Message In the Plaza: Landscape, Landscaping, and Forest Discourse in Honduras

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

10-1-2005

Department

Geography and Geology

School

Biological, Environmental, and Earth Sciences

Abstract

As visible, material expression of human activities and goals, the landscape communicates as well as reflects. Specific landscapes communicate specific messages within the public sphere of which they are a part. In Honduras, many plaza landscapes have seen recent changes in form and in what they communicate. Once open, treeless spaces, many Honduran plazas are now filled with trees. These trees often support signs announcing the virtues of forests, linking the trees themselves to the official discourse on forest issues and illuminating the role of public-space landscapes in influencing public perception. This article points out the links between such iconographic landscapes and the complex, multitiered environmental issues that are part of environmental conditions and their perception by local actors.

Publication Title

Geographical Review

Volume

95

Issue

4

First Page

556

Last Page

577

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