Valuation of ecosystem services and its relation to neighborhood characteristics and use of public green spaces in the Brussels Capital Region

Green infrastructure and the ecosystem services it supplies heighten urban resilience to pressures related to demographic growth and environmental change. Much research has focused on assessing the supply and monetary valuation of provisioning and regulating ecosystem services. Cultural ecosystem services have been studied to a lesser extent, though they are essential for understanding the relationship between urban green and human well-being. The interactions between supply, demand, and benefits of cultural ecosystem services for urban citizens are complex and depend on multiple factors, including physical characteristics and housing conditions in the neighbourhood of residence , as well as the size, layout and amenities of public green spaces that are within reach. Adding to this complexity are the social practices and cultural context in which urban citizens use, experience, and value their contact with nature. It is through this unique lens that the individual perceives and assigns value to green space. Although challenging, it is critical for sustainable urban design and planning that the non-monetary value of urban green spaces is understood. This knowledge is useful for designing urban spaces that are able to fulfil the diversity of demands for urban green and its related benefits. This research will therefore focus on deepening our understanding of the complex relationships between ecosystem service supply and benefits and how this relationship is mediated by social inequalities, and people’s use, perception, and valuation of urban green spaces. Online and on-site surveys will be implemented in the Brussels Capital Region to determine how different socio-cultural groups use large and small urban green spaces, what they like and dislike about these spaces, whether these spaces fulfil their needs for urban green, and if there are conflicts of use in these green spaces. Insights from the survey will be combined with a typology of the physical and social characteristics of the urban landscape to define which nature-based solutions are needed in Brussels and where these interventions would be most beneficial.