The causse mejan: changing relationships between agriculture, environment and society within a French national park

Abstract

The effects of modern agriculture on the environment, and the agrarian over‐exploitation of natural resources, have been well documented. This paper presents an alternative scenario more akin to the decoupling of agriculture from the environment, and the impact this is having on both biological diversity and landscape interpretation. By taking the case study of the Causse Méjan, an isolated plateau within a French National Park, the historic and contemporary relationship between agriculture, environment and society there is examined, and questions are raised regarding the future role of agriculture and conservation in managing this territory. The retreat of traditional agriculture and the resultant ‘undoing’ of the pastoralist landscape expose the links between cultural diversity and natural diversity, along with the multiple social identities and meanings attached to the landscape. It is argued that the power of the image is today critical to social expectations of desirable ‘future natures’.