Neighbour perspectives on cultural ecosystem services of blue-green infrastructures: The ecovillage Hannover, Germany

Abstract

Urban projects based on Blue-Green Infrastructure (BGI) are increasingly developed through participatory and bottom-up processes aiming for a more just and equal supply of Cultural Ecosystem Services (CES). However, the concept of CES is shaped by underlying assumptions about valuation, governance structures, and power dynamics, which can lead to unequal access to and control over ES benefits. Furthermore, CES are often evaluated post BGI's construction, focusing on distributive justice with limited scope for adjustments. This article investigates how pre-construction bottom-up processes shape the distribution and recognition of CES among communities and individuals. Using an Environmental Justice lens, it examines CES through three dimensions of justice simultaneously, namely distributional, recognition and procedural. This is tested for the case study of Ecovillage Hannover, an ecological housing project in Germany, developed through a bottom-up approach. After using qualitative and quantitative methods, the findings reveal that i.) the co-productive nature of CES influences their unequal distribution ii.) embracing trade-offs through discussions and confrontations is essential to address conflicting CES values; iii.) integrating quantitative and qualitative approaches supports a more holistic and just application of the CES framework. The study offers insights for public policies on the role of BGI in community-led housing projects, demonstrating how CES perceptions and justice considerations can guide more inclusive and sustainable outcomes, especially during early development stages.