Search

Residential choice behaviour is a complex process underpinned by both housing market restrictions and individual preferences, which are partly conscious and partly tacit knowledge. Due to several limitations, common survey methods cannot sufficiently tap into such tacit knowledge. Thus, this paper introduces an advanced knowledge elicitation process called SilverKnETs and combines it with data mining using random forests to elicit and operationalize this type of knowledge. For the application case of the city of Leipzig, Germany, our findings indicate that rent, location and type of housing form the three predictors strongly influencing the decision making in residential choices. Other explanatory variables appear to have a much lower influence. Random forests have proven to be a promising tool for the prediction of residential choices, although the design and scope of the study govern the explanatory power of these models.

PPGIS (Public Participation GIS) is a tool and methodological approach for collecting spatial data primarily from non-experts about different aspects concerning places of interest. It is proven that this approach is highly useful when dealing with intangible and subjective aspects of places such as cultural ecosystem services. In the city of Zagreb, the PPGIS questionnaire was employed as a data collection method to assess and quantify the spatial distribution of perception toward cultural ecosystem services and disservices provided by urban green spaces. Precise spatial data in a point shape was collected and employed for spatial analyses. Knowing the locations and types of urban green spaces that are perceived as providers of specific service or disservice can enhance our understanding of those places and their general importance for the beneficiaries. Spatial analysis results with, among others, cartographic representation of ecosystem services’ manifestation in an urban landscape, that is, hotspot maps. Within this work, hotspots maps are produced for 19 selected attributes of cultural ecosystem services (15) and disservices (4) throughout the city of Zagreb. Hotspot maps are further enhanced by calculating spatial autocorrelation between collected spatial points for each perception attribute separately. Results emerged with different maps of point spatial distribution, hence indicating diverse usage patterns and perceptions people in Zagreb hold toward urban green spaces. While some attributes such as Cultural Identity are spatially clustered revealing locations in Zagreb perceived to be more important for providing particular cultural ecosystem service or disservice, others such as Running resulted in a more dispersed spatial pattern. Results of calculating spatial autocorrelation between points further enhanced interpretation and provided numerical values that can be used to describe produced hotspot maps. Maps are powerful and effective tools when communicating spatial information to stakeholders and policymakers in being easy to comprehend. Perception-based assessment and quantification of the spatial distribution of cultural ecosystem services and disservices in Zagreb provided useful and understandable information. Hotspots represent locations that are highly recognised, however the resulting coldspots should be acknowledged too. PPGIS questionnaire employed in the city of Zagreb proved to be an effective tool for gathering meaningful spatial data which, properly analysed, can be used as a valuable citizen’s input for enhancing planning and management practices regarding urban green spaces in the city of Zagreb.

This short report, referred to as Deliverable 1.6 (D1.6), is a summary of key findings, an overview of,and a comparative perspective on relevant governance, institutional and economic frameworks inChina and Europe for urban forests as nature-based solutions (UF-NBS). It bases on work realised inWP1 and on a Sino-European co-design event. In the context of UF-NBS and the CLEARING HOUSEproject, urban forest patterns, governance structures, institutional and economic frameworks areinterlocking at various spatial levels. Task 1.5 merges the key findings of the Tasks 1.1 to 1.4 togetherwith the findings of the exploratory analysis of the case studies (Task 2.1 in WP2; da Schio et al. 2021)and the inputs gathered from the co-design process (Task 3.1; De Vreese et al. 2021) into an analyticalframework for a systematic and participatory study and implementation of UF-NBS and their effectsand impacts on the urban socio-ecological system, including socio-cultural, ecological, and economicaspects. Topics addressed by the analytical framework will include ecosystem patterns andfunctioning, tree- and biodiversity, ecosystem services provisioning, impacts on human wellbeing(including socio-environmental justice, urban liveability, equality, social inclusion and gender andpublic health), climate change adaptation and the cost-effectiveness of UF-NBS in cities and their periurban surroundings. The analytical framework will highlight the contribution of different disciplinesthrough assigned thematic experts from CLEARING HOUSE and give guidance for analysing existingplanning instruments and monitoring schemes. It is preliminary structured in four streams, for thepurpose of splitting and organising the work in WP2 and in the case studies. All four streams areinterconnected, both in terms of the theme they cover and in terms of the activities planned.

