Strengthening Subjective Links to Nature: The Psychology of Heritage Places in an Era of Rising Environmental Awareness

Abstract

ABSTRACT In the search for the psychology of heritage places, the tangible and intangible qualities of heritage are closely intertwined. This article sheds light on the sentiments, insights and attitudes that historic environments can evoke in people, by using the characteristics of old summer mountain farming landscapes as a platform to further discuss how the psychology of these heritage places can be linked to the present-day era of public environmental consciousness. These heritage places can be assets to the recreation and tourism industries. Mountain-farming landscapes can provide a rural escape from a commonplace urban lifestyle. The historical buildings on these historical farming properties, sometimes dating to the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, can provide experiential value through the senses, such as touch, smell, sound and sight: the tangible and intangible aspects of aged wooden architecture. Such ‘landscapes with atmosphere’ and ‘landscapes of affect’ can fill an emotional need in people searching for a connection to nature, seeking solitude, silence and privacy, away from everyday routines in a crowded urban world. Increased public environmental consciousness and awareness of climate change, including seasonal alterations, also affect people’s views of the importance of safeguarding natural and cultural resources.