title: Developing and testing a cost-effectiveness analysis to prioritize green infrastructure alternatives for climate change adaptation

authors: Reu Junqueira, Juliana

subjects: Green infrastructure

abstract: Green infrastructure has been increasingly identified as an option to help manage climate change impacts in urban areas, although its implementation is still not widely promoted in urban planning. This is because of the lack of detailed analysis for decision-makers regarding construction and maintenance costs for different types and how effective various measures are at managing precipitation at a catchment scale. This paper contributes to fill this gap in knowledge by developing a green infrastructure cost-effectiveness ranking index (GICRI) able to evaluate the stormwater runoff volume reduction of multiple green infrastructure alternatives under different climate change scenarios, over differing spatial configurations and combining this performance data with their construction and maintenance costs. After applying this model over two case study areas, this paper provides three main insights. First, climate change projections have a significant impact on green infrastructure cost-effectiveness. Second, as green infrastructure cost-effectiveness is influenced by the spatial scale, there are different challenges for larger cities and smaller regional towns. Building on this, the paper argues that GICRI can be a simple and fast heuristic to increase the use of green infrastructure by informing decision-makers regarding how and where to prioritize investment or where greater modelling is needed.

text: Developing and testing a cost-effectiveness analysis to prioritize green infrastructure alternatives for climate change adaptation Green infrastructure has been increasingly identified as an option to help manage climate change impacts in urban areas, although its implementation is still not widely promoted in urban planning. This is because of the lack of detailed analysis for decision-makers regarding construction and maintenance costs for different types and how effective various measures are at managing precipitation at a catchment scale. This paper contributes to fill this gap in knowledge by developing a green infrastructure cost-effectiveness ranking index (GICRI) able to evaluate the stormwater runoff volume reduction of multiple green infrastructure alternatives under different climate change scenarios, over differing spatial configurations and combining this performance data with their construction and maintenance costs. After applying this model over two case study areas, this paper provides three main insights. First, climate change projections have a significant impact on green infrastructure cost-effectiveness. Second, as green infrastructure cost-effectiveness is influenced by the spatial scale, there are different challenges for larger cities and smaller regional towns. Building on this, the paper argues that GICRI can be a simple and fast heuristic to increase the use of green infrastructure by informing decision-makers regarding how and where to prioritize investment or where greater modelling is needed.

year: 2022-11-23

title: Dwelling in the city: A qualitative exploration of the human-nature relationship in three types of urban greenspace

authors: Elliot Noe, Elizabeth Emma

subjects: Connection to nature

abstract: The combination of increasing numbers of people in cities, coupled with decreasing levels of biodiversity, is hypothesised to result in the extinction of experience, or the continued disintegration of the human relationship with the natural world. We use the concepts of sense of place and dwelling to investigate the human relationship with nature in cities by considering the emotional connections between people and places. We conducted ‘go-along’ interviews with 21 residents of Hamilton, New Zealand, to explore the significance of neighbourhood parks and home gardens in the lives of urban residents. Our study highlights the importance of greenspaces in cities to the physical, mental and social health of local residents. Bush parks provided the best opportunities for respondents to observe nature and thereby escape the stress of city life. Participants wanted a variety of parks which would meet the range of their community’s needs and provide habitat for wildlife. Proximity and frequent use of parks resulted in a sense of ownership and responsibility which led to concrete action, such as participation in ecological restoration of valued greenspaces. Providing high quality natural greenspaces within walking distance of residents’ homes disrupts the extinction of experience by fostering positive personal experiences of nature, crucial for the health and wellbeing of people and for native biodiversity.

text: Dwelling in the city: A qualitative exploration of the human-nature relationship in three types of urban greenspace The combination of increasing numbers of people in cities, coupled with decreasing levels of biodiversity, is hypothesised to result in the extinction of experience, or the continued disintegration of the human relationship with the natural world. We use the concepts of sense of place and dwelling to investigate the human relationship with nature in cities by considering the emotional connections between people and places. We conducted ‘go-along’ interviews with 21 residents of Hamilton, New Zealand, to explore the significance of neighbourhood parks and home gardens in the lives of urban residents. Our study highlights the importance of greenspaces in cities to the physical, mental and social health of local residents. Bush parks provided the best opportunities for respondents to observe nature and thereby escape the stress of city life. Participants wanted a variety of parks which would meet the range of their community’s needs and provide habitat for wildlife. Proximity and frequent use of parks resulted in a sense of ownership and responsibility which led to concrete action, such as participation in ecological restoration of valued greenspaces. Providing high quality natural greenspaces within walking distance of residents’ homes disrupts the extinction of experience by fostering positive personal experiences of nature, crucial for the health and wellbeing of people and for native biodiversity.

year: 2023-02-01

title: “This is not us”: But actually, it is. Talking about when to raise the issue of colonisation.

authors: Waitoki, Waikaremoana

abstract: This paper is a commentary on some of the responses to the public narrative of the events after the March 15th Christchurch attack. Several colleagues had publicly and privately, offered their views on the Government’s and media outlets use of terms such as ‘unprecedented’, ‘our loss of innocence’ and ‘our darkest day’. A fiery and empassioned exchange of words emerged on social media about the statement: ‘This is not us’. By exposing the counternarrative to these emotion laden terms, a shady past, and invisible present was revealed. However, the timing of the talk about colonisation also seemed out of step with the need for sensitivity. This paper also explores the role of White supremacy and causal racism in New Zealand. A personal I/we/us narrative style is used throughout the paper to describe how Muslim and Maori lives intersected prior to, and after the attack. The timeline of events is primarily 1 week, and up to 6 weeks post the attack.

text: “This is not us”: But actually, it is. Talking about when to raise the issue of colonisation. This paper is a commentary on some of the responses to the public narrative of the events after the March 15th Christchurch attack. Several colleagues had publicly and privately, offered their views on the Government’s and media outlets use of terms such as ‘unprecedented’, ‘our loss of innocence’ and ‘our darkest day’. A fiery and empassioned exchange of words emerged on social media about the statement: ‘This is not us’. By exposing the counternarrative to these emotion laden terms, a shady past, and invisible present was revealed. However, the timing of the talk about colonisation also seemed out of step with the need for sensitivity. This paper also explores the role of White supremacy and causal racism in New Zealand. A personal I/we/us narrative style is used throughout the paper to describe how Muslim and Maori lives intersected prior to, and after the attack. The timeline of events is primarily 1 week, and up to 6 weeks post the attack.

year: 2019