British landscapes - from the tip of Scotland to the toe of Cornwall, including the cities - are under huge pressure from shifting population and increasing travel, climate change, new patterns of work and leisure, and changing farming practices. Many fear that these changes can only damage the landscape, but this is not the whole story. For example, the 'edgelands' around big cities have blossoming wildlife and are home to endangered species. And the current crisis in farming gives a chance to do things better in the arable lowlands as well as in the livestock uplands.
Twelve expert contributors, including Simon Jenkins, Crispin Tickell, Marion Shoard, David Cannadine and Philip Lowe, develop exciting ideas covering such issues as the urban landscape, climate change, the aftermath of foot-and-mouth, ecology and sustainable development. Bryn Green and Oliver Rackham discuss the future of the countryside where farming is in retreat: will it be preserved as an ersatz museum, will low-density building proliferate or will the land revert to scrub and then to woodland?