“Earth Girl Won’t Stand For It!”: Representations of Environmental (In)Justice in Mayah’s Lot

As the global climate crisis escalates, environmental disaster and extreme weather will play a defining role in the lives of many of today’s children, particularly those from impoverished communities and communities of color. However, environmental children’s literature has overwhelmingly failed to educate readers about environmental injustice or equip them with the tools to combat these pressing issues. Rebecca Bratspies and Charlie La Greca’s Mayah’s Lot counters this troubling silence by empowering children to pursue environmental justice. The comic centers on Mayah, a young Black girl who discovers that a corporation plans to transform a vacant lot in her urban neighborhood into a toxic waste storage facility. Mayah joins forces with her neighbors to halt the development, participating in protests, community meetings, and legal action. The comic concludes with the community defeating the corporation and collaborating to turn the lot into public green space. By highlighting the intersections between environmental and racial inequalities, along with showcasing a range of viable community activist strategies, I argue that Mayah’s Lot demonstrates how environmentally-justice oriented comics can empower young readers to participate in environmental advocacy and develop resilience in the face of environmental disruption.

The Utilization of Sentinel-2A and ASTER Imagery for Monitoring the Changes of Public Green Open Space and Oxygen Needs in Sukoharjo Regency in 2004-2019

High land requirements have an impact on land conversion. This study aims to calculate the accuracy of the results of mapping public green open space from ASTER and Sentinel-2A imagery, know the changes in green public space, calculate oxygen demand and the needs of green space in 2004 and 2019. The types of green open spaces that are interpreted visually include urban forests, river borders, cemeteries, fields, and city park. Oxygen demand is calculated by the gerrarkis method including livestock, industry, population, and motor vehicles. The mapping accuracy with the ASTER is 96% while the Sentinel-2A imagery is 90%. The mapping of changes in public green open space show that 17,62 km2 public green open space has not changed, increased 1,15 km2, and decreased 2,61 km2. Oxygen demand in 2004 was 1053531,92 kg/day with green open space needs covering 10,41 km2, while in 2019 it was 1923959,31 kg / day with Green Open Space needs covering 19 km2. The need for green space in 2004 has been fulfilled from public green space of 20,22 km2. In 2019 the area of public open green space is 18,77 km2, so that public open green space has not been able to fulfill the needs of overall green open space.

Plant Species Composition and the Perception of the Afforestation in Urban Public Green Spaces in a Municipality in Eastern Brazilian Amazon

The plant composition is a fundamental element in public green spaces, improving the environment and people’s quality of life. The executing of floristic inventories can contribute to better understanding and management of these spaces. Here, we sought to know the plants used in the afforestation of the main public green spaces in the town of Oriximiná, eastern Brazilian Amazon, as well as to perform a brief analysis of the population’s perception regarding the afforestation of these environments. The plants were collected and identified using specific literature and dichotomous keys, in addition to consultations in virtual herbariums. The analysis of the population’s perception took place through interviews, with questionnaires collected in each public green space. We registered 1616 individuals from the flora of the squares, distributed in 16 families, 24 genera, and 28 species. Exotic plants are predominant in number species and of individuals. The interviewees demonstrated that they are aware of the importance of plants in the squares and providing shade stands out as the most cited benefit. The afforestation of the squares shows some irregularities, highlighting the need for better planning which includes the use of native species and the participation of the local community in the management of these green areas. Finally, we provide a list of native species, naturally occurring in the Amazon region, that can be used in urban afforestation.

Exploring Options for Public Green Space Development: Research by Design and GIS-Based Scenario Modelling

Green spaces have a positive influence on human well-being. Therefore, an accurate evaluation of public green space provision is crucial for administrations to achieve decent urban environmental quality for all. Whereas inequalities in green space access have been studied in relation to income, the relation between neighbourhood affluence and remediation difficulty remains insufficiently investigated. A methodology is proposed for co-creating scenarios for green space development through green space proximity modelling. For Brussels, a detailed analysis of potential interventions allows for classification according to relative investment scales. This resulted in three scenarios of increasing ambition. Results of scenario modelling are combined with socio-economic data to analyse the relation between average income and green space proximity. The analysis confirms the generally accepted hypothesis that non-affluent neighbourhoods are on average underserved. The proposed scenarios reveal that the possibility of reaching a very high standard in green space proximity throughout the study area if authorities would be willing to allocate budgets for green space development that go beyond the regular construction costs of urban green spaces, and that the types of interventions require a higher financial investment per area of realised green space in non-affluent neighbourhoods.

