Ann. N.Y. Acad. Sci.

ISSN 0077-8923

A N N A L S O F T H E N E W Y O R K A C A D E M Y O F SC I E N C E S
Issue: Ecological Complexity and Sustainability

A sustainable landscape ecosystem design

A case study
Lei-Chang Huang,1,2,3 Shu-Hong Ye,4,5 Xun Gu,2 Fu-Cun Cao,2 Zheng-Qiu Fan,1 Xiang-Rong Wang,1 Ya-Sheng Wu,6 and Shou-Bing Wang1
1 Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, Fudan University, Shanghai, China. 2 Art and Design School, Dalian Polytechnic University, Dalian, China. 3 Ecological Technology and Engineering School, Shanghai Institute Technology, Shanghai, China. 4 Food and Biology School, Dalian Polytechnic University, Dalian, China. 5 Biology Technology and Engineering School, South East Technology University, Shanghai, China. 6 Art and Design School, Shanghai University of Engineering Science, Shanghai, 201620, China

Address for correspondence: Shou-Bing Wang, Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, Fudan University, 220, Handan Road, Shanghai, 200433. Voice: +86-21-65642297; fax: +86-021-65643597. sbwang@fudan.edu.cn

Landscape planning is clearly ecologically and socially relevant. Concern about sustainability between human and environment is now a driving paradigm for this professional. However, the explosion of the sustainable landscape in China is a very recent phenomenon. What is the sustainable landscape? How is this realized in practice? In this article, on the basis of the reviews of history and perplexities of Chinese landscape and nature analysis of sustainable landscape, the ecothinking model, an implemental tool for sustainable landscape, was developed, which applies ecothinking in vision, culture, conservation and development of site, and the process of public participation for a harmonious relationship between human and environment. And a case study of the south entrance of TongNiuling Scenic Area was carried out, in which the most optimum scenario was chosen from among three models according to the ecothinking model, to illustrate the construction of the ecothinking model and how to achieve a sustainable landscape. Keywords: ecothinking model; TongNiuling and China; sustainability; human and landscape ecosystem; cultural landscape

Introduction There is a growing realization around the world that humans are harming the natural environment (Schultz and Zelezny 1999). The sustainability paradigm has emerged from these complex global issues, such as increasing world population, depletion of resources, and decreasing quality of human habitat. Therefore, concern about sustainability between the environment and human is now a driving paradigm for landscape planning professionals. Sustainable landscape is the process of under-

This research was partially supported by the Project of Dalian Construction Committee (2009): The ecological methods for the construction of urban road. It was also partially assisted by the High Level Talent Funding: The research on the ecological way for modern landscape architecture design (YJ2008-20).

standing and directing the changing relationship between human kind and nature to a harmonious one (Christina 2002). A sustainable landscape should be economically functioning, ecologically sound, and socioculturally useful. However, the explosion of the sustainable landscape in China is a very recent phenomenon. Whats sustainable landscape? And how to incorporate ecological knowledge into practice since the landscape planning is clearly ecologically and socially relevant? Despite growing interest, rhetoric and research on ecological design in landscape, practitioners in china are not implementing as many ecological design strategies as might be expected. And many planners are staying in the layer of making the concept hot. Chinese landscape design has been developing with the progress of society, which has been changing from the anciently private place only serving for
doi: 10.1111/j.1749-6632.2009.05410.x

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the emperors and dukes to the public park, from the single function fostering animals for pleasure and hunting to comprehensive ones. From the original courtyard, temples, and residential areas, the research eld has expanded to city plaza, town planning, scenery areas, tourism planning, abandoned mines restoration, urban recreation, and land use, etc. However, Chinese modern landscape design also faced many problems and perplexities, such as blindly worshipping foreign works and designers, simply copying and imitating, neglecting the sense and natural attributes of a site, taking the design as a simple graphic or a purely functional one which leads to a three-loss- result: loss of cultural characteristics, loss of naturalness, and loss of the balance between humans and nature. In this paper, the ecothinking model was developed as an implemental tool for sustainable landscape, which means to apply the ecological theories and methods in vision, culture, environmental conservation and development, and the design process of public participation. And a case study on the southern entrance of TongNiuling Scenic Area (TNLSA) was carried out, in which the most optimum scenario was selected from the 3 ones according to the model, to illustrate how to combine the regional culture with environment obeying the natural process, how to provide series of scenarios satisfying humans demands and environmental capacities and how to make the landscape sustainable. The ecothinking model for a sustainable landscape What is ecothinking? Ecothinking belongs to advanced thinking. It means that the thinking subject with ecological ideologies and perception applies modern ecological principles and theories to observe and inspect the world, and take that as the guideline for their words and activities (Shen and Fu 2002). It is the incorporation of planning and ecological knowledge and the coordination between the required quality of natural ecosystems and human developments. And whats the ecothinking landscape? Human has been forming and changing landscapes for economic, social, or ecological purposes (Linehan and Gross 1998). This requires that ecothinking should be a spatial concept that may be applied in sustain-