This report is the main outcome of Task 2.1 of work package 2 (WP2). Overall, this WP aims to analyzeand compare the implementation of UF-NBS in selected cities and city regions in view of their impactson urban ecosystems and societies, their cost effectiveness, and their replicability in distinct contents.In this context, Task 2.1 consisted of an exploratory analysis of all selected case studies, useful toprovide the context for a comparative, in-depth analysis of ongoing cooperative efforts toward theenhancement of UF-NBS (T2.2) in the second phase of CLEARING HOUSE. The report includes a wide Europe-wide perspective to UF-NBS potential in urban areas via a spatial quantitative analysis (Chapter 2), and five in depth case study analyses on the governance arrangements, planning approaches and socio-ecological situation of the CLEARING HOUSE urbanareas (Chapters 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7). The initial proposal for D2.1 was to conduct an exploratory analysis of not only the five case studies in Europe included in this report but also of five case studies in China; Beijing, the Hong Kong, Guangzhou,Shenzhen metropolis, Hangzhou, Huaibei and Xiamen. It became clear that a combination of dataavailability and obstacles presented by COVID-19 which prevented international travel and field workwould make achieving this with the original timeframe impossible. Since D2.1 is an input to task 2.2 itwas concluded that to avoid delay the exploratory analysis of the Chinese cities would be moved into task 2.2 (the in-depth analysis of the case study cities and city regions). A further advantage being toallow the case histories from D1.4 to be inputted directly into task 2.2 as well as the results from localco-design workshops. Using the most recent available and comparable data provided by the Copernicus programme, a firstassessment of mapping the UF-NBS potential in European urban areas is provided based on a selectedset of indicators. The use of indicators which display respectively the availability of forest areas (forestshare); the potential per-capita supply with forest areas and trees (forest area per resident); and the biophysical benchmark of canopy cover (tree cover density) was instrumental in showing the broadvariety characterising European urban areas and in positioning the five case study localities. Analysingthe relation between certain indicators allows a first but descriptive conclusion on influencing factorssuch as built-up structure or city size. On the basis of the screening tool developed as part of Work Package 1, five case study analyses of five European localities were performed. These took the form of "locality profiles", each including elementsof general context, information on the current state of UF-NBS in the locality, analysis of UF-NBSgovernance and finally an outlook on the strategic objectives for the locality, and on the existingchallenges and barriers. The case studies were based on data collected through desk research, reviewof scientific and policy literature, and key informant interviews, and have also benefited from thediscussion and exchange that took place during the project workshops (WP3). The information presented in this report will populate the repository developed in WP1 with spatial and other information from the case study cities. It will feed into the development of the analyticalframework to be used as a basis for the in-depth analysis of the case study cities and city regions. Thefindings from the exploratory analysis will be discussed in a workshop.

