The Rural Landscapes of Europe is a book that aims to show various ways in which human history has exercised a formative role in shaping European landscapes into what we see today. It simultaneously draws attention to the ways in which environmental development and landscape conditions have been powerful influences on the course of history.

Urban Emanuelsson’s book is the first to take an overall approach to European rural landscapes from a biological and historical point of view. He outlines the history of European landscapes from the early stone age to modern times, placing special emphasis on the period 1000–1900.

His research links topics like biological diversity and nature conservation on the one hand with history and archaeology on the other. He also points to various weaknesses in modern nature- and eco-cultural conservation, and offers suggestions on control solutions and on realising sustainable environmental policies.

The book is a result of the author’s travels throughout Europe during a period of over thirty years. It is written in a general, accessible style, and is targeted at a wide demographic: people who work within the field of nature- and eco-cultural conservation, students, and anyone else interested in environmental conservation, biological diversity, history, and the connections between them.

Urban Emanuelsson is professor at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences.

The Swedish edition of the book was published by Formas in March 2009, Europeiska kulturlandskap - Hur människan format Europas natur