Why don’t people plant trees? Uncovering barriers to participation in urban tree planting initiatives

Urban tree cover is inequitable in many American cities, with low-income and non-white neighborhoods typically having the least coverage. Some municipal and non-profit tree planting programs aim to address this inequity by targeting low-income neighborhoods; however, many programs face lack of participation or resistance from local residents. In this study, we aimed to uncover the economic, social, cultural, and physical barriers that community leaders face in planting trees and fostering engagement in a neighborhood with low tree canopy. In collaboration with an urban greening nonprofit in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (US), twenty in-depth interviews were conducted with community leaders in a low canopy neighborhood, North Philadelphia. Half of these leaders were already involved with local tree planting programs, while the other half were not. Findings reveal that despite broad appreciation for trees and greenspaces, there are concerns about the risks and costs residents assume over the course of a tree’s life cycle, the threat of neighborhood development and gentrification associated with trees, limited plantable space, and limited time and capacity for community organizations. Additionally, these barriers to participation may be amplified among low-income and communities of color who face the legacies of historical tree disservices and municipal structural disinvestment. Addressing community concerns regarding the long-term care of trees beyond the initial tree planting would likely require further programmatic support. Overall, this research highlights the complexity of addressing inequities in tree canopy and the importance of integrating resident and community leader perspectives about disservices and management costs into tree planting initiatives.     

Gradual or abrupt? An algorithm to monitor urban vegetation dynamics in support of greening policies

While greening becomes a more and more popular strategy to address multiple urban challenges and to enhance wellbeing and human-nature connectedness, there is an increasing need for usable methods and indicators to monitor its implementation. Earth observations produce a wealth of data on vegetation dynamics, but their use for monitoring urban greening policies is still limited. In this article, we develop and test an algorithm for the analysis of urban vegetation dynamics based on NDVI time series. Specifically, we focus on yearly greenest pixel composites that illustrate the maximum value of NDVI during the year (“greenness”): a key structural attribute to monitor urban ecosystems in the European Union. The algorithm is inspired by earlier examples of segmentation algorithms but fits the specific requirements of the targeted use in urban areas. It takes the series of NDVI values associated to each pixel, detects existing (multiple) break points, and quantifies related abrupt changes, as well as significant gradual changes that occurred during a selected period. We tested the algorithm on a 30-year Landsat series in Berlin and partially validated the output through a comparison with infrared ortophotos. The results reveal a net increase in NDVI between 1988 and 2017 in 84% of the pixels, with an average change over the whole city of + 0.096. Around 20% of the pixels show at least one abrupt change. Most abrupt changes (71.5%) were positive, but the negative ones had on average a greater absolute value (−0.170 vs +0.085). However, considering the cumulative impacts during the whole period, 97% of the total change is attributable to gradual changes. The validation proves that abrupt changes successfully capture variations in the extent of vegetation due to land cover changes (e.g., vegetation removal or new greening interventions), while gradual changes can be associated to vegetation growth or decline. We discuss the strengths and limitations of the proposed algorithm, and how the spatially- and temporally-explicit results can be a step forward in the interpretation of urban vegetation dynamics towards an effective monitoring of the impacts of local greening policies.     

Social interactions in urban parks: Stimulating social cohesion?

People from all ethnic backgrounds spend some of their leisure time in green areas. This study found that urban parks are more inclusive green places than non-urban green areas, and that urban parks can promote social cohesion. The objective of the research was to establish the extent to which urban parks facilitate social cohesion and how social interaction and place attachment can contribute to such cohesion. Quantitative research (a survey) and qualitative research (observations and interviews) carried out in five urban parks in the Netherlands revealed that there are many similarities in the ways that ethnic groups use urban parks and in the meanings of such parks to these groups. Urban parks are sites where different ethnic groups mingle and where informal and cursory interactions can stimulate social cohesion. Furthermore, being involved and concerned with parks can facilitate attachment to these places. Urban parks can provide a vital locality where everyday experiences are shared and negotiated with a variety of people. The design of a park, its location and people's image of the park in combination with the cultural characteristics of various ethnic groups inform the opportunities for intercultural interactions.     

