Biodiversity vs. geodiversity in landscape appreciation: what do Portuguese and Spanish pre-service teachers value?

Abstract

This study aimed to identify, via questionnaire, the landscape preferencesof 336 pre-service teachers—219 from a metropolitan area in Portugaland 117 from a rural area in Spain. Eight natural landscapes wereassessed, each characterised by geodiversity, biodiversity, and culturalfeatures. Overall, Portuguese students showed stronger preferences, possiblydue to Spanish students’ familiarity with natural surroundings.Landscapes featuring geodiversity with water bodies (such as cascadesand caldera lakes) were most favoured, while biodiversity-rich landscapeswere preferred over those with only geodiversity. Both groups expresseda stronger commitment to landscape preservation than to their preferences,showing a moderate to weak correlation between these factors.Animals significantly attracted interest, and when various natural elementswere present, geodiversity features tended to be less noticed.Positive emotions were generally associated with the landscapes, thoughsome geological features and educational values were underappreciated.Suggestions for integrating these insights into teacher training areincluded