able landscape planning, which should afford conditions that allow natural populations to recover in time from environmental, political, and socioeconomic perturbations. The objective of ecothinking is a resource-saved and environment-friendly world, where human and nature are developing in common. The ecothinking model of landscape design The ecothinking model of landscape design consists of ecothinking in the visual design presenting sensory enjoyment, the environmental conservation and development with the least damage, the culture of the site, and the ecothinking in design process of public participation (Fig. 1). Ecothinking in landscape visual design The ecothinking visual image of landscape can evoke the common feeling; express the history and the evolving process of the site; give people a direct experience of the historic landscape of the site, which presents a clear view of the characteristics that distinguish the site from other places. The form and materials hold information about local resources, techniques, styles, and land use. On the other hands, visual landscape also requires an appropriate distance, a good view and a rest space (Liu and Han 1999). Therefore, it is necessary and important for visual landscape design to consider peoples physical and psychical needs. The ecothinking of environment conservation and development There is a distinguished contradiction between the conservation and development of the environment, conservation always attempt to restrict human impact on the selected areas and to restore natural ecosystems while the developing requirements for land resources are increasing rapidly with the growth of population. The environmental ecothinking is to carry on the development based on the protection of the primary environment. Ecothinking the cultural landscape design Ecothinking the cultural landscape design means to melt appropriately nature, culture, and human into a whole. Nature is always part of culture. The current environment problem is not only a nature crisis, but also a crisis of culture (Wilson 1992). Culture is to

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Figure 1. The model of ecothinking landscape design.

the person what water is to the sh (Jahoda 1993). It has been very broadly dened as the human-made part of the environment (Herskovits 1955). Therefore, ecothinking cultural landscape should reveal a great deal about the history and culture of the people who built and lived in those landscapes and to provide a glimpse into the past and more complete stories of the site and the people. Ecothinking of design processpublic participation Ecothinking design process means the planning must concern both the site and the people living there. For it will be people and communities, and not resources and landscapes, that will determine whether the sustainable landscape becomes manifest. Therefore, it has the harvest requirement to involve the public more directly in decision making about landscape planning, which is called public participation especially for the local people. And a sustainable landscape planning must be understandable and observable for its implementation in society at large.

Measurement of the model for sustainable landscape The sustainability of the ecothinking landscape can be measured by the equation (1), which includes objective and subjective factors SLET = aV + bE + dC + gP (1)

Where, a + b + c + d = 1.0 V visual design Eenvironmental conservation design C cultural landscape design Ppublic participation V , E, and C are objective factors, which can be measured; P is subjective factor that reects the requirements of the local people. Visual design can be measured by the landscape esthetics, which includes color design, shape design, the compatibility between the design work and nature, the mark of V can be done according to the equation (2) V = dV1 + eV2 + fV3 (2)

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Figure 2. The location of the design site.

Where, d + e + f = 1.0 d = 0.3 e = 0.4 f = 0.3 V 1 visual image design V 2 containing local culture V 3 compatibility design And we can get the mark of E according to the equation (3) E = 0.3E 1 + 0.3E 2 + 0.2E 3 + 0.2E 3 (3)

the representatives selected from local people according to their wishes and so on. A case studylandscape design on south entrance of TongNiuling Scenic Area Study area The south entrance of TNLSA locates in 39 01 33.93 N-39 01 32.78 N,121 46 46.50 E-121 46 49.01 E, in the sea side of the Lijiao Gulf, the eastern of the economy and technology development zone of Dalian city, Liaoning province, China (Fig. 2). Inventory and analysis of existing conditions The ora, growing well, is the representative northeast China needle, broad leaf mixed deciduous forest. The terrain is gentle slope with some exposed rocks. The west closed to the entrance is a dinosaurrelief with ancient style, which was constructed to protect the hillside destroyed before; the eastern, under the entrance, is the train tunnel portal to the mountain; the opposite is a modern square, and the northeast is the sculpture of a child riding on a cow while the second peak lies in the northwest.

