Master of Landscape Architecture / Department of Landscape Architecture/Regional and Community Planning / Eric A. Bernard / The sub-rural Kansas community of Winona stands at a critical crossroad. The dilemma of rural population decline, fueled largely by technological advances in communication, transportation, and agriculture is devastating rural economies and the centers of community social life – namely the local school(s) and main street(s). The physical infrastructure, spatial character and unique identity of rural places is slowly diminished in the process. While great potential exists for the landscape architecture and planning professions to address the patterns of rural decline, the limited market for such services and the lack of regulations requiring those services precludes their effective implementation within rural communities. Within Winona, a long-standing stormwater problem provides an opportunity to address both the stormwater problem and the larger dilemma in a holistic landscape architecture approach. How can contemporary landscape architecture engage rural communities in planning and design solutions aimed at mitigating stormwater issues while addressing community identity loss resulting from population and economic decline? The Place, Space, Community (PSC) Framework developed can determine distinctive qualities and characteristics and illuminate community identity which serves as the creative genesis for stormwater mitigation, and more importantly, the development of social capital critical to economic and population stability and growth. Successful development of social capital and enhanced community identity is dependent on design solutions anchored in the sense of place inherent in the residents of Winona. Landscape architects are uniquely qualified to provide solutions to the stormwater problem which respond to place in ways influencing the identity and social capital of Winona’s residents in dramatically positive ways. This initial focus on a holistic, place-based approach to increased social capital provides a strong foundation for future economic, social and environmental stability and growth into the future. Winona can indeed enjoy a bright and prosperous future with a Place, Space, Community approach.

This study focuses on the conditions and processes that strengthen social distinctions and symbolic boundaries in society. In order to fully grasp the conditions of these processes, it is not sufficient to simply study them as they are carried out on a daily basis. Therefore in this study firstly a general overview of the matter evaluated in the context of globalization. Although a variety of means are at work in constructing social distinctions and symbolic boundaries, in this study three of them have been taken up: leisure, consumption and space. In order to reveal the relationship between them and social distinctions, it examines two different leisure spaces: Laila and Kaktus.

This paper investigates the impact of place-based identity on trust in international organizations and examines the role of civic engagement in reinforcing or mitigating these attitudes. In an era marked by global challenges and increasing polarization, trust in international organizations has become crucial for effective cooperation. Previous research has identified place-based identity as a fundamental social identity that influences out-group attitudes and plays a role in shaping civic engagement outcomes. Drawing on social identity theory and social capital theory, this study employs quantitative methods, utilizing ANES survey data conducted in the United States to explore the relationship between place-based identity and trust in international organizations. Focusing on the distinction between rural- and urban-identifying American citizens, the results reveal that rural-identifying individuals exhibit lower levels of trust in international organizations compared to their urban counterparts. These differences are characterized by marginal yet statistically significant effects. Furthermore, although the conditioning effect of civic engagement is not statistically significant, it provides intriguing insights that suggest it may reinforce the impact of place-based identity, potentially leading to negative effects on trust in civil society. These findings contribute to a broadened understanding of the interplay between identity and political attitudes, shedding light on the factors that influence them.

Although youth tourism is an increasingly relevant subject little research have been done regarding the segment’s own perception of their impacts. A consumer perspective was assumed to examine in what ways youth tourism impact places. This study adopts a deductive approach reviewing existing literature regarding youth tourism, impact and place. A case study concerning how youth travellers perceive and evaluate their own impacts was conducted using mixed-methods. Data sources include a survey and in-depth interviews concerning sociocultural, economic, and environmental items. The study concludes that what impacts youth tourism has on places are subject to the place’s current state and ability to host youth travellers. The number of youth travellers and their behaviour determines the local and global sociocultural, economic and environmental impacts that youth tourism has on places. This paper is considered a pre-study that contributes to the development of theory regarding youth tourism.

The master thesis deals with the study of the relation between man and his surroundings. The thesis solves the issue of the place identity and the process of identification with the example of the Prague housing estate Solidarita. It analyses the surroundings from the perspective of a concept of identity which has a multidimensional character. For this reason, the case study approach has been chosen to allow a comprehensive study of space from a variety of perspectives. It deals with the history of the housing estate, its residents, social connections and the perception of space. Because of the presence of green vegetation and public facilities, the Solidarita housing estate is presented as a place which provides a high-quality space and supports the production of social interactions. Surrounding of Solidarita housing estate respects human scale and provides stronger social interactions. The thesis also accents the importance of sociological and anthropological research of a space, that should be a part of urban processes. Key words Architecture, Identity, Housing Estate, Neighborhood, Place, Place Attachment, Place Identity, Solidarita Housing Estate, Space, Urbanism