The centre will look at how best to preserve upland fell areas

The International Centre for the Uplands is based in Kendal.

The centre was devised at the height of the foot-and-mouth crisis, when it was feared many areas would be permanently damaged by the outbreak.

The centre will examine how to ensure the long-term health and economic future of areas like the Lake District fells and the Pennines.

The centre has been paid for with cash from Cumbria County Council, Rural Regeneration Cumbria, the Northwest Development Agency and the Lake District National Park Authority.

It will be managed by Lancaster University.

Kit Nicholson is the director the new centre

Partners in the project include the University of Central Lancashire, Voluntary Action Cumbria and the Banff Centre for Mountain Culture as well as a dozen other local, national and international organisations.

It will bring together research in areas like farming, outdoor activities, skills development, heritage, culture and tourism.

Centre director Kit Nicholson said the project will be invaluable in preserving upland areas of the country.

He said: "Uplands play an important and distinctive role in cultures all over the world.

"They have often provided inspiration for formative artistic and spiritual movements.

"And yet, few people in our modern world really engage with the uplands, local communities are under pressure and public policies often pull in disjointed directions.

"The centre is a pioneering venture to help affirm the importance of the uplands and the benefits which society seeks from them.

"Building on this vision, the centre will provide rigorous independent evaluation to help communities and agencies improve the public policies and programmes which affect the uplands."