**1. Introduction: landscape and cultural heritage as territorial driver**

As highlighted by Choay [1], it is the memory that guides the identification of the heritage. Historical centers and natural landscapes represent the key elements of that process of rediscovering the cultural, social, and economic identity of our territories, which through this interpretation can become the base of a new selfsustainable development model, consistent with the peculiarities of relationships between populations, activities, and places.

This is not a nostalgic reference to a bucolic past, to a rural world that no longer exists and which we hope to recreate, but on the contrary the verification of possible innovative futures in which the historic centers and the landscapes in which they are located represent the identity and recognized locations of new development models, of different ways of building the contemporary.

There is no discussion of lower land consumption, but of a different use of the land, reversible, respectful of the environment but still capable of being the physical support for anthropic transformations and the production of

cultural economies, capable of making them productive and livable again and also inland areas far from large cities and the main mass mobility system.

The relationship between the transformation of urban settlements and the cultural and landscape matrix needs to be guided by urban planning.

Before entering into the ways in which urban planning and cultural heritage must be linked, it is necessary to share the concepts of heritage and landscape that form the basis of this renewed relationship.

The term heritage is currently used to express multiple concepts of contemporary society, with a plurality of meanings that are all the more different the more distant are the disciplinary areas within which it is used.

The etymology of the term "heritage" derives from the Latin word patrimonium, which in turn is the union of the terms pater (father) and munus (duty); it literally means "duty of the father," and more extensively, it can be translated as "things belonging to the father," that is, goods which as belonging to the fathers are full of value and meaning.

This still leads us to believe, with a broader meaning understood in an intergenerational key, that heritage is the set of assets that we inherited from our fathers so that they can be entrusted to future generations. Such a definition inevitably shifts the attention to the role that heritage must fulfill, a role that oscillates continuously between that of a passive deposit of historical memory and cultural identity and the opposite, a powerful stimulus for the creativity of the present and construction of the future.

The best known international instrument aimed at promoting cultural and natural, "material" or "tangible," heritage is the 1972 UNESCO Convention,1 ratified by almost all the states of the world. In this convention cultural heritage2 and the natural one,3 however, they are considered in relation to their exceptional nature. Already at the end of the 1970s, the need was felt from many sides to add to this international convention a similar protection device for those "intangible" riches that make up the, so to speak, "intangible" heritage of humanity. After a long journey of studies and proposals, the new 2003 Convention was therefore reached,4 which thus completes that of 1972. There is no doubt that the protection of the only material component of monuments, environments, and landscapes can be meaningless without the preservation of the cultures and social expressions that have contributed to giving them life they ensured the maintenance, and they took care of the decoration. Wanting to summarize the conceptual evolution gained within this important international body, it can be considered that with the 2003 Convention, in addition to having given particular importance to local communities in defining what is to be understood as heritage and the role that they must have in the strategies of protection and enhancement, the deep interdependence between intangible and material assets is affirmed; that is, the need for an integrated approach for the protection and enhancement of tangible and intangible assets for the benefit of established communities is affirmed [2].

**41**

*Promoting Territorial Cultural Systems through Urban Planning*

Similar importance is given to local communities in defining the concept of

The European Convention signed in Florence in 2000 has changed the way we observe and recognize the landscape. The landscape is no longer just a thing of particular beauty or uniqueness, as some rules of the early twentieth century described it, but it has been fully recognized as a deep and inseparable intertwining between anthropic and natural heritage, material and immaterial, interpreted and built through the experience of the communities that live and use those places.

In fact, Article 1 of the Convention defines the landscape as follows: it "means an area, as perceived by people, whose character is the result of the action and interac-

On a cultural level, the reflections start from the scientific debate gained within

As already cited, highly innovative is the conception of the heritage in the thinking of Choay [1]. His idea of heritage as "allegory of the memory" is based on the origin itself of the word "monument," already mentioned in the previous paragraph, which means "warn" and "remember." The monument challenges memory, calls it into question as a true selection criterion of the elements attributable to the cultural heritage of a settled community. The monument can therefore be considered a cultural universe linked to the characteristics of the context in which it is present and to the community capable of recognizing and understand-

In fact, the environment can be considered as the result of a stratification process, the physical signs of which are the result of the complex relationship of the interaction between man and nature. In each period, the environmental structure has expressed that dense network of relationships through which a company has located itself in a particular physical context. Therefore, the environment can only be understood through the development of its history

The attention must therefore be directed to grasp the recurring meanings of the profound relationship between population, activities and places, the unifying meanings of the landscape-environment, its deep structure, the quality of the differences of its structural meanings [4]. In this context, the natural and cultural heritage becomes the result of the stratification of the life habits of the generations that have followed one another in those places. It becomes the physical narrative of the transformations not only of the territories but also of the communities that

But the concept of heritage finds its most fertile application in the territory in the thought of Magnaghi [5, 6], going beyond the same UNESCO distinction between cultural and natural heritage, tangible and intangible, to reach an original and potentially fruitful theory of local territorial development, within which it is possible to easily include and develop the concept of local territorial

According to the UNESCO [7], cultural heritage comprises at least three

Movable cultural goods (paintings, sculptures, coins, manuscripts).

landscape, as indicated in the European Convention of Florence in 2000.

