Epsilon Archive for Student Projects

Abstract

The Master thesis investigates urban as well as open landscape in the Hostivice Municipality, Prague-West District, Czechia.

The introduction presents the current state of landscape planning in the Hostivice Municipality, and unveils the concept of landscape within geography and its position in Czech Republic. A selected lens of three themes – Climate Resilience, Transport, and Heritage – is presented as a red thread for processing the whole thesis. Under the respective themes, background information is presented consisting mostly of regional environment publications, historical books, and scientific papers.

The method is established according to the concept of landscape as a body of layers in an analysis combining both theoretical sources (contained in the background information), image (historical maps, comprehensive maps sports analytics), and embodiedness (cartographic activity, meetings with municipal representatives).

The analysis concludes statements about the Hostivice Landscape respective to each theme. To the Climate Resilience theme, they assert how the landscape is used only for production purposes, split significantly between rural and urban landscape, how the landscape lacks multi-functionality for its users/inhabitants, and how the ecological services are conducted. The Transport theme concludes a low permeability for both pedestrians and cyclists in both urban and rural landscape. The Heritage theme deduces a low appreciation for the agricultural landscape of Hostivice, pinpoints a low care for significant heritage sites including the Hostivice Ponds.

As a result, the conclusions are interpreted in articulating an informed set of measures in the Thematic Landscape Master Plan, which is assigned in the three colours for the three themes. The stress is put on connectivity and multi-functionality of the public spaces for the people in Hostivice.

The discussion reflects upon the data sources as well as stimulating topics that were generated by the process. It raises arguments for the three selected themes and compares them with Schein’s discourse materialized. The discussion argues for a transformability of the landscape and an essential urge to accustom the role of landscape to our contemporary needs. The Czech landscape legislation is suspected for propelling the urban/rural divide witnessed in the case of the Territorial System of Ecological Stability.