Iconic Landscapes -- ecology and animal and human communities -- all of them are assets

For the past year, at the University of Sydney, I've been involved in a splendid inter-disciplinary project called 'Iconic Landscapes', which has examined three different research zones, to understand not only the ecological intricacies of the regions but also the extent to which different groups of 'stakeholders'  care about the regions and try to protect, promote or impede the vibrancy of knowledge arising from each region.  

The regions: Central Australian Desert and Channel Country; NSW western grazing lands; Sydney Harbour sea-walls.  

The website: http://iconiclandscapes.wordpress.com/

For an exemplary post that shows how the contests over WHAT constitutes a cultural asset in a region, and WHO gets to hold custodial responsibility for such assets, see the recent account about a consultation event in the Desert:  http://iconiclandscapes.wordpress.com/2010/05/24/upcoming-july-1-community-consultation-evening-in-bedourie/

The website has been built and maintained by our excellent research officer, Gemma Deavin.

RG.