Cultural landscape mapping
Introduction
The Coffee Cultural Landscape of Colombia (PCC) is a World Heritage Site declared by UNESCO on June 25, 2011 in the category of Cultural Landscape. It constitutes an example of human adaptation to complex geographical conditions on which mountain coffee farming developed. It is a region in which natural, economic and cultural elements derived from the colonization processes of Antioquia and Valle del Cauca converge, with a territorial organization characterized by a high degree of regional homogeneity. Productive practices developed by coffee-growing families over several generations are integrated into this landscape.[1].
Community practices have given rise to a model of collective action aimed at facing adverse economic situations and maintaining agricultural activities in a geographical environment that is difficult to access. This model has been developed on the basis of small coffee ownership, with criteria of economic, social and environmental sustainability. The configuration of this system has generated a heritage set that includes construction techniques present in urban and rural settlements, as well as intangible cultural expressions related to coffee cultivation, manifested in celebrations, social practices and expressions of identity linked to the heritage of Antioquia colonization.[1].
The PCC is made up of coffee-growing areas of the departments of Caldas, Quindío, Risaralda and Valle del Cauca, located in the central and western foothills of the Andes mountain range in Colombia. A larger region, which also includes part of the department of Tolima, has been recognized as the Coffee Axis and, more recently, as the Coffee Route"), within the framework of a national and international promotion strategy.[1].
The economy and culture of this region have been structured around coffee cultivation since the end of the century, after the arrival of settlers from Antioquia. Processes such as the planting of coffee plantations, the construction of housing and infrastructure for transportation, processing and marketing of grain, and the evolution of production techniques, have contributed to the development of a territorial organization with specific dynamics. The interaction between coffee agricultural practices, the influence of Antioquian colonization and the migration of Valle del Cauca residents in the centuries and [2] has influenced the formation of regional cultural expressions in areas such as music, dance, traditional cuisines and architecture, transmitted through intergenerational processes.