On the days 25th and 26th of November 2024, the third international meeting of partners of the LIF-T: LANDSCAPE IN FOCUS project took place in Nitra, Slovakia, hosted by the Slovak University of Agriculture in Nitra. The two-day program featured a series of expert discussions, workshops, and excursions, marking a significant step forward in the project’s development. The main focus of the meeting was the finalization of case studies from the participating countries. Representatives presented their examples of good practices from small municipalities and discussed their integration into the project’s website. A key part of the meeting was a workshop dedicated to search functions and keyword selection, which helped define essential terms for the next phases of the project. Another significant topic was the preparation of the project’s next output, a thematic brochure. A workshop focused on its content, structure, and keywords provided concrete suggestions that will serve as a foundation for its development. Considerable attention was also given to the project’s web platform. Partners presented ideas for filtering functions and discussed headings and other design elements to ensure the platform is clear and user-friendly. The meeting also included inspirational excursions. Participants visited the Institute of Landscape Architecture, where they explored the experimental “Living Lab” featuring a green roof, an interactive garden, and research spaces. The program also included a guided tour of

At the end of last week, an IEPS representative visited Helsinki, Finland, to attend the second transnational project meeting of the Erasmus+ project LIF-T: Landscape in Focus. The meeting was hosted by Suomen maisema-arkkitehtiliitto ry MARK and the Kone Foundation at the premises of contemporary Oodi Helsinki Central Library and the charming Lauttasaari Manor. During the meeting, the project consortium primarily discussed the case studies they have been working on over the past few months. They also uncovered initial insights to shape a toolkit designed to help small municipalities address socio-economic and climate challenges using nature-based landscape solutions. Besides that, the consortium covered reporting and dissemination issues and enjoyed excursions to landscape sites, including the developing Kalasatama waterfront district that was formerly a fishing port although now features a mix of industrial areas, sports venues, office buildings, parks, and the Redi shopping centre. The partners will meet again in person in November in Nitra, Slovakia. We will keep you updated on our next steps.        

We have just ended the first international personal project meeting of the project LIF-T: Landscape in Focus which took place over the last two days at the impressive premises of the headquarters of the Czech Chamber of Architects in Prague´s Lesser Quarter. The Erasmus+ project, co-funded by the European Union and sponsored by The Czech Landscape and Garden Society, is dedicated to the sustainable planning and development of small villages, taking into account the character of the local landscape, history and active involvement of local residents. Its aim is to face a number of challenges closely related to landscape and its conceptual planning such as climate change, loss of historical connections, disrupted small water cycles, loss of biodiversity, and many others. By addressing these challenges, the project aims to apply new knowledge and practices to navigate landscape issues effectively. During two very productive days, the project consortium, comprising partners from the Czech Republic, Finland, Germany, and Slovakia, established the key rules for partnership cooperation, including communication, dissemination, reporting, and other essential issues for the upcoming 2 years of collaborative work. Additionally, initial steps were taken in the work package focused on the gathering best case studies. Stay tuned, for example via the project´s Facebook, for further updates.