Where, E 1 damage of nature E 2 quantities of the project E 3 economic cost E 4 green The value of C is the result of the equation (4) C = 0.5C 1 + 0.5C 2 (4)

Where, C 1 history and custom of the site C 2 design idea reecting the characteristics of site The weighting of objective factors comes from the Delphi method, and the mark of them will be classied four grades, which are best (0.9), better (0.7), good (0.4), normal (0.2). And P would be given by

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Figure 3. The visual analysis of the site.

The difculty of the design lies in the multiple spatial characteristics, such as the entrance and the exit, the complex relationships among the various elements of ora, rocks, terrain, tunnel, and the diverse styles of ancient, modern, natural, and articial. It is not only the end for dinosaur-relief but also the beginning for TNLSA. Except the entrance function, it should be a visual mark for the area, from different viewpoints of Binhai Road (Fig. 2) with different distance, the whole design will be a running and continuous process and a harmonious scenic picture with the intrinsic sculpture and the terrain of the site (Fig. 3).

Therefore, the scenario must not a concept of a door, but a site of entrance/exit of TNLSA, a foreword/epilogue of landscape, a transition space among the elements, and a linkage of styles (Fig. 4). The ecothinking model of landscape design In this case, the visual landscape, rst and foremost, should connect the two sides of the travel road as a whole and satisfy the functions of entrance and mark. In terrain-making, the plan should concern mainly the visual scale relationships among the peak, the sculpture and the vertical constructions.

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Figure 4. The analysis of the existing situation.

As for the color, the background of green mountain and blue sky should be concerned. In the site conservation and development, the use of native plants, the maintenance of soil fertility, the reinforcement of naked rocks, the safeguard of the tunnel, and the corrosion of moist and wind from

sea must be considered rst, which decided the size of the construction, the depth of the foundation, the density and the durability of the materials and the earthworks volume. The culture landscape has three levels: the region level of the economy and technology development

Figure 5. The ecothinking model of the south entrance of the TongNiuling scenic area.

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Figure 6. Scenario 1: The naughty children play with the cow.

zone, a front window of Dalian city; the scenic area level of the TongNiuling with its own civilization process; the channel level with multiple attributes of space, time, style, and element (Fig. 5). Ecothinking landscape scenarios Scenario 1 The naughty children play with the cow aims to a harmonious relationship among the elements, an evolutionary process representation of the site, a fusion of the specic culture with scenario. And the scene drives you to think deeply about environment: the children and the cow are in an oasis around by desert, wolves are roaring on the rocks, and the petried woods are vibrating against the wind in the west part. The children are our

future, wolf represents other lives in nature, and the petried wood reects deteriorating realities. Therefore, the contrast and contradictory scene tells us that the sustainable development is the only answer; ecothinking is the necessary method (Fig. 6). Scenario 2 The cow is coming from the mountain aims to emphasize Times characteristic, demonstrate marking individuality with local culture. In the gentle slope, the modern arc chairs and the lawn looking like layer upon layer terrace, both adapted to the terrain and protected the hillside. In the west, a rock garden landscape not only inherited the attribute of the mountain but also a habitat echo of the

Figure 7. Scenario 2: The cow is coming from the mountain.

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Figure 8. Scenario 3: Layer upon layer, peaks and ridges overlay in the green.

dinosaur-relief as an ending and a styles transition from ancient to modern. In the east, groups of blue stones as the mountains epilogue were laid according to their natural features and the terrain, which means to take a stone to represent a mountain, the core of Chinese landscape design. In visual and cultural landscape design, a cow is coming from the mountain, the signal of invisible door was painted in the canvas made up of green mountain and blue sky, with a cows sketch that changes from Chinese traditional culture of papercut. The process of the cows movement was represented by the repetitious application of the sketch. And the layout sketch creates a changing landscape with the peoples movement, which provides an enjoyment of multivisual angle and makes the cow living. And still, the cow is the representation of diligence and development in China, so this signal also implied the spirit of advanced development and diligence of the people. As such, the mark linked up the visual, cultural, and spatial elements. And responding to the site requirements and the design ideas, stainless steel was selected as the main materials for the mark (Fig. 7). Scenario 3 Layer upon layer, peaks and ridges overlay in the green; this idea applies arrays of rocks to release the accommodative feeling of a mountain as a response to the dinosaur-relief of the west. Smooth the hillside along the slope, melt the landscape into the mountain, aim for a natural landscape. All

elements were rened to one that was emphasized (Fig. 8). Application of the ecothinking model According to a different idea about the site, there would be different landscape scenarios, and which is better or best? How to measure them? The ecothinking model would be running for this. The ecothinking model would play great important part in this side. Each scenario can be measured according to some data from site or design engineering, etc., take them into the model after the standardization. And the letters value of the model can be gotten by method of AHP (Table 1). As soon as the scenarios are concerned, the data of factors for each scenario come from the natural recorder of statistical data of the site and the related engineering data, and as to the data cannot obtain directly will be gotten indirectly. And the landscape sustainability will be assessed according to the equation of the model after taking the data standardized. The data are the following of Table 2.

