Building Territories and Landscapes: The Essential Knowledge of a Forgotten Cultural Heritage / La construcción del territorio y del paisaje o el esencial conocimiento de un patrimonio olvidado

Architects know that a deep knowledge of a building or a city centre is needed before undertaking any planning or restoring activities. This knowledge becomes particularly essential when historical buildings or towns are concerned, but it seems to be less important when the subjects of the actions are territories and landscapes. Consequently, studies at regional scales are still considered as exceptional cases, which are only tackled when these areas are under protection due to their natural or cultural values. Such a resistance to change the scale, together with the lack of a true culture of landscape, are the result of wrong or restrictive scopes that ignored its heritage qualities produced by centuries of human traces and geographical elements within the considered territories. Since decades we are dealing with such researches on the construction of the territory and the landscape, by developing innovative methodologies, and focusing on their knowledge as an essential part of our cultural heritage.