Narrating plural democratic landscape transformation through a Needs–Care–Justice framework

Landscapes are relational and contested arenas where systemic crises, competing values and power asymmetries shape contested visions of sustainability. Conventional policy and technical responses often overlook how narratives and power relations legitimise particular futures while marginalising others. In response, we present the Needs-Care-Justice framework, a reflexive, multidimensional approach designed to support different actors including researchers, educators, activists, land managers, policymakers and communities, to analyse how landscape narratives are produced, contested, and mobilised, to co-produce more plural and democratic pathways of transformation. The framework integrates three interconnected modes of engagement: (i) mapping and diagnosis; (ii) deliberative reflexivity; and (iii) transformative design; allowing flexible entry points across context and priorities. Using an illustrative fictional case, we show how the framework can surface hidden needs, expose assumptions about care and responsibilities, and highlight justice claims. The framework supports reflexive (re)narration attentive to plurality, positionality, conflict and democratic transformation pathways.