Landscape fragmentation has often been seen as an only ecological problem. However, fragmentation
also has a societal perspective, namely, in how humans perceive landscape fragmentation and in how
landscape fragmentation potentially influences human well-being. These latter aspects have rarely been
addressed so far. The inter-relationship of ecological and human dimensions of landscape fragmentation
becomes especially evident when looking at the landscape where most people in industrial countries
live, namely in suburban and urban areas. In these areas, landscape planners and environmental
managers are confronted with the problem that landscapes should fullfil various functions, often with
conflicting goals, e.g. nature reserves to enhance species richness vs. recreational areas for city-dwellers.
We reviewed the ecological and sociological literature relevant for fragmentation in suburban and urban
landscapes. In an interdisciplinary approach, we evaluated whether there are similarities and dissimilarities
between the ecological and the human aspects of landscape fragmentation. We found important
similarities. An example is that for both, humans and biodiversity, the loss of semi-natural areas has
more drastic effects than the fragmentation of these areas per se. However, there are also relevant
differences. We concluded that in densely populated landscapes a shift from responsive planning to an
intentional design of environments is therefore needed.
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