Alternative stable states and the role of fire–vegetation–soil feedbacks in the temperate wilderness of southwest Tasmania

Two ecological models have been put forward to explain the dynamics of fire-promoting and fire-sensitive vegetation in southwest Tasmania: the alternative stable states model of Jackson (in Proc Ecol Soc Aust 3:9–16, 1968) and the sharpening switch model of Mount (in Search 10:180–186, 1979). Assessing the efficacy of these models requires high resolution spatio-temporal data on whether vegetation patterns are stable or dynamic across landscapes. We analysed ortho-rectified sequences of aerial photography and satellite imagery from 1948, 1988 and 2010 to detect decadal scale changes in forest and non-forest vegetation cover in southwest Tasmania. There was negligible change from forest to non-forest (<0.05%) and only a modest change from non-forest to forest over the study period. Forest cover increased by 4.1% between 1948 and 1988, apparently due to the recovery of forest vegetation following stand-replacing fire prior to 1948. Forest cover increased by 0.8% between 1988 and 2010, reflecting the limited ability of forest to invade treeless areas. The two models include interactions between vegetation, fire and soil, which we investigated by analysing the chemical (phosphorus, nitrogen) and physical properties (clay, silt) of 128 soil samples collected across 34 forest–non-forest boundaries. Phosphorus in the upper horizon was typically lower in non-forest vegetation compared to forest vegetation, which is consistent with proposed fire–vegetation–soil feedbacks. Mineral horizons were dominated by sand, with low levels of clay under all vegetation types. Available field evidence lends support to the Jackson (1968) alternative stable states model as the most suitable model of vegetation dynamics on nutrient poor substrates in southwest Tasmania although modifications of the timeframes for transitions toward rainforest are required.     

How many people should be in the urban forest? A comparison of trail preferences of Vienna and Sapporo forest visitor segments

Differences in trail preferences for social conditions of visitors to forests in Vienna and Sapporo were investigated in 2006 using a standardised image-based stated choice approach. On-site visitors to two comparable peri-urban forests – the Lobau Forest in Vienna, Austria (n=373), and the Nopporo Forest in Sapporo, Japan (n=256) – evaluated the same sets of computer manipulated images depicting 128 trail scenarios with different levels of social stimulation. Latent class segmentations, in three sub-segments of similar sizes, differentiated by partly opposite preferences for social conditions, were derived for both samples. A positive contribution of social stimulation to preferences was found for about 17% of Nopporo and 9% of Lobau respondents, while for close to 50% of Lobau respondents and 38% of Nopporo respondents very low levels of social stimulation were preferred. The results indicate that urban forests should be managed for users with a desire for low social densities as well as a denser social setting providing some levels of social stimulation.     

Perceived personal safety in relation to urban woodland vegetation – A review

Urban woodland vegetation provides people with many aesthetic, ecological and psychological benefits, but can also generate problems concerning people's perception of safety. This paper reviews existing knowledge about perceived personal safety in relation to vegetation, particularly woodland vegetation, in urban green spaces such as parks and residential areas. Individual and social factors, but also vegetation character, maintenance and design, proved to be important for perceived personal safety. Vegetation-related aspects identified as being of particular importance include landscape design, possibilities for overview and control, vegetation density, and vegetation character and maintenance. Vegetation of an open character with low density undergrowth might have positive effects on perceived personal safety without reducing other benefits. Issues for future research include context-based studies to consider several aspects of vegetation and their interactions.     

What are the factors influencing recreational visits to national forest parks in China? Experiments using crowdsourced geospatial data

Quantifying recreational visits to national forest parks (NFPs) and deciphering associating driving factors is significant for NFP protection, management, development, and planning; however, previous studies have primarily conducted questionnaire-based surveys or semi-structured individual interviews to gather limited data, while few have employed big data to effectively and efficiently estimate NFP visits and further explored correlated factors. This study used location-based service data from social media to quantify recreational NFP visits, and search for any associations with spatio-physical park factors selected based on previous constructive studies and NFP visitor perceptions of travel experiences posted on social media. A spatial error model with maximum likelihood estimation (SEM-MLE) was applied to investigate the significance. Sixty-eight (68) NFPs located in the Yangtze River Delta urban agglomeration (YRDUA) were selected as experimental cases. The results indicated that: (i) The number of NFP check-in visits was unevenly distributed across the YRDUA; (ii) NFP size and biodiversity (i.e., the number of vegetation and animal species) were not correlated with check-ins; (iii) Three NFP attributes (entrance fee, percent vegetation cover, and the presence of recreational water activities), one accessibility variable (potential visitors to NFP), and one transport variable (driving time to train station), had a significant influence on NFP check-ins, collectively explaining 49.69% of the observed variation. These findings can help NFP managers and planners understand the internal and external factors influencing recreational visits, thus more strategically informing nature-based tourism design and promotion campaigns.     

