Gardens for the third millennium: The Garden of Eden to urban paradise

Abstract

Over the period 15th]18th October, 1998, a conference was held at the Sala Romanica of the Basilica of St Francis, Assisi in Italy; it was hosted by the Franciscan Orders and organised by the Assisi Nature Council with the co-operation of the Department of Agrarian Studies of the University of Perugia. The theme of the conference was the future of European gardens and its aim was to generate awareness of the importance of urban green spaces inclusive of parks, botanic and historic gardens, commons and vacant city plots. Such a theme draws on an ancient tradition which goes back to the archetypal Garden of Eden: a tradition shared by the Mediterranean civilisations, the crossroads for different cultures and an inspiration for all that subsequently has followed. The conference celebrated the garden as a Ž form of Western art and the participants British, Italian, French, German, Portuguese and Span. ish were some of the best minds in the fields of garden history, botany, ethnobotany, landscape planning and design, environmental education and biodiversity. With the aim of making a valuable contribution to the quality of life in the 21st century, the participants agreed to issue the following statement.