Reexamining Public Urban Green Space Design: Learning from Past Greening Initiatives to Plan for an Equitable Future

In 2004, Cranz and Boland announced the “Sustainable Park” era (102), marking a convergence of social and ecological concerns in public park development. Precursors of this concept can be found in 1970s Marseille and Hamburg reacting to climate protection demands via greening initiatives. The campaign “Milles Points Verts” [1000 green points] for Marseille aimed to green the city and raise environmental consciousness. Hamburg, the twin-city of Marseille, was inspired by this program and launched “Aktion Grünes Hamburg” [campaign for a green Hamburg]. Citizens in both cities were educated on green space importance and “proper” usage, as well as encouraged to participate in tree planting events. Yet, studying these programs reveals how they reinforced socio-spatial inequalities through planning and public education and we can thus recognize the potential and pitfalls of (sustainable) park development. Both initiatives demonstrate increased environmental awareness and citizen engagement attempts, while exposing how urban green space planning reflects and fosters social norms through e.g. limited accessibility and design strategies. By examining past initiatives, we can acquire valuable knowledge for future park planning that aligns with the call of this year’s TCE to think about “sharing practices and built structures within the city”. Creating more inclusive, ecologically sound, and socially equitable public urban green spaces requires active listening to and inclusion of communicated needs of actual users. This approach supports sustainable park construction both for the (resilient) community and the environment, thereby promoting ways of creating truly publicly accessible and shareable spaces within the city.