Stress-resistant trees are more common in urban than rural forests: A case study of Cleveland,Ohio’s natural parks

Natural parks are comprised of preserved forested natural areas that are undergoing natural ecological processes. These areas can offer a refuge for local biodiversity and contribute substantially to ecosystem services in both rural areas with relatively low population densities, as well as high-density urban areas. Forested natural parks located in urban areas should experience more stressful environmental conditions than nearby rural areas, yet we know relatively little about how urbanization impacts tree communities within these important natural habitats. To better understand the impact of urbanization on forests, we investigated the species composition, abundance, and diversity of midstory and canopy trees as well as tree seedlings in urban and rural natural parks in and around Cleveland, Ohio. We found that both urban and rural natural parks have similar tree abundance, but midstory and canopy trees as well as tree seedling communities in the urban natural parks included higher abundances of stress-tolerant species compared to rural parks. In addition, this pattern was driven by changes in native tree species, as we observed low abundance of invasive species. More stress-resistant native species in urban areas include Quercus rubra and Prunus serotina, in contrast to rural natural parks which are dominated by Acer spp. and Fagus grandifolia. Lastly, we show that urban and rural natural parks have similar species diversity within plots, but we found higher variation in community composition among urban natural parks compared to among rural parks. Furthermore, Q. rubra and P. serotina were significantly larger in rural natural parks, indicating that both environmental stress and successional stage could drive compositional differences. Thus, we show that urbanization can have unexpected effects on plant community composition and diversity. Our study refutes the idea that these are degraded habitats, highlights the need to conserve them, and suggests that characterization of local variation in self-assembled urban tree communities will provide the most accurate picture of their management needs and potential ecosystem services.     

Suburban habitats and their role for birds in the urban–rural habitat network: points of local invasion and extinction?

Suburban habitats in naturally forested areas present a conundrum in the urban–rural habitat network. Typically, these habitats contain less than half of the native woodland bird species that would exist at these sites if they were not developed. They also contain more total bird species than if these sites were left in a natural state. This apparent contradiction raises the question of “How do suburban habitats function in the urban–rural habitat network?” In this study, we analyze bird distributions on three rural-to-urban gradients in different ecoregions of the United States: Oxford, Ohio; Saint Paul, Minnesota; and Palo Alto, California. All three gradients exhibit similar patterns of extinction of native species followed by invasion of common species and subsequent biotic homogenization with urbanization. This patterning suggests that suburban land uses, those represented by the intermediate levels of development on the gradients, are a point of extirpation for woodland birds as well as an entry point for invasive species into urban systems. Furthermore, there are consistent patterns in the functional characteristics of the bird communities that also shift with intensifying urbanization, providing insight on the possible mechanisms of homogenization and community structure in urban ecosystems including an increase in the number of broods per year, a shift in nesting strategies, a decrease in insectivorous individuals, an increase in granivorous individuals, and a decrease in territoriality. Consequently, it appears that there are specific traits that drive the shift in community composition in response to urban and suburban land use. These results have significant implications for improving understanding of the mechanisms of suburban community ecology and conserving birds in urban habitat networks.     

Pocket parks for people – A study of park design and use

The present study focuses on small urban public parks, specifically on how they should be designed to promote a potential for psychological restoration and on what activities people could imagine doing in such parks. Students from Oslo University College were presented with visual stimuli depicting 74 small urban parks. They were asked to assess how likely it was that they could rest and recover in the parks presented in the photos. In addition, the participants were asked to write down what park components contributed to high versus low ratings on restoration likelihood, and what types of activities they could imagine doing in the parks presented in the photos. The components and activities the participants mentioned were grouped into categories describing similar properties. The categories mentioned most frequently and giving high ratings on restoration likelihood represented natural categories such as: ‘a lot of grass’, ‘a lot of flowers/plants’ and ‘water features’. In contrast, the categories contributing to low ratings on restoration likelihood represented lack of vegetation or disturbance from the surroundings such as: ‘a lot of hard surfaces’, ‘a lot of traffic’ and ‘poorly shielded from the surroundings’. The activities mentioned as being typically performed in the types of parks presented in the photos were ‘relax and philosophize’, ‘read’ and ‘eat/drink’. Conclusions drawn from the study: Small urban parks should be designed with natural components, shielded from disturbing surroundings and furnished with some seating to promote opportunities for restorative experiences and to function as social meeting places.     

