Landscape of the year 2024 – Hamlet landscape of the Frienisberg plateau in the canton of Berne
Intro
The Swiss Foundation for Landscape Conservation has declared the hamlet landscape on the Frienisberg plateau in the canton of Berne as Landscape of the Year 2024. The award is a tribute to the remarkably intact hamlet landscape in which the small settlements on the outskirts of the city of Berne have retained their characteristics, embedded in an arable and structurally rich cultural landscape with hedges and valuable trees.
Important benchmarks for the Baukultur
The hamlet landscape of the Frienisberg plateau is a model for dealing with small settlements in the context of the new spatial planning legislation. For many years, the quality of planning and building projects has been specifically promoted with the inter-municipal specialist advice board on architectural design in the four municipalities Wohlen, Meikirch, Bremgarten und Kirchlindach of the Frienisberg plateau.
A landscape rich in contrast
The special feature of the Frienisberg plateau's landscape is the great contrast between the rural and the urban: structurally rich agricultural areas with fields and meadows, hedges, field trees, revitalised bodies of water and vital forest stands as well as small settlements with stately old farmhouses, but also more recent buildings that blend harmoniously into the surroundings.
The two raised bogs in Wohlen (Lörmoos) and Kirchlindach (Büsselimoos) are also worthy of note and invite visitors to experience nature. The transport network of the plateau is based almost unchanged on the historical transport network (IVS) and is therefore ideal for hiking and cycling tours. On the plateau, you can experience the astonishing openness and vastness of the landscape.
Swiss Landscape Conservation Foundation
The Swiss Landscape Conservation Foundation has been awarding the title of “Landscape of the Year” since 2011. It recognises not only the outstanding cultural landscapes themselves, but also, explicitly, the community commitment and the specific achievements of the people on the ground.
