Public defence in Architecture, Landscape and Urbanism, MA Leena Lahdenvesi-Korhonen

The title of the thesis: Kohtaamista odottamassa: Kuntien kulttuuriympäristöohjelmat maisematiedon, osallisuuden ja elinkeinotoiminnan näkökulmasta (in Finnish)

Doctoral student: Leena Lahdenvesi-Korhonen
Opponent: Senior Lecturer, title of docent Helena Lonkila, University of Jyväskylä
Custos: Professor Ranja Hautamäki, Aalto University School of Arts, Design and Architecture

Research on municipal cultural environment programmes underlines their importance and relevance in the management of the cultural environment but highlights the potential for development in the involvement of business in the program processes and the promotion of landscape knowledge. 

The aim of the dissertation was to examine how the cultural environment programmes, drawn up by the municipalities, implement the involvement of different actors, and particularly the involvement of business. The aim was also to examine how the programmes deal with landscape and how businesses perceive the landscape information in the programmes and what kind of productisation opportunities they identify in them. 

National strategies for the cultural environment have suggested that, as public finances tighten, business could provide new opportunities for managing the cultural environment. Based on the Swedish model the creation of cultural environment programs was initiated in Finland in the early 1990s. Municipal cultural environment programmes have sought to promote the management of the cultural environment, broad interaction among different actors and the strengthening of awareness of the cultural environment and local identity. They have been used as a basis for development projects and for the development of products and services by businesses. 

The dissertation provides new insight in to the programs and their stakeholders, landscape knowledge and their relationship with business and industry in cultural environment programmes, as well as a picture of the development of the programmes. The results show that the cultural environment program is poorly known among businesses and that entrepreneurial participation in the process is rare. Entrepreneurs in the tourism sector would like to be more involved in the development of the sector and to have different forms of participation targeted at them. 

The work shows that by strengthening entrepreneurs‘ process ownership and developing the analytical approach to landscape data presentation in the program could increase entrepreneurs’ landscape awareness. Targeted coaching and co-creative processes can facilitate the creation of sustainable landscape products and identify key stakeholders in the business sector for the management of cultural environment.

Keywords: landscape, landscape knowledge, cultural environment, cultural heritage, landscape productization, co-creation, ecological, socio-cultural and economic sustainability

Thesis available for public display 10 days prior to the defence at: https://aaltodoc.aalto.fi/doc_public/eonly/riiputus/

Contact information:

Doctoral theses in the School of Arts, Design and Architecture: https://aaltodoc.aalto.fi/handle/123456789/54

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