How to accurately assess cultural ecosystem services by spatial value transfer? An answer based on the analysis of urban parks

Cultural ecosystem services (CESs) intangibly influence many aspects of public daily life, and when evaluating them, it is difficult to obtain perception data. Spatial value transfer predicts the ecosystem service value of policy sites based on the spatial associations of study sites with services value. This approach has the potential to produce an evaluation without perception data. Previous studies have preliminarily researched the validity and effects of using spatial value transfer to evaluate CESs, but, there are doubts about the transfer performance of indicators, differences among various CES types, and the impact of the physical environment. This study examines the above key points of spatial value transfer in depth, with urban parks as the study area to assess three types of CES values that are closely related to human well-being: aesthetic, historical and recreational value. Two popular indicators, area under the curve statistics and transfer error rate, are used to evaluate transfer performance. The results reveal that historical values have the best transfer performance, and transfer error is lower in transfers from small locations to large locations with environmental variable combinations that include road network, water coverage and attraction distribution. The transfer error rate indicator could not only assess the overall transfer performance but also generate maps to reflect the distribution and value of transfer error. We suggest that more knowledge of minor differences in physical factors and developing specific transfer coefficients for them are necessary to enhance the accuracy of CES evaluation by spatial value transfer.     

Vegetation cover within and around schools in Santiago de Chile: Are schools helping to mitigate urban vegetation inequalities?

Vegetation within cities is key for urban sustainability, as it provides several ecosystem services positively influencing the urban quality of life. However, urban vegetation is often unevenly distributed within cities, typically concentrating the large proportion of vegetated areas in more affluent neighborhoods. Thus, developing strategies for reducing urban vegetation inequalities is fundamental to fostering more sustainable cities. Since schools are widely distributed in urban areas, they could be key for decreasing vegetation inequalities, in particular, if schools’ precincts in lower-income areas are managed to contain high levels of vegetation. Nevertheless, studies analyzing the potential role of schools in ameliorating vegetation inequalities in cities are largely missing in the literature. In this study we use remote sensing techniques to estimate the vegetation cover of 1579 schools and their surrounding areas in Santiago-Chile, aiming to evaluate whether vegetation within schools is helping to mitigate the high levels of vegetation inequalities characteristic of this city. We performed the analysis for public, subsidized and private schools, for the whole city and each of the 34 municipalities comprising the city. Our results show that schools are not helping to mitigate vegetation inequalities, but they tend to replicate the unequal distribution of vegetation within Santiago. This pattern holds whether the analysis is made for all schools or each of the three school types independently, and is also a prevalent pattern when the assessment is performed at the municipal level. Private schools, usually located in greener more affluent areas of the city, have significant larger proportion of vegetation, revealing that high-income students do not only live in greener neighborhoods but also have access to greener schools. These results reveal how deeply rooted in some cities are vegetation inequalities, and the urgency of modifying public policies related to how vegetation within schools is funded, planned and managed.     

Blowing in the wind? Nutrient enrichment of remnant woodlands in an agricultural landscape

Increasing fertiliser use in agricultural landscapes is likely to threaten the viability of remnant native vegetation in many parts of the world. Australia’s prime grain production landscapes have nutrient poor soils, which formerly supported semi-arid woodland. The ecological function and capacity for regeneration of these remnants may be particularly susceptible to nutrient enrichment. The key sources of nutrients are wind and water deposition from crop fertilisation, and manure and feed from sheep. We hypothesised that these sources would result in unequal deposition of nutrients within and among remnant vegetation patches. We surveyed soil nutrients (Total N, Available P and K, C:N ratio, and soil pH) in the edges and interiors of 60 remnant woodland patches of various sizes, and in adjacent cultivated paddocks. Nutrient load was negatively correlated with remnant size and patterns were particularly strong for available P. Small remnant patches (<3 ha) were accumulation zones for nutrients, with levels comparable or higher than within crop lands. The patterns are consistent with the hypothesis that small remnants are strongly enriched as a result of being used for livestock shelter. In larger remnants, the primary cause of enrichment is consistent with edge accumulation of nutrients due to wind and water movement. In large patches, remnant edges, particularly the windward edge, were elevated compared to interiors of large patches. In these semi-arid crop lands, current trends in intensification of cropping and a shift away from livestock may reduce the input of nutrients to small patches but increase the nutrient threat to larger remnants.     

