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J. Liu
residents from benefiting from the multiple ecosystem services provided by urban
green spaces, e.g. purified air and groundwater, and greater biodiversity. Second,
urban green spaces in cities are limited due to the scarcity nature of urban land.
That means one resident’s use in existing green space will reduce the availability
of that space for others; it also means one decision of land planning and land use
for commercial or housing purposes will reduce the opportunities for additional
green spaces. These two attributes determine that the current approaches of urban
green space planning which rely on narrow indicators of success—diversification of
tree species, coverage (certain size of green space per capita), aesthetics, etc., are
insufficient. If a city wants to retain considerable urban green spaces for climate
adaptation and make it accessible to everyone for wellbeing benefits, some form of
integrative institutional arrangements for planning and governing urban green spaces
elaborating all urban functions as a complex adaptive system must be introduced.
4 Policy Recommendations
Urban spatial planning and social policymaking share the role of distributing spaces
more justly, taking into account that public spaces should first and foremost be able to
serve all equally regardless of socio-economic status. Applying a systemic approach
to plan and govern urban green space can help improve urban health and wellbeing.
Policy recommendations for decision-makers at the city level include:
1. Establish universal access to urban green space as the basic principle of urban
planning.
2. Integrate the modelling work of climate change impact and vulnerability and the
monitoring system of public health into the planning for urban green spaces.
3. Incorporate all societal actors in the governance of urban green spaces from
planning to building to use and to maintain, taking into account the ecology of
plant species.
References
Bai X, Elmqvist T, Frantzeskaki N et al (2018) New integrated urban knowledge for the cities
we want. In: Elmqvist T, Bai X, Frantzeskaki N et al (eds) Urban planet: knowledge towards
sustainable cities. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
Gross T (2017) A ‘forgotten history’ of how the U.S. government segregated America. [202008-12]. https://www.npr.org/2017/05/03/526655831/a-forgotten-history-of-how-the-u-s-govern
ment-segregated-america.
Liu Z, He C, Zhou Y et al (2014) How much of the world’s land has been urbanized, really? A
hierarchical framework for avoiding confusion. Landscape Ecol 29:5
Ostrom E (2009) Understanding institutional diversity. Princeton University Press, Princeton
Ritchie H, Roser M (2020) Urbanization. [2020-08-12]. https://ourworldindata.org/urbanization
J. Liu
residents from benefiting from the multiple ecosystem services provided by urban
green spaces, e.g. purified air and groundwater, and greater biodiversity. Second,
urban green spaces in cities are limited due to the scarcity nature of urban land.
That means one resident’s use in existing green space will reduce the availability
of that space for others; it also means one decision of land planning and land use
for commercial or housing purposes will reduce the opportunities for additional
green spaces. These two attributes determine that the current approaches of urban
green space planning which rely on narrow indicators of success—diversification of
tree species, coverage (certain size of green space per capita), aesthetics, etc., are
insufficient. If a city wants to retain considerable urban green spaces for climate
adaptation and make it accessible to everyone for wellbeing benefits, some form of
integrative institutional arrangements for planning and governing urban green spaces
elaborating all urban functions as a complex adaptive system must be introduced.
4 Policy Recommendations
Urban spatial planning and social policymaking share the role of distributing spaces
more justly, taking into account that public spaces should first and foremost be able to
serve all equally regardless of socio-economic status. Applying a systemic approach
to plan and govern urban green space can help improve urban health and wellbeing.
Policy recommendations for decision-makers at the city level include:
1. Establish universal access to urban green space as the basic principle of urban
planning.
2. Integrate the modelling work of climate change impact and vulnerability and the
monitoring system of public health into the planning for urban green spaces.
3. Incorporate all societal actors in the governance of urban green spaces from
planning to building to use and to maintain, taking into account the ecology of
plant species.
References
Bai X, Elmqvist T, Frantzeskaki N et al (2018) New integrated urban knowledge for the cities
we want. In: Elmqvist T, Bai X, Frantzeskaki N et al (eds) Urban planet: knowledge towards
sustainable cities. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
Gross T (2017) A ‘forgotten history’ of how the U.S. government segregated America. [202008-12]. https://www.npr.org/2017/05/03/526655831/a-forgotten-history-of-how-the-u-s-govern
ment-segregated-america.
Liu Z, He C, Zhou Y et al (2014) How much of the world’s land has been urbanized, really? A
hierarchical framework for avoiding confusion. Landscape Ecol 29:5
Ostrom E (2009) Understanding institutional diversity. Princeton University Press, Princeton
Ritchie H, Roser M (2020) Urbanization. [2020-08-12]. https://ourworldindata.org/urbanization