**2. Cultural heritage and territorial systems' relationships**

*DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.91985*

tion of natural and/or human factors."

the literature on the subject.

ing its value.

over time [3].

inhabited them [3].

cultural system.

**Tangible cultural heritage:**

categories:

<sup>1</sup> The Convention concerning the "protection of the cultural and natural heritage worldwide" was signed on November 16, 1972.

<sup>2</sup> Made up of monuments, settlement agglomerations, and sites formed by man such as archeological sites.

<sup>3</sup> Consisting of natural monuments including physical and biological formations, geological and physiographic formations, and natural sites.

<sup>4</sup> The Convention for the "Protection of Intangible Cultural Heritage" was approved by the General Conference of UNESCO on October 17, 2003.

#### *Promoting Territorial Cultural Systems through Urban Planning DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.91985*

*Heritage*

value and meaning.

and the natural one,3

Convention was therefore reached,4

established communities is affirmed [2].

physiographic formations, and natural sites.

Conference of UNESCO on October 17, 2003.

the future.

tage2

cultural economies, capable of making them productive and livable again and also inland areas far from large cities and the main mass mobility system.

cultural and landscape matrix needs to be guided by urban planning.

form the basis of this renewed relationship.

distant are the disciplinary areas within which it is used.

The relationship between the transformation of urban settlements and the

Before entering into the ways in which urban planning and cultural heritage must be linked, it is necessary to share the concepts of heritage and landscape that

The term heritage is currently used to express multiple concepts of contemporary society, with a plurality of meanings that are all the more different the more

The etymology of the term "heritage" derives from the Latin word patrimonium, which in turn is the union of the terms pater (father) and munus (duty); it literally means "duty of the father," and more extensively, it can be translated as "things belonging to the father," that is, goods which as belonging to the fathers are full of

This still leads us to believe, with a broader meaning understood in an intergenerational key, that heritage is the set of assets that we inherited from our fathers so that they can be entrusted to future generations. Such a definition inevitably shifts the attention to the role that heritage must fulfill, a role that oscillates continuously between that of a passive deposit of historical memory and cultural identity and the opposite, a powerful stimulus for the creativity of the present and construction of

The best known international instrument aimed at promoting cultural and natural, "material" or "tangible," heritage is the 1972 UNESCO Convention,1 ratified by almost all the states of the world. In this convention cultural heri-

exceptional nature. Already at the end of the 1970s, the need was felt from many sides to add to this international convention a similar protection device for those "intangible" riches that make up the, so to speak, "intangible" heritage of humanity. After a long journey of studies and proposals, the new 2003

is no doubt that the protection of the only material component of monuments, environments, and landscapes can be meaningless without the preservation of the cultures and social expressions that have contributed to giving them life they ensured the maintenance, and they took care of the decoration. Wanting to summarize the conceptual evolution gained within this important international body, it can be considered that with the 2003 Convention, in addition to having given particular importance to local communities in defining what is to be understood as heritage and the role that they must have in the strategies of protection and enhancement, the deep interdependence between intangible and material assets is affirmed; that is, the need for an integrated approach for the protection and enhancement of tangible and intangible assets for the benefit of

<sup>1</sup> The Convention concerning the "protection of the cultural and natural heritage worldwide" was signed

<sup>2</sup> Made up of monuments, settlement agglomerations, and sites formed by man such as archeological

<sup>3</sup> Consisting of natural monuments including physical and biological formations, geological and

<sup>4</sup> The Convention for the "Protection of Intangible Cultural Heritage" was approved by the General

however, they are considered in relation to their

which thus completes that of 1972. There

**40**

sites.

on November 16, 1972.

Similar importance is given to local communities in defining the concept of landscape, as indicated in the European Convention of Florence in 2000.

In fact, Article 1 of the Convention defines the landscape as follows: it "means an area, as perceived by people, whose character is the result of the action and interaction of natural and/or human factors."

The European Convention signed in Florence in 2000 has changed the way we observe and recognize the landscape. The landscape is no longer just a thing of particular beauty or uniqueness, as some rules of the early twentieth century described it, but it has been fully recognized as a deep and inseparable intertwining between anthropic and natural heritage, material and immaterial, interpreted and built through the experience of the communities that live and use those places.

