In the heart of Sicily : a renewed approach to knowledge to solve the complex relationship between Sicani Natural Park and its community

After a forty-year-long period of reflections and applications in an innovative approach to heritage protection and landscape quality management and development, the European Landscape Convention (Council of Europe, 2000) calls for "a sustainable development based on a balanced relationship between social needs, economic activity, and the environment". Starting from an articulated theoretical review on the topics of cultural heritage-based development, landscape quality and land protection as community assets, the paper is focused on the identification of strategies and actions to solve the conflicts that in recent years in inner western Sicily have blocked the Sicani Natural Park Agency, in preparing consultation between the Park Authority and local communities to design the new Park Plan. The study has as a result a synoptic picture to face the challenge of territorial and social regeneration, to enhance the presence of an unspoilt natural heritage, and trigger the local resources-based development, counteracting the economic and demographic discomfort. The research results grasp all the facets of individual issues and propose the most appropriate options, proposing local solutions that promote protection and development.