The Valuing Outdoor Culture and Heritage (VOCul)  project team had their first in-person meeting in March, with all members gathering in the Lake District. This initial site visit provided a fantastic opportunity to learn more about Wild Ennerdale and other potential case study sites in the Lake District.  It also served as a valuable platform for interdisciplinary exchange of thoughts, ideas, and insights. 

We are very thankful to Gareth Browning for kicking off proceedings with an overview of the history of Wild Ennerdale as well as showcasing their successes and goals for the future.  

While the rain fell, we seized the opportunity to discuss our collective, organisational, and personal ambitions for the project.  Each researcher led a session on the work-package progress, discussing the methods they have been using and identifying any limitations and overlaps. These presentations offered a wonderful opportunity to compare various methodologies and philosophies used across our disciplines to describe, quantify, and compare the values and benefits provided by culture and heritage.  

Our lively discussions included topics such as when do nature and culture blend and why the language we use to describe assets matters in terms of management, funding and providing public value. 

As a transdisciplinary team we are always keen to create a welcoming and open-minded environment for discussions, building a shared vocabulary and understanding. We have cultivated this environment through our hybrid project meetings, and it was truly rewarding to bring this to life in person during the site visit.   

 The sky cleared after the presentations, revealing a perfect afternoon for our field site visit to Wild Ennerdale. During we engaged in “revealed preference” activities designed to help our non-economist researchers grasp how economists model the flow of services provided by cultural heritage and natural capital assets. This hands-on activity also provided valuable insights into the key features that visitors perceive and appreciate during an outdoor recreational walk.

In the site visit we experienced the rich abundance of Natural and Culture and Heritage Capital assets that Ennerdale has. We walked through the remnants of a charcoal burning site, sheepfolds, longhouses, old paths, rivers, broadleaf and conifer plantations, all set within a rugged and hilly landscape. The site visit provided a perfect setting for researchers to discuss how to identify potential sites of cultural interest, distinguishing earthworks, ridge and barrows and other relevant lumps and bumps, as well as agricultural waste heaps.

 We are looking forward to our next in-person meeting!