#### **2. Cultural heritage and territorial systems' relationships**

On a cultural level, the reflections start from the scientific debate gained within the literature on the subject.

As already cited, highly innovative is the conception of the heritage in the thinking of Choay [1]. His idea of heritage as "allegory of the memory" is based on the origin itself of the word "monument," already mentioned in the previous paragraph, which means "warn" and "remember." The monument challenges memory, calls it into question as a true selection criterion of the elements attributable to the cultural heritage of a settled community. The monument can therefore be considered a cultural universe linked to the characteristics of the context in which it is present and to the community capable of recognizing and understanding its value.

In fact, the environment can be considered as the result of a stratification process, the physical signs of which are the result of the complex relationship of the interaction between man and nature. In each period, the environmental structure has expressed that dense network of relationships through which a company has located itself in a particular physical context. Therefore, the environment can only be understood through the development of its history over time [3].

The attention must therefore be directed to grasp the recurring meanings of the profound relationship between population, activities and places, the unifying meanings of the landscape-environment, its deep structure, the quality of the differences of its structural meanings [4]. In this context, the natural and cultural heritage becomes the result of the stratification of the life habits of the generations that have followed one another in those places. It becomes the physical narrative of the transformations not only of the territories but also of the communities that inhabited them [3].

But the concept of heritage finds its most fertile application in the territory in the thought of Magnaghi [5, 6], going beyond the same UNESCO distinction between cultural and natural heritage, tangible and intangible, to reach an original and potentially fruitful theory of local territorial development, within which it is possible to easily include and develop the concept of local territorial cultural system.

According to the UNESCO [7], cultural heritage comprises at least three categories:

#### **Tangible cultural heritage:**

Movable cultural goods (paintings, sculptures, coins, manuscripts).

Immovable cultural heritage (monuments, archeological sites, etc.) Underwater cultural heritage (shipwrecks, underwater ruins, and cities).

#### **Immaterial (or intangible) cultural heritage:**

Oral traditions, performing arts, rituals.

#### **Natural heritage:**

Natural sites with cultural aspects, such as cultural landscapes and physical, biological, or geological formations.

Starting from the same basic ideas and sharing the definition of cultural heritage, the UNESCO [7] focused on the introduction and diffusion of the concept of cultural diversity.

Culture manifests itself in different ways in places and throughout the ages. This plurality is the main wealth of contemporary societies that distinguishes its identity from the previous ones. Cultural plurality, characterized by innovation and creativity, is as essential for man as biodiversity for nature.

If you share this approach, cultural heritage can be recognized as a relevant element of common capital on which to build the future of the next generations with a view to sustainable development [8].

Therefore, the key concept of this work lies in the recognition of this inseparable relationship between the cultural heritage of the historical centers and the landscape in which they are inserted.

Precisely the wide range of meanings that cultural heritage can assume according to the definition developed by the UNESCO (material, immaterial and natural cultural heritage) represents the foundation of a sustainable development that local communities can promote. In fact, in order to defend and promote cultural diversity, the range of cultural assets and landscapes in which they are included represent values so rooted and connected to each other capable of providing original interpretative tools of possible activities, economies, and forms of development.

In essence, the cultural heritage of a region must be interpreted as a lasting palimpsest of the different ways of interpreting the changing economic and social conditions, a prerequisite for identity change.

The cultural heritage, within the limits dictated exclusively by the need to maintain the particular characteristics, must be able to modify the function and role following the needs of society and the contemporary economy.

According to Magnaghi, in the *territorialist approach*, it is precisely the specific qualities of the place to find, through the energies of the local society, the specific style of self-sustainable development. It is evident that the interpretation, description, and representation of these qualities become the central theme of the space representations.

Magnaghi [3] therefore identifies an effective tool in what he defines as the "atlas of heritage." In the territorialist sense, territorial heritage is a system of synergistic relationships between the peculiar qualities of the physical environment, the built environment, and the anthropic one. It is therefore necessary to represent and interpret in an integrated way the three aspects of the heritage itself.