Deliverable 1.2 is intended to be a guide, a structured interpretation and evaluation of the current knowledge used to collateevidence on intended outcomes and unintended impacts of UF-NBS for urban ecosystem regeneration and human wellbeing. The information reported herein is based on the compilation of a reference-recorded knowledge repository of UF-NBS and theirimpacts on urban liveability, public health, halting biodiversity loss and re-diversifying UF-NBS structures to enhance urbanresilience; specifically, Task 1.2 - Reviewing the knowledge on the importance of UF-NBS for resilient cities -and M1.3 - theRepository on UF-NBS for resilient cities in China and Europe. Sections 2 and 3 of deliverable D1.2a are intended to providea review of current UF-NBS practices in Europe and China. The in-depth coverage of these UF-NBS case studies is furtherexpanded in Appendix 1 by reviewing the grey literature, i.e. the project and official reports, planning strategies, as well asscientific publications that span the territory of EU Member States and China. This documentation highlights the main goalsand methodologies used in UF-NBS research and implementation, policy implications and NBS typology and functions, i.e.,ecosystem services, within the frame of Task 1.2, as well as case history templates (Task 1.4). In Section 4, a comparativeanalysis of case histories provides conclusive insights into common or contrasting aspects in and between these twocontinents. Final considerations drawn from the comparative analysis of the intended outcomes of UF-NBS implementationinclude lessons that can be learned and existing knowledge gaps. In Section 5, a Sino-European analysis, in the form ofamodelling exercise, was conducted of the selected case histories to explore shared themes, such as connectivity, multifunctionality and social cohesion, and macro-categories (i.e., ecological, engineering, social and economicmacro-categories) for urban regeneration and renaturing. The second part, D1.2b, presents a review of the existing knowledgeon UF-NBS through a compiled knowledge repository of cases from the academic literature as provided by both Europe andChina. This repository offers a more comprehensive understanding of the overarching goal the overall document aims for, aswell as its specific objectives, and to help satisfy the need for inquiring on the multitude of aspects that are inherent to UF-NBSand their strategic role in planning, implementation and as a response to address today’s climate change,economic and social crises. In light of the aforementioned objectives, D1.2 can be considereda valid and comprehensive aide to a variety of audiences. These include, but are not limited to,educational and scientific research institutions, NGOs, environmental planners and enthusiasts,and lastly, government authorities who are expected to devote more importance, time, andbudgets to green space management and allow for greater place-based involvement.

This deliverable (D5.5) is the first revision of the communication and dissemination strategy. Thisdocument is a living document, its next update (D5.6) is due in M36 (August 2022). This document is arevision of D5.1 which was submitted in November 2019 and assesses the performance of the definedtools used to communicate with the audience and to disseminate the project’s results. &nbsp

Governance, institutional and economic frameworks in China and Europe are considered to be decisive forthe design, implementation and impacts of urban forests as nature-based solutions (UF-NBS). Several linesof inquiry were established to focus the analysis; these were developed in a co-design process with projectpartners. To provide an evidence base for the analysis, case histories of 22 existing projects were collected:16 in Europe and 6 in China. The selection of case histories and countries was motivated by the ambition ofcovering different bio-geographical regions and planning families based on the modified ESPON approachused in the GREEN SURGE FP7 project. We found that governance, institutional and economic frameworks for UF-NBS are still under development.Support was found from the findings of Xie & Bulkeley (2020) who reported that whilst local planningprocesses are assumed to be the instigator of urban (NBS), for European cities project-based actions arepresently preeminent. We concluded that for this to move up the agenda to city strategic developmentplans, which are generally guided from the national, regional, and city level, there is a case for an EU-NBS strategy (including UF-NBS) to influence national thinking. In China, city masterplans set out the high-levelpolicy of the city and all other local plans are subordinate to it. Unlike for its immediate predecessor, theabsence of urban forestry from the Chinese 14th five-year plan is offset by the robust structure of the China National Forest City Development Plan (2018 - 2025). We found that the design, implementation and management of UF-NBS depend on the social, cultural andeconomic context, but that there is added value in the promotion of good practices and successful stories,as well as innovation. Key informants in the case histories were interested to learn from elsewhere. Thecase histories are being uploaded to the NetworkNature/OPPLA platform and shared via networks, notablythe European Forum on Urban Forestry (EFUF) and the International Forest City conference. The engagement of civil society (i.e., social groups, citizens) in UF-NBS is still relatively low. This links to the top-down approach described in the majority of the case histories, with the leading role embedded withinmunicipalities. We have identified a need for widening the scope of the co-design processes involving localresidents and citizen groups. The engagement of the private sector also seems to be falling short ofexpectations. Indeed, the funding of UF-NBS relies to a high degree on municipal funds. This has multipleconsequences in respect of governance arrangements where citizens are recipients, not co-owners and comakers of proposed solutions, and may also reduce the scope of economic innovations. We have also identified that long-term planning should always be considered in the case of UF-NBS, since funds can berestricted to the duration of project inception leading to a loss of NBS functionality if UF-NBS managementdeclines.

