Changing Landscapes is an open centre with the participating researchers remaining at their home institutions. The integrating and co-ordinating centre is placed at Odense University. Employed at the centre is besides the centre leader also an academic secretary. The tasks of the academic secretary include various coordinating jobs as well as external information.

External information is important in order to draw attention to the centre profile. Frequent newsletters are planned, but in particular the use of web-sites in order to bring information out quickly. The information will be concentrated on the people participating in the projects, planned seminars, research results and publications. Another important task, in which the centre secretary will play an important role is by arranging the seminars. Both internal work seminars, which are scheduled to take place in the beginning in order to co-ordinate the projects, as well as open seminars where research results will be discussed in a professional forum. Large seminars/conferences are planned for 1998 and 2000, in accordance with the milestones of the centre. Part of the strategy of the centre is to publish results and discuss these with the users. The strategy means that the arrangement and publication of the seminars becomes high priority, as well as quick publication of conference reports. The budget therefore also includes student work.

Central responsibility of the centre management is the purchase of maps; digital and analogue, as well as adaptation of these in the establishment of GIS data set (student work). These maps are of importance to the particular GIS-projects though also to the majority of the other projects working with landscape analysis via maps and GIS, except the coastal projects. The reason for this disposition is partly in order to utilise the expertise of the different institutions within this field, partly to ensure the insight of the centre management in the development of the GIS-projects and the possibility of co-ordination with other projects.

Within the budget is a small amount reserved for guest researchers in 1998 and 1999 within the work-fields of the centre. Money will be allocated to particular institutions according to applications to the centre committee. Finally, within the budget is a limited possibility for publications. Though this money is primarily set aside for newsletters, other common publications are also a possibility.

The centre leader carry out the daily management of the centre assisted by the academic secretary. Independent tasks performed by the academic secretary include external information about the centre (newsletters and particularly www-site), organise seminars, both internal ones and in particular the open ones. Last mentioned also include editing of the contributions for publishing. Furthermore, the academic secretary is supposed to tie individual participants in the centre into a whole. Responsible to the SMP-programme is the committee, which is constituted with the centre leader as chairman. The contact to the SMP-committee goes through the centre leader.

A professional advisory committee will be constituted in relation to the centre. This group will be informed about the work of the centre and its main function is an advisory capacity. This advisory group meets with the centre committee and the researchers at least once yearly.