Cultural ecosystem services in peri-urban landscape: A valuation framework for landscape planning and policy

Situated between the rural and the urban, the peri-urban landscape is a diverse set of ecosystems that vary in their supply of ecosystem services (ES). With the growing urbanisation and consequent redevelopment of cities, peri-urban space is under increasing pressure, often because of a shortage of ES in the cities. The peri-urban landscape is therefore increasingly important for urban and suburban dwellers for the intangible benefits its ecosystems provide. Commonly described as cultural ecosystem services (CES), these are strongly linked to quality of life and, in particular, to the wellbeing of local people. However, despite a growing knowledge base and elevated awareness of the relevance of CES, in Slovenia there is as yet little practical application of this knowledge in planning and decision-making. The proposed research will seek to improve existing understanding of peri-urban landscape and its eclectic character by exploring, clarifying and quantifying CES in peri-urban open spaces of Slovenian cities. It will be focused on two CES categories, outdoor recreation and sense of place. Its practical application will be done on the case studies of three Slovenian cities: Ljubljana, Kranj and Koper. To comprehend the complexity of CES and associated socio-cultural values in the peri-urban landscape, it is necessary to explore the relationship between people, places and values, ranging from individual behaviour to organisational governance. To address this challenge, the proposed research will develop and empirically test a survey with green space users and interviews with experts and decision-makers to evaluate CES outdoor recreation and sense of place in peri-urban green open spaces, enabling the integration of CES values in relevant spatial policies on the local and regional level in Slovenia. The project strives to incorporate information on CES values in a format that can be used by city authorities and spatial planners. The originality of our approach lies in the combination of qualitative and quantitative methods to generate complementary insights about the spatial and social factors influencing, being influenced by and shaping CES categories outdoor recreation and sense of place in the peri-urban landscape. Focusing on landscape scale, the empirical work will use comparison of selected green spaces in case study cities to explore the specificities of different peri-urban green spaces, with particular regard to land use and stakeholder diversity. The research will include the following stages. (1) Development of a theoretical framework based on a literature review of existing theories and principles. (2) A comparison of peri-urban green spaces of three case study cities and application of selected qualitative and quantitative methods to collect the data. (3) Data analysis using techniques appropriate to the selected methods and conceptual framework; triangulation of research findings and interpretation of results. The proposed valuation framework will provide methods and tools for assessing CES outdoor recreation and sense of place in peri-urban landscape as a useful first step towards sustainable land use and in a format that complements the working processes of landscape planners and decision-makers. The results will consolidate the knowledge base underpinning the design and implementation of policies to protect, regulate and manage peri-urban areas at landscape scale. This integrated approach will make a valuable contribution to how professionals understand the dynamic nature of the peri-urban landscape, defining the role of CES in peri-urban landscape planning and scheduling the integration of CES in all phases of space regulation, from planning to management.