What sort of treescapes do we want in Britain and what can we reasonably expect: a personal reflection

Abstract

The British landscape has always been changing, but our capacity to alter it rapidly has increased in the last 60 years. Many of our ideas on conservation of woods, and treescapes more generally, developed in the decades after the Second World War. They have not always evolved to take into account new information and thinking around landscape ecology, the past influence of humans on the landscape, climate change, emerging tree diseases and new forms of public discussion via social media. Britain leaving the European Union is an opportunity to bring some of these ideas into conservation policy and support mechanisms.

Keywords:

• Conservation objectives
• cultural landscapes
• British woodland
• climate change

Acknowledgements

This paper is based on a talk given at the Arboricultural Association annual conference in Exeter in September 2017. The views expressed are personal and not related to those of any organisation with which the author was or is associated.