Table 1. The value of the letters of the model

V V E C P 1.00 2.00 1.00 1.50

E 0.33 1.00 0.30 0.40

C 0.50 3.33 1.00 2.00

P 0.67 2.50 0.50 1.00

Wi 0.14 0.47 0.15 0.24

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Table 2. Ecothinking model factors and values of the scenarios

Factors V Visual image Local culture expression

Scenario 1 0.40 Echo the local culture of cow (0.70) Compatibility based on weak contrast 31.53% 4000 m3 4.5 106 yuan RMB 72% 2.0

Scenario 2 0.90 Modern and abstract Felicitous (0.90) Harmony based on contrast 26.2% 6000 m3 4.2 106 yuan RMB 90% 4.0

Scenario 3 0.20 Restore the terrain without connotation (0.20) Complete compatibility 25.1% 6200 m3 3.6 106 yuan RMB 83% 1

Compatibility E Articiality Earthwork of the project Cost Green History and custom of the site(terrain, shape, vegetation, times) Design idea reecting the characteristics of site (Table 3)

Human (children) and cow (0.70)

Going cowfrom the cut from Cow (0.90)

Only nature with imaging mountain (0.40)

The public participation of ecothinking: scenario comparison The ecothinking, concerning the ecological relationships among the different elements of the whole system, decides the diversity of the scenario. The committee, made up of experts, related organizations, and peoples living there, thought that the scenario 1 expressed the experience of the evolutionary process of human with nature and the local culture, warning human the worsening environment. The scenario 2 concerned the multirelationships of the vision, culture, and environment, created an individual spatial signal for the region that demonstrated the features of the Times by contrast, linked up the site and human, reected the idea of ecothinking. The scenario 3, coordinated with the environment, but the articial characteristic is thick, and the visual effect is thin. Therefore, the afrmative tickets of
Table 3. Scenario comparison

comprehensive comparison are the following: scenario 2 is 48.3%, scenario 1 is 30.5%, and scenario 3 is 15.7%. And the priority of the scenario 2 is that it embodied the idea of ecothinking completely (Table 3). Result and conclusion The result According to the ecothinking model and the data, the result of the assessment for the three scenarios was obtained (Table 4), which shows that the sustainability of the scenarios in turn is scenario 2 (0.7313)> scenario 1(0.5400)> scenario 3 (0.4933), the scenario 2 with a modern and abstract image, wonderful idea with Chinese culture element, suitable economic cost, and lest nature damage, has been the ecothinking landscape.

Scenario Scenario 1 Scenario 2 Scenario 3

Idea Better Best Good

Nature impact Lower Lower High

Signal vision Weaker Strong Weak

Culture human Single cow Abstract cow Mountain

Cost economy Low Appropriate High

Tickets result 30.5% 48.3% 15.7%

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Table 4. Assessment result of the scenarios

Scenario 1 V E C P SLET 0.0854 0.2914 0.0900 0.0732 0.5400

Scenario 2 0.126 0.3469 0.1425 0.1159 0.7313

Scenario 3 0.0336 0.3690 0.0525 0.0377 0.4933

(Forman 1995; Zonneveld 1995). The sustainable development agenda should be more geared toward learning processes than projected future outcomes (Tony 1998). Conicts of interest The authors declare no conicts of interest. References

It is difcult to measure a landscape work And it is difcult to measure a sustainable landscape exactly for the art and esthetic view mainly is subjective, many factors can not measured with data, and different people have different fancy so that the assessment will have great difference even if for the same landscape work. Furthermore, a landscape work is not only a visual art, but also a kind of space with actual function. It is necessary and urgent to promote the research. Sustainability of landscape is a dynamic developing concept In a word, the ecothinking landscape, concerns both the human and nature, both the aesthetic and the technology, not only the result but also the process. Sustainability is the objective, ecological principle is the basic, and harmony is the characteristic. Therefore, ecothinking develops limits as well as opportunities for the organization of the human natural systems with an emphasis on the spatial context (Christina 2002). And such a study must move beyond the simple use of GIS to map landscape structure. On the other hand, we must understand correctly the sustainability of landscape as a goal that no one as yet knows how to achieve. Sustainability should be seen as a direction, rather than a concrete goal

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