of Landscape Architecture, Planning and Management, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    

UKÄ Subject classification

Social Sciences Interdisciplinary


Publication identifier

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/01426397.2017.1344205

Permanent link to this page (URI)

https://res.slu.se/id/publ/94985