By Jenny Knight
“Landscape change is often designed with 'physical science' as the focus. But landscapes are social, lived environments.”
Jenny Knight is a postgraduate researcher in the College of Life and Environmental Sciences.
Local knowledge shapes and forms landscapes, landscapes in their turn shape decisions, behaviours, people. In addition, neglected expertise of local, lived experience may mean an over-reliance on 'data lean' scientific models, creating policies that are neither reflective of, or practical within, complex landscapes.
We have shown that tree planting for benefits including Natural Flood Management is possible (even on farms!) when the social is accounted for. The next stage is to explore how to integrate these findings with physical data and computer models.