“No place for wilderness”: Urban parks and the assembling of neoliberal urban environmental governance

For well over a decade, urban political ecology has been concerned with the neoliberalization of infrastructure as a key site of struggle in the reproduction of urban space. While urban forests, trees, and parks have not featured as prominently in that literature as other resources (e.g., water), they are increasingly managed and promoted as a form of “green” infrastructure by city governments eager to ally themselves with new environmentally-oriented framings of the modern city. Yet, the relationship between these new forms of green infrastructure and the neoliberalization of the city, in particular their ability to enable new ways of taking about the city and nature, and to constrain others, has been understudied. In this paper, I examine the ways in which urban parks are enrolled in political struggles to reorient the techniques of urban governance toward entrepreneurialism as the only viable model for economic development. Through a case study of Philadelphia's Fairmount Park System, I examine a series of events during the previous three decades in which Fairmount Park has become subject to this reorientation toward entrepreneurialism. Specifically, I examine how parks, no longer treated as spaces of “nature”, have been reframed as self-supporting constituents of a business-minded urbanism, promotional tools for the attraction of new labor to the city, and a reinforcement of the notion of entrepreneurialism as the inevitable urban development strategy for the 21st century. Yet, I also argue that these transformations are always in a process of negotiation. Even as parks become subject to these dominating discourses, new park construction is a site in which the conceptual assumptions that underpin neoliberal urban policy aren’t frictionlessly transferred from one instance to another but, even when successful, require significant work to overcome competing visions of urban nature.     

Mapping of urban roadside trees – A case study in the tree register update process in Helsinki City

This case study describes a method for utilizing leaf-off airborne laser scanning (ALS) data for mapping characteristics of urban trees. ALS data were utilized to detect and update all street trees in the tree inventory of the City of Helsinki, Finland. The inventory consists of roughly 20,000 street trees with mean diameter at breast height (DBH) of 24 cm and mean height of 10.6 m. The large number of trees makes the manual updating process very laborious. The automatic mapping procedure presented in this paper detected 88.8% of all trees in the inventory. Tree height was predicted with root mean square error (RMSE) of 1.27 meters and tree DBH with RMSE of 6.9 cm. The presented method provides a practical and cost–effective tool for the mapping of urban tree characteristics. The cost–efficiency was further enhanced because the used ALS data were originally collected for other urban planning purposes.     

Modeling of urban trees’ effects on reducing human exposure to UV radiation in Seoul,Korea

A mathematical model is constructed for quantifying urban trees’ effects on mitigating the intensity of ultraviolet (UV) radiation on the ground within different land use types across a city. The model is based upon local field data, meteorological data and equations designed to predict the reduced UV fraction due to trees at the ground level. Trees in Seoul, Korea (2010), produced average UV protection factors (UPF) for pedestrians in tree shade at solar noon (May to August) of 8.3 for park and cemetery land uses and 3.0 for commercial and transportation land uses. The highest daily UPF was 11.8 in the park and cemetery land uses, which has the highest percent canopy cover. This UV model is being implemented within the i-Tree modeling system to allow cities across the world to estimate tree effects on UV exposure. Understanding the impacts of urban trees on UV exposure can be used in developing landscape design strategies to help protect urban populations from UV exposure and consequent health impacts.     

Can pruning help maintain vitality of ash trees affected by ash dieback in urban landscapes?

Hymenoscyphus fraxineus causes a destructive invasive tree disease known as ash dieback threatening the survival of common ash not only in the forests, but also in urban and landscape settings. Pruning is a potential management practice that could help maintain tree vitality and aesthetics in parks, gardens, alleys and recreation areas, as well as maintaining veteran trees having high heritage or cultural value, or trees with high genetic importance (e.g. located in clonal seed orchards). In this study we investigated the maximum distance proximal to the lesion margin at which H. fraxineus can be detected on individual branches infected by the fungus in order to provide recommendations for pruning. Pruning of branches was carried out on 38 trees in southern Sweden. Tissue samples including bark and wood were collected from the margin of the lesion and at 5 cm intervals proximal to the lesion. Molecular analysis revealed presence of H. fraxineus in 91.3% of the investigated lesions. The proportion of lesions at which H. fraxineus could be detected declined with increasing distance from the lesion margin, with a significant reduction in the number of positive samples at 10 cm proximal to the margin. At 30 cm from the lesion edge the pathogen was never detected. Our results suggest that routine pruning may help maintain the vitality of younger trees. Pruning branches at least 35 cm from visible, active lesions in the bark should exclude the fungus and therefore reduce the probability of stem infection by H. fraxineus, however this cultural control tactic may only be economically feasible for high value amenity trees.     