Gestion Des Espaces Verts Dans La Ville De Cotonou Au Sud Du Benin: Etat Des Lieux Et Perspectives

Résumé :La ville de Cotonou, capitale économique du Bénin, s’est développée au détriment des espaces verts. Or ceux-ci sont essentiels pour assurer une bonne qualité de vie et l’épanouissement des citadins. La présente recherche a pour objectif de recenser les espaces verts publics de la ville de Cotonou et d’analyser leurs modes de gestion.La méthode des itinéraires a été utilisée pour retrouver les espaces verts dont la liste a été obtenue à la Mairie de Cotonou. Pour chaque espace vert public retrouvé, il a été procédé à son géo-référencement (tracking), la détermination de sa superficie ainsi qu’à son classement.Les résultats montrent que la ville de Cotonou dispose de 70 espaces verts dont 44 sont linéaires et 26 sont polygonaux (ronds-points, jardins, squares, etc.). Les espaces verts linéaires font 63,291 km de long et ceux polygonaux ont une superficie totale de 109579,61 m2. Nonobstant leur faible importance, les espaces verts de la ville de Cotonou abritent une multitude d’espèces végétales. Il importe donc que les autorités municipales accordent beaucoup plus d’intérêt aux espaces verts publics (jardins, parcs, squares, etc.) dans les futurs plans de développement urbain afin d’accroitre l’esthétique de la ville. Mots clés : Ville de Cotonou, espaces verts, croissance urbaine, développement municipal. AbstractThe city of Cotonou, the economic capital of Benin, has developed at the expense of green spaces. However, these are essential to ensure a good quality of life and the development of city dwellers. The objective of this research is to identify the public green spaces in the city of Cotonou and to analyze their management methods.The route method was used to find the green spaces the list of which was obtained from the Cotonou Town Hall. For each public green space found, it was geo-referenced (tracking), its area determined as well as its classification.The results show that the city of Cotonou has 70 green spaces of which 44 are linear and 26 are polygonal (roundabouts, gardens, squares, etc.). The linear green spaces are 63.291 km long and the polygonal ones have a total area of 109,579.61 m2. Notwithstanding their small importance, the green spaces of the city of Cotonou are home to a multitude of plant species. It is therefore important that municipal authorities pay much more attention to public green spaces (gardens, parks, squares, etc.) in future urban development plans in order to enhance the aesthetics of the city.Keywords: City of Cotonou, green spaces, urban growth, municipal development

Socioeconomic Differences in Walking Time of Children and Adolescents to Public Green Spaces in Urban Areas—Results of the German Environmental Survey (2014–2017)

Public green spaces have a high potential for a positive impact on people’s health and wellbeing, especially in urban areas. Studies on environmental justice indicate socially unequal access possibilities to urban green spaces. This article presents results on associations between individual socioeconomic position (SEP) and walking time from home to public green spaces in young people living in urban areas with more than 20,000 inhabitants in Germany. Data were derived from the German Environmental Survey for Children and Adolescents 2014–2017 (GerES V), the environmental module of the German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Children and Adolescents (KiGGS Wave 2). The sample comprises 1149 participants aged 3 to 17 years. A total of 51.5% of the participants reach a public green space on foot within five and 72.8% within ten minutes from home. The lower the participant’s SEP, the longer the walking time. Logistic regression models controlling for age group, sex, migration background, and region of residence show that participants with a low SEP have a significantly higher risk (odds ratio = 1.98; 95% confidence interval: 1.31–2.99) of needing more than ten minutes to walk from home to a public green space than participants with a high SEP. GerES V data indicate that young people living in urban areas in Germany do not equally benefit from the health-promoting potential of green spaces, which is an important aspect of environmental health inequalities.

Public Green Space Policy Implementation: A Case Study of Krakow, Poland

Green space is essential for the implementation of the idea of sustainable urban development. This paper contains original research on the implementation of local government tasks in the development of public green space. The aim of this research was to analyse the actions taken by the municipal authorities regarding the development of public green space, including the acquisition of real properties, the regulation of their legal status, as well as the adoption of planning and programme documents. The Polish Central Statistical Office data on the public green space of the largest cities in Poland were analysed in order to determine the dynamics of changes. Then, the focus was placed on Krakow, where the authors analysed in detail the distribution and type of urban green space as well as the actions taken by the Municipality to both extend it and to protect it against building development. The criterion of green space accessibility to city residents was indicated as a necessary aspect to be considered in the overall assessment of the existing greenery. The conclusions include the assessment of the actions of the Krakow authorities and the observed trends in the development of public green space.