Access to urban green spaces in Hannover: An exploration considering age groups, recreational nature qualities and potential demand

authored by

Raphael Weber, Annegret Haase, Christian Albert

Abstract

City dwellers' accessibility of urban green spaces (UGS) has recently gained immense interest in research and policy. Related scientific studies thus far have focused primarily on spatial distances, largely missing considerations of UGS qualities. We analysed the entire UGS setting of Hannover considering the recreational nature quality and potential demands to identify age-appropriate green spaces by applying a geographic information system analysis of several data sets. Additionally, we assessed the accessibility of UGS for different age groups, varying recreational nature qualities, and potential demands. Results indicate that children and elderly people have poor access to UGS that offers age-related requirements to enable unrestricted nature-based recreation. Nature quality and age-related requirements play a significant role in the assessment of UGS for recreation and accessibility. We conclude that detected vulnerabilities regarding age-related recreation in cities are anchors to mainstream the issue and enhance future planning practices and research.

External Organisation(s)

Ruhr-Universität Bochum

Type

Article

Journal

AMBIO

Volume

52

Pages

631-646

No. of pages

16

ISSN

0044-7447

Publication date

03.2023

Publication status

Published

Peer reviewed

Yes

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Geography, Planning and Development, Ecology, Environmental Chemistry

Sustainable Development Goals

SDG 11 - Sustainable Cities and Communities

Electronic version(s)

https://doi.org/10.1007/s13280-022-01808-x (Access: Open)