Transitioning beyond urban green space accessibility indicators : Case illustration of a novel diversity planning tool applied to Vantaa, Finland

Current urban green space planning processes are typically guided by greenspace-to-residence proximity indicators. Alone, these indicators are unable to assess, and respond, to the growing socio-spatial polarisation of environmental risks, impacts, and benefits among distinct societal groups within a city. In this research, we present a municipal green space planning tool for measuring the spatial distribution of urban green space diversity within a city, developed using a novel spatial application of the Shannon diversity index to urban green spaces. We illustrate the use of this planning tool in the case of Vantaa, a city in Southern Finland, and examine the association of this diversity indicator with three spatially polarising socio-demographic factors in the region. Contrary to the dominant environmental distributive justice narrative, and stark trends towards socio-spatial polarisation observed in many cities internationally, our findings reveal that urban green space diversity does not currently correlate with income, age structure, or share of population with a foreign background in Vantaa. However, given the changing social dynamics present in our case city, ongoing monitoring and evaluation of who benefits and how from ecosystem service benefits of a diverse urban green space network is necessary. This research offers a practical tool for urban green space planners in European cities facing similar periods of significant differential spatial expansion and changing social dynamics.