This deliverable gives an overview of the contribution of CLEARING HOUSE to joint work in the H2020 NBS community,including the NBS Task Forces and Network Nature. It describes the collaboration with the European Forum on Urban Forestryand the global NATURA Network, and with other European projects on NBS (both H2020-funded and funded with otherresources). &nbsp

The most common approach to assessing natural hazard risk is investigating the willingness to pay in the presence or absence of such risk. In this work, we propose a new, machine-learning-based, indirect approach to the problem, i.e. through residential-choice modelling. Especially in urban environments, exposure and vulnerability are highly dynamic risk components, both being shaped by a complex and continuous reorganization and redistribution of assets within the urban space, including the (re-)location of urban dwellers. By modelling residential-choice behaviour in the city of Leipzig, Germany, we seek to examine how exposure and vulnerabilities are shaped by the residential-location-choice process. The proposed approach reveals hot spots and cold spots of residential choice for distinct socioeconomic groups exhibiting heterogeneous preferences. We discuss the relationship between observed patterns and disaster risk through the lens of exposure and vulnerability, as well as links to urban planning, and explore how the proposed methodology may contribute to predicting future trends in exposure, vulnerability, and risk through this analytical focus. Avenues for future research include the operational strengthening of these linkages for more effective disaster risk management.

Today, Public participation GIS (PPGIS) are successfully employed in different spatial contexts and for a variety of purposes. PPGIS methods integrate collecting non-expert spatial and aspatial information in a participative process. Usually, results gathered using PPGIS are used to represent public opinion on a particular topic, e.g., to inform spatial planning and decision-making. Currently, there are various commercial and non-commercial – often open-source – PPGIS software packages available on the market. Here, we present the motivation for applying PPGIS methods, and introduce MyDynamicCity, a highly customizable, adaptive, and re-usable open- source PPGIS software. MyDynamicCity was used for collecting data in a PPGIS survey conducted for the city of Zagreb, Croatia, focusing on the mapping of selected cultural ecosystem services and ecosystem disservices related to the city’s urban green infrastructure, as perceived by the respondents. Furthermore, the survey sought to elicit contextual information, e.g., using open and close-ended questions, multiple choice, or Likert-scale items. The integration of open-source extensions, e.g., enabled as elements as part of a fully customizable front page, implements heatmaps of so far collected spatial data to inform other participants and provide preliminary results to the interested public. The high customization of MyDynamicCity helped designing and tailoring the PPGIS survey to the local context of Zagreb. While the survey is still open to participation, at this moment more than 200 people took part, ensuring richness of collected data and confirmation of software usability. MyDynamicCity could therefore find its application in diversity of projects for the benefit of research and society.

This deliverable (D5.1) describes the communication and dissemination strategy and gives visibility tothe entire process. This document includes a section on the context of the project and identifies thecommunication and dissemination objectives, target groups, strategy and key messages. Thedocument also defines the tools used to communicate with the audience and to disseminate theproject’s results. This document includes the information on all communication and dissemination efforts to achieve allCLEARING HOUSE communications subtasks such as the creation of a visual identity, the projectwebsite and media channels amongst others. &nbsp

Supplemental material for Combining tacit knowledge elicitation with the SilverKnETs tool and random forests – The example of residential housing choices in Leipzig by Sebastian Scheuer, Dagmar Haase, Nadja Kabisch, Manuel Wolff, Dagmar Haase, Annegret Haase, Nadja Kabisch, Manuel Wolff, Nina Schwarz and Katrin Großmann in Environment and Planning B: Urban Analytics and City Science

In this report we develop a GIS-based multicriteria flood risk assessment and mapping approach. This approach has the ability a) to consider also flood risks which are not measured in monetary terms, b) to show the spatial distribution of these multiple risks and c) to deal with uncertainties in criteria values and to show their influence on the overall assessment. It can furthermore be used to show the spatial distribution of the effects of risk reduction measures. The approach is tested for a pilot study at the River Mulde in Saxony, Germany. Therefore, a GISdataset of economic as well as social and environmental risk criteria is built up. Two multicriteria decision rules, a disjunctive approach and an additive weighting approach are used to come to an overall assessment and mapping of flood risk in the area. Both the risk calculation and mapping of single criteria as well as the multicriteria analysis are supported by a software tool (FloodCalc) which was developed for this task.