The search for specificities in the character of vineyard landscapes and the identification of their heritagization processes. The Rioja Alavesa as a laboratory
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Abstract
In the context of the ever increasing recognition of landscape heritage value, agrarian landscapes – and in particular, vineyard landscapes – are of great interest as a territorial legacy and as social constructions that reflect the dynamic interactions between man and nature. They are cultural landscapes full of meanings capable of harbouring diverse values. This work aims to investigate the relationship established between the landscape, heritage and heritagization processes in wine-growing landscapes, based on a territory, the Rioja Alavesa, conceived as a laboratory. This has been defined in two specific objectives which structure the main parts of the article: on the one hand, identifying the features that define the character of the landscape, giving it uniqueness and specificity; and on the other hand, analysing the mechanisms of heritage activation, essentially through the valuation of the inscription process of the «La Rioja and Rioja Alavesa Wine and Vineyard Cultural Landscape» as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This has served as a framework for conceptual and methodological reflection to unravel keys that can be extrapolated to other territories. The bibliographic, cartographic and statistical analysis, the systematic field work and the valuation of the nomination files of the wine-growing landscapes included in the World Heritage List were used as the methodological resources.