Introduction

European landscapes have a long history of being used by humans. This has led to the development of valuable habitats, some of which depend on the continuation of a certain type of use or require active management (e.g. fruit orchards, mountain meadows, upland moorlands). Society and policy makers have recognised the need to support the management of cultural landscapes, based on the rationale to maintain attractive landscapes for tourism and recreation, to protect habitat for wildlife, to enhance the provision of ecosystem services or to counteract demographic change and keep people in rural areas.

Support policies often take the shape of incentive schemes, conservation projects or rural development initiatives. In many countries, habitat and biodiversity strategies and programmes exist. It is unlikely that agencies and government authorities have the capacity and resources to undertake all required management. The successful planning, coordination, implementation and monitoring of management activities in cultural landscapes require communication and cooperation. Coordinated action is necessary between different stakeholders from different sectors but there also needs to be coordination between different institutional levels. This has been referred to as the ‘cross-scale interplay of institutions [which] involves horizontal and vertical linkages’ (Berkes, 2004). Multi-stakeholder partnerships and collaborative groups can play an important role in facilitating these linkages.