The territorial heritage, thus defined and shared with the community, becomes for Magnaghi [3, 9] fertile ground for action, a living system on which to act to enhance the local environmental and cultural peculiarities, intended as parts of the wider local territorial cultural system. Urban planning organizes and

**43**

*Promoting Territorial Cultural Systems through Urban Planning*

information and communication technologies [10].

the territory, with its strengths and weaknesses.

exceptional spiritual relationship between people and nature.

urban landscape was sanctioned by the UNESCO [12].

urban planning and integrated conservation projects.

characterize them (**Figure 1**).

intangible assets, in a continuous process of evolution and change.

territory, the surrounding environment, and the landscape.

programs the development of these cultural territorial systems in which space

**3. Historic centers, possible poles of economic networks, and ecosystem** 

Historic centers are often bastions which are remnants of age, habits, and traditions now lost in other parts of the territory. But in an era in which communication becomes more and more immaterial, in which virtual accessibility becomes more important, centers with original cultural heritages can become the cornerstone of innovative forms of production based on a new synergy between anthropic activi-

The cultural heritage placed at the center of the development policies of a territory can contribute to attract not only tourists but also investors capable of promoting the local economy by introducing new activities, also possibly controlled and exercised at a distance from the polarities of the world economy through the use of

In line with the operational guidelines for the implementation of the World Heritage Convention [11], cultural landscapes are cultural goods which represent the "combined works of nature and man" as identified in Article I of the

Landscapes represent the evolution over time of society and its relationship with

There are a great variety of landscapes which are representative of the different regions of the world, of the combined work of nature and humanity, and express a long and intimate sharing relationship between peoples and their natural environment. Some sites reflect specific land use techniques that guarantee and support biological diversity. Others, through traditions and religious rites, embody an

To preserve the memory of the relationships between men and the environment, safeguarding traditional cultures, a true deposit of the memory of those who preceded us (sacred places, botanical gardens, crops, ways of using the territory, etc.), these sites, recognized as landscapes cultural, have been inscribed on the World Heritage List. They constitute our common identity as member of the

In 2010, the culture of integrated conservation recognized internationally the need to maintain with the historical city also the historical cultural landscape in which it finds its origin. The recognition of the historic city in the contemporary

Today the historic urban landscape (HUL) is of fundamental importance in all

Historic cities and the rural villages each within its own territorial and landscape context are an integral part of the world heritage, with the communities and their

In an urban context, the safeguarding and enhancement of heritage concern the set of built and open spaces that can be included in metropolitan areas or the set of small urban settlements and their rural spaces, including the intangible values that

In this context, the operation consists in referring the cities with their morphological, functional, and structural characteristics to a larger whole, consisting of its

*DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.91985*

can be classified and interpreted.

ties, nature, and landscape.

**services**

Convention.

human race.

**Natural heritage:**

cultural diversity.

development.

representations.

tage itself.

Immovable cultural heritage (monuments, archeological sites, etc.) Underwater cultural heritage (shipwrecks, underwater ruins, and cities).

Natural sites with cultural aspects, such as cultural landscapes and physical,

Starting from the same basic ideas and sharing the definition of cultural heritage, the UNESCO [7] focused on the introduction and diffusion of the concept of

Culture manifests itself in different ways in places and throughout the ages. This plurality is the main wealth of contemporary societies that distinguishes its identity from the previous ones. Cultural plurality, characterized by innovation and creativ-

If you share this approach, cultural heritage can be recognized as a relevant element of common capital on which to build the future of the next generations with a

Therefore, the key concept of this work lies in the recognition of this inseparable

Precisely the wide range of meanings that cultural heritage can assume according to the definition developed by the UNESCO (material, immaterial and natural cultural heritage) represents the foundation of a sustainable development that local communities can promote. In fact, in order to defend and promote cultural diversity, the range of cultural assets and landscapes in which they are included represent values so rooted and connected to each other capable of providing original interpretative tools of possible activities, economies, and forms of

relationship between the cultural heritage of the historical centers and the land-

In essence, the cultural heritage of a region must be interpreted as a lasting palimpsest of the different ways of interpreting the changing economic and social

The cultural heritage, within the limits dictated exclusively by the need to maintain the particular characteristics, must be able to modify the function and role

According to Magnaghi, in the *territorialist approach*, it is precisely the specific qualities of the place to find, through the energies of the local society, the specific style of self-sustainable development. It is evident that the interpretation, description, and representation of these qualities become the central theme of the space

Magnaghi [3] therefore identifies an effective tool in what he defines as the "atlas of heritage." In the territorialist sense, territorial heritage is a system of synergistic relationships between the peculiar qualities of the physical environment, the built environment, and the anthropic one. It is therefore necessary to represent and interpret in an integrated way the three aspects of the heri-

The territorial heritage, thus defined and shared with the community, becomes for Magnaghi [3, 9] fertile ground for action, a living system on which to act to enhance the local environmental and cultural peculiarities, intended as parts of the wider local territorial cultural system. Urban planning organizes and

following the needs of society and the contemporary economy.

**Immaterial (or intangible) cultural heritage:** Oral traditions, performing arts, rituals.

biological, or geological formations.

ity, is as essential for man as biodiversity for nature.

view to sustainable development [8].

conditions, a prerequisite for identity change.

scape in which they are inserted.

**42**

programs the development of these cultural territorial systems in which space can be classified and interpreted.
