PARENT SESSION
Symposium #15: Philosophy of ecology in the eastern and western civilizations.
Sponsored by ESA Asian Ecology Section
Organized by: Y.D. Choi and J. Carter.
Wednesday, August 8, 2001. 8:00 AM to 11:35 AM. Madison Ballroom B
Traditional and modern ways of land-use planning and managment in South Korea.
Hong, Sun-Kee1, Song, In-Ju1, 1
ABSTRACT- Feng-Shui ("wind-water" theory in English translation) is a natural philosophy for land-use management and policy in Asia. This philosophy, an integration of ecological and geological elements of landscape from long-term observations and empirical speculations in nature, has been a guiding principle for site selections and procedures of land developments for human uses (e.g., municipality, commerce, industry, and even cemetery). Originated in China, it has differentiated in diverse ways of interpretation depending on the patterns and elements of local landscape. Especially, Korean people have applied this philosophy to nearly all land development and management activities over a few millennia of their civilization history. In recent years, land managers and scientists in South Korea attempt to synthesize the traditional Feng-Shui and the modern land management principles that were imported from the western civilization. This paper will focus on a theoretical comparison of Feng-Shui and western concepts within the framework of the land management and restoration in South Korea.
KEY WORDS: Feng-Shui, land-use, planning, Korea