The Value of Urban Nature in Terms of Providing Ecosystem Services Related to Health and Well-Being: An Empirical Comparative Pilot Study of Cities in Germany and the Czech Republic

Ralf-Uwe Syrbe, Ina Neumann, Karsten Grunewald, Patrycia Brzoska, Jiři Louda, Birgit Kochan, Jan Macháč, Lenka Dubová, Petr Meyer, Jan Brabec and Olaf Bastian
Additional contact information
Ralf-Uwe Syrbe: Leibniz Institute of Ecological Urban and Regional Development, 01217 Dresden, Germany
Ina Neumann: Leibniz Institute of Ecological Urban and Regional Development, 01217 Dresden, Germany
Karsten Grunewald: Leibniz Institute of Ecological Urban and Regional Development, 01217 Dresden, Germany
Patrycia Brzoska: Leibniz Institute of Ecological Urban and Regional Development, 01217 Dresden, Germany
Jiři Louda: Institute for Economic and Environmental Policy, Faculty of Social and Economic Studies, Jan Evangelista Purkyně University in Ústí nad Labem, 400 96 Ústí nad Labem, Czech Republic
Birgit Kochan: Leibniz Institute of Ecological Urban and Regional Development, 01217 Dresden, Germany
Jan Macháč: Institute for Economic and Environmental Policy, Faculty of Social and Economic Studies, Jan Evangelista Purkyně University in Ústí nad Labem, 400 96 Ústí nad Labem, Czech Republic
Lenka Dubová: Institute for Economic and Environmental Policy, Faculty of Social and Economic Studies, Jan Evangelista Purkyně University in Ústí nad Labem, 400 96 Ústí nad Labem, Czech Republic
Petr Meyer: Department of Geology, Faculty of Science, Jan Evangelista Purkyně University in Ústí nad Labem, 400 96 Ústí nad Labem, Czech Republic
Jan Brabec: Institute for Economic and Environmental Policy, Faculty of Social and Economic Studies, Jan Evangelista Purkyně University in Ústí nad Labem, 400 96 Ústí nad Labem, Czech Republic
Olaf Bastian: Department of Environment and Municipal Utilities, State Capital of Dresden, 01001 Dresden, Germany

Land, 2021, vol. 10, issue 4, 1-26

Abstract: The quality of life in our cities critically depends on the intelligent planning and shaping of urban living space, in particular urban nature. By providing a wide range of ecosystem services (ES), urban nature essentially contributes to the well-being of city dwellers and plays a major role in avoiding common diseases through its positive impact on physical and mental health. Health is one of the most important factors underlying human welfare and is, thus, vital to sustainable development. The ES of urban green space provide other social-cultural functions alongside public health, for example by fostering environmental justice and citizenship participation. Thus, they should always be considered when searching for solutions to urban problems. The aim of this research was to determine the impact of green areas in three selected cities on the health and well-being of people by self-reporting of green areas’ visitors. To this end, we posed the research question: which types and characteristics of urban green space are most appreciated by city dwellers? Based on our findings, we have drawn up recommendations for practices to promote better living conditions. We have also pinpointed obstacles to and opportunities for leisure time activities as well as ways of supporting the public health of citizens.

Keywords: environment assessment; recreation; urban green spaces; green infrastructure; urbanization; social interaction; interviews (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (10)

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/10/4/341/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/10/4/341/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jlands:v:10:y:2021:i:4:p:341-:d:525350

Access Statistics for this article

Land is currently edited by Ms. Carol Ma

More articles in Land from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().