The Challenges of Planning and Designing Urban Green Networks in Scandinavian and Chinese Cities

Abstract

During the 20th century, a variety of concepts were developed aimed to provide frameworks for green space planning and design in urban areas. Both China and Scandinavia represent important experience in green space planning and management. However, none of the current concepts is generated based on the explicit combination of both a Western and Eastern context. In this paper, based on the analysis of various green space planning concepts and their development, a novel “hybrid’ approach is introduced. This “Green Network’ concept focuses on green and blue connectivity in urban areas and comprises the network of green spaces and the surface water system within and around settlements. The concept offers a platform for integrating best practices from Scandinavian and Chinese open space planning and can provide a guiding tool for sustainable urban development.

Landscape Connectivity Approach in Oceanic Islands by Urban Ecological Island Network Systems with the Case Study of Santa Cruz Island, Galapagos (Ecuador)

“…Components as sun, rain, wind, soil, fresh water are part of the complexity of the island systems. "Both green and blue space play the same significant role in offering ecological shelters for wildlife, as well as social, recreational, educational and historical places for humans" (Xiu et al, 2016). Through the physical integration of human and nat- 3.…”

A socio-ecological perspective of urban green networks: the Stockholm case

“…The term 'green networks' refers to green structure as well as surface and ground water occurring in the urban landscape that link to the surrounding landscapes. Green networks are defined as a set of networks with social and ecological functions, linked into a spatially coherent entity through flows of organisms, and interacting with the landscape matrix (Xiu et al 2016). These networks represent an integration of three categories of networks in practice: river (or blue) network (serving as edges), green space network (serving as nodes) and transport greening network (greenery along the roads, served as corridors and edges as well).…”

“…Applying graph theory to green-blue space planning, habitat patches are linked by connectivity zones and species dispersal, which compose a network in reality. Habitat patches are normally those varied scaled plant communities in green spaces (Cook 2002), road greenery and water ways serve as linkages (although sometimes waterways can be great barriers to habitat movement) (Xiu et al 2016). The most common issue in graph theory is about network flow between nodes or the cost flow.…”

“…These dualimportant habitats can fulfil both human recreational and ecological values for wildlife in green networks. Although these two functions almost always conflict in cities, identifying locations that can fulfil both values is still a holistic perspective and to balance different interests of humans and other life forms in urban environments (Xiu et al 2016). It has to be noted that, however, based on different purposes of planning and design, species and valuable patches may differ as well, depending on the priorities of the specific city context.…”

“…Although some promising green space planning concepts and approaches have emerged during recent decades, green and blue spaces often fall victim to modern urban planning and design (Kong and Nakagoshi 2006). One of the latter's failures relates to experts examining ecological systems or social systems, but not considering integration of both in great detail (Xiu et al 2016). Moreover, the major challenge for current cities is to maintain both biological diversity and the recreational values in parallel to urban development (Löfvenhaft et al 2004).…”