Cutting the lawn − Natural burial and its contribution to the delivery of ecosystem services in urban cemeteries

This article investigates the impact of natural burial on the delivery of ecosystem services (ESs) in urban cemeteries in England that are owned and managed by local authorities. Local authority natural burial sites have received far less attention from researchers than independent sites developed by farmers, charitable trusts, funeral directors and land owners. Here we argue that the local authority hybrid cemeteries that combine natural burial with traditional graves may have a far greater impact in delivering regulatory and cultural ecosystem services than the much larger and frequently more environmentally ambitious natural burial grounds developed by the independent sector. The article presents three case studies of cemeteries, each of which represents a different interpretation of natural burial. Two have retrofitted natural burial into an existing cemetery landscape. The third is a new cemetery where natural burial was included with traditional burial in the original design brief and planning application. The research reveals how natural burial is transforming the traditional cemetery, with its focus on an intensively managed lawn aesthetic, towards a more habitat rich and spatially complex landscape with its own distinctive identity. The research also reveals how natural burial (within the unique constraints of UK burial culture that does not permit the recycling of burial space) is increasing the burial capacity of urban cemeteries by accessing land and grave space that might not be suitable or appropriate for more traditional forms of burial.     

Greening residential quarters in China: What are the roles of urban form,socioeconomic factors,and biophysical context?

Residential greenspace has great intracity variations. Its driving factors have been widely investigated in Western countries (e.g., in Europe and North America), where residential areas are mostly privately owned, but few studies have examined the determinants of residential greenspace in China, where land is owned by the government. Taking the subtropical city of Changsha, China, as an example, this study mapped the percent green cover (PGC) in residential quarters with a fine-resolution satellite image. We also investigated its driving factors measured from multisource geospatial data. The results show that (1) the PGC in the residential quarters showed great spatial variation, with an average of 36.6% (0–85.7%) and a standard deviation of 18.3%. (2) Urban form, biophysical context, and socioeconomic factors together explained 49.18% of the variation in the PGC, and they independently explained 22.87%, 11.17%, and 2.31% of the variation, respectively. (3) Residential quarter size, PGC in the surrounding buffer zone, residential quarter age, housing value, and population density significantly and positively impact the PGC, while percent building cover, floor area ratio, and distance to city center had significant negative impacts. The strongest positive and negative impacts came from PGC in the surrounding buffer zone and percent building cover, respectively. Socioeconomic factors, the dominant driving factors in Western countries, show little impact on residential PGC. These findings expand our understanding of the intracity variation in greenspace coverage and the driving factors, which sheds light on the effective planning and management of urban greenspaces in China.     

Residents’ perceptions and valuations of urban wastelands are influenced by vegetation structure

Among the different urban green spaces, wastelands are valuable spaces for conserving urban biodiversity. By hosting wild and spontaneous vegetation, wastelands can promote the contact citizens have with nature. However, lack of regular management can lead to negative perceptions. In this study we assessed perceptions, valuations and uses of wastelands by residents in two cities in the centre of France. We tested whether preferences for wastelands depended on where wastelands were located in the city, plant community characteristics or resident characteristics. The study investigated 18 wastelands, in three successional stages (initial grassland, intermediate grassland and shrubbery stages) and located in three categories of distance from the city centre (downtown, suburban, periurban). Vegetation was sampled in each wasteland and several plant community metrics were calculated. A total of 72 residents (4 per wasteland) living in the vicinity of the wastelands were interviewed about their use, valuations and perceptions of wastelands. Based on qualitative and quantitative analyses, the results highlighted that a significant proportion of residents (36%) conducted various activities in wastelands and that perceptions and valuations of wastelands were diverse, ranging from either negative (when wastelands were perceived as wild or abandoned areas) or positive (when wastelands were considered as natural and recreational). Valuations strongly depended on the successional stage, with intermediate grassland-like wastelands being preferred. We found no effect of wasteland location in the city, whereas resident characteristics (age and gender) marginally influenced valuations. This study provides new insights into the determinants of perception and valuations of urban wastelands. Particularly, we suggest that intermediate grassland-like wastelands could be easily integrated into urban planning both for recreational activities and conserving biodiversity. Alternatively, awareness of the value of initial grassland-like and shrubbery wastelands should be raised to improve their acceptability.