Diep, Kim Loan Juliette;
(2022)
Green Infrastructure at the Edge: Justice Perspectives on Nature-Based Stream Restoration in the Context of Urban Informality.
Doctoral thesis (Ph.D), UCL (University College London).
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Abstract
Green infrastructure has grown among other ‘nature-based urbanism’ concepts which aim to tackle wide-ranging challenges with climate change at the centre of their agenda, while stimulating environmental and social benefits that can be provided by ecosystems. Divergent conceptualisations of green infrastructure by scholars and practitioners reveal confusion over its implementation, including the processes