Your Favourite Park Is Not My Favourite Park: A Participatory Geographic Information System Approach to Improving Urban Green and Blue Spaces—A Case Study in Edinburgh, Scotland

Charlotte Wendelboe-Nelson (), Yiyun Wang, Simon Bell, Craig W. McDougall and Catharine Ward Thompson
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Charlotte Wendelboe-Nelson: OPENspace Research Centre, Edinburgh School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture, Edinburgh College of Art, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH3 9DF, UK
Yiyun Wang: OPENspace Research Centre, Edinburgh School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture, Edinburgh College of Art, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH3 9DF, UK
Simon Bell: OPENspace Research Centre, Edinburgh School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture, Edinburgh College of Art, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH3 9DF, UK
Craig W. McDougall: Scottish Collaboration for Public Health Research and Policy, School of Health in Social Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH1 2QL, UK
Catharine Ward Thompson: OPENspace Research Centre, Edinburgh School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture, Edinburgh College of Art, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH3 9DF, UK

Land, 2024, vol. 13, issue 3, 1-28

Abstract: Access to urban green and blue spaces (UGBSs) has been associated with positive effects on health and wellbeing; however, the past decades have seen a decline in quality and user satisfaction with UGBSs. This reflects the mounting challenges that many UK cities face in providing appropriate public facilities, alongside issues such as health inequalities, an ageing population, climate change, and loss of biodiversity. At present, little is known about the preferences of different population subgroups and, specifically, the UGBSs they visit and the spaces they avoid. Using a public participatory geographic information system (PPGIS), the overall aim of the research presented here was to investigate the preferences of different population subgroups in urban areas, and the UGBSs they visit, using Edinburgh, Scotland as a case study. We created a baseline visitor demographic profile for UGBS use, and highlighted how visitors perceive, physically access, use, and engage with UGBSs. The results revealed considerable variation in UGBS preference: one person’s favourite UGBS may be one that someone else dislikes and avoids. It is clear that adapting UGBSs to suit local communities should not be a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach. The conflicting views and preferences of different groups of respondents point to the importance of developing policies and park management plans that can accommodate a variety of uses and experiential qualities within individual parks. PPGIS approaches, such as those utilised in this study, offer opportunities to address this issue and provide evidence to increase equitable UGBS usage.

Keywords: urban green and blue space; community engagement; co-production; public participation; spatial analysis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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