Toward an Inventory of Terraced Landscapes

Understanding the importance of the quantity and quality of the phenomena under study—terraced landscapes and terraced slopes—is the basis for all further studies and interpretations. Precise and systematic data are essential for studying terraced landscapes.
When the participants engaged in the First World Congress on Terraced Landscapes in Mengzi, China in November 2010 founded the International Terraced Landscapes Alliance (ITLA), we stressed the importance of a global inventory of terraced landscapes. Further ITLA meetings have only confirmed this orientation: the ITLA World Congress in Padua 2016 wrapped up with a proposal to create a global inventory of important and threatened terraced landscapes. We have explored this topic in greater depth in an ITLA working group, recognizing that the issue requires broader participation from ITLA members worldwide.