Wilkening, Jane M.

By determining which farmland and farmers will receive public support, planning and policy professionals shape the agricultural landscape and help to define our general societal expectations from farming. Yet, despite this power, do these people have coherent visions for the role of agriculture in the landscape? What shapes their recommendations?

This study argues that subjective assumptions, values and beliefs about agriculture play a key role in defining their professional recommendations. By reviewing literature from agricultural economists, scientists, land use planners, sociologists, designers and other professions concerned with agriculture, this study attempts to document the range of these assumptions, values and beliefs about the appropriate role for agriculture in nature and society. After grouping the writers assumptions, values and beliefs into five distinct "mindsets," this study uses sketches and descriptions to explore how these mindsets can shape agricultural landscapes.