Policy recommendations for a green and inclusive city
The increasingly widespread adoption of green strategic plans to address both social and environmental issues consider justice in a superficial and narrow manner, which implies a significant risk of perpetuating existing social and gender inequalities within green spaces.
This is the main conclusion of the study on the effectiveness of gender inclusion in urban greening carried out in Barcelona by ICTA-UAB researcher Amalia Calderón-Argelich.
The scientist has produced a policy brief, based on the article Greening plans as (re)presentation of the city: Toward an inclusive and gender-sensitive approach to urban greenspaces, which aims to inform political authorities and urban professionals in the Barcelona area about the results of the research conducted within the framework of the author’s doctoral thesis.
The analysis focuses on how Barcelona's green policies, in an international context, take into account social and gender justice, and makes four main recommendations for a green and inclusive city, which include:
- Define urban green objectives and plans aligned with equity objectives.
- Interdisciplinary coordination and continuous training.
- Avoid standardisation and address needs in an intersectional way.
- Take into account the specific characteristics of green infrastructure.