TY - JOUR
T1 - Needs and expectations of German and Chinese children for livable urban green spaces revealed by the method of empathy-based stories
AU - Shu, Xi
AU - Mesimäki, Marja
AU - Kotze, Johan
AU - Wales, Mark
AU - Xie, Long
AU - Benicke, Renan
AU - Lehvävirta, Susanna
PY - 2022/2
Y1 - 2022/2
N2 - One of the important features of cities is to provide high-quality outdoor environments for various groups of citizens. Although children are frequent users of green spaces, the knowledge and perspectives applied in planning and design of urban green spaces are mostly defined by adults. This results in spaces and practices that may limit the daily lives and creativity of urban children. Promoting child-friendly cities benefits from knowledge produced by children themselves, regarding their perceptions and experiences, as well as ideas and suggestions. This study provides empirical results concerning children's needs and mental images for urban green spaces in two urban areas in two countries (Chengdu, China, and Ruhr Region, Germany). 765 children, ages 8-10 were surveyed through the method of empathy-based stories (MEBS). Participants were asked to use their imagination to write stories according to given scenarios. Our study shows that MEBS can be used to gather meaningful data with children, and that children are an important stakeholder group in urban planning, landscape design and management with an ability to express their diverse needs and preferences towards green spaces. Both designed green spaces (e.g. gardens, parks) and wild nature (e.g. forests, meadows) can offer a range of activities and experiences for children in their everyday lives: opportunities for play, socializing, contact with nature, aesthetic and restorative experiences, learning and exploration. Our findings include indications of children's awareness of the diverse ecosystem services that green spaces provide, as well as of urban sustain ability and livability. While we found German and Chinese children to have corresponding needs and expectations regarding urban green spaces and nature, we also found some variation. We suggest that the use of, and experiences in green spaces are linked not only to the landscape but also to conceptual-cultural contexts.
AB - One of the important features of cities is to provide high-quality outdoor environments for various groups of citizens. Although children are frequent users of green spaces, the knowledge and perspectives applied in planning and design of urban green spaces are mostly defined by adults. This results in spaces and practices that may limit the daily lives and creativity of urban children. Promoting child-friendly cities benefits from knowledge produced by children themselves, regarding their perceptions and experiences, as well as ideas and suggestions. This study provides empirical results concerning children's needs and mental images for urban green spaces in two urban areas in two countries (Chengdu, China, and Ruhr Region, Germany). 765 children, ages 8-10 were surveyed through the method of empathy-based stories (MEBS). Participants were asked to use their imagination to write stories according to given scenarios. Our study shows that MEBS can be used to gather meaningful data with children, and that children are an important stakeholder group in urban planning, landscape design and management with an ability to express their diverse needs and preferences towards green spaces. Both designed green spaces (e.g. gardens, parks) and wild nature (e.g. forests, meadows) can offer a range of activities and experiences for children in their everyday lives: opportunities for play, socializing, contact with nature, aesthetic and restorative experiences, learning and exploration. Our findings include indications of children's awareness of the diverse ecosystem services that green spaces provide, as well as of urban sustain ability and livability. While we found German and Chinese children to have corresponding needs and expectations regarding urban green spaces and nature, we also found some variation. We suggest that the use of, and experiences in green spaces are linked not only to the landscape but also to conceptual-cultural contexts.
KW - 519 Social and economic geography
KW - Child-friendly cities
KW - Green infrastructure
KW - Nature-based solutions
KW - Role-playing method
KW - Text mining
KW - PHYSICAL-ACTIVITY
KW - INDEPENDENT MOBILITY
KW - PLAY
KW - PERCEPTION
KW - LIVABILITY
KW - LANDSCAPE
KW - COMMUNITY
KW - SAFETY
KW - WATER
KW - 1172 Environmental sciences
U2 - 10.1016/j.ufug.2022.127476
DO - 10.1016/j.ufug.2022.127476
M3 - Article
VL - 68
JO - Urban Forestry & Urban Greening
JF - Urban Forestry & Urban Greening
SN - 1618-8667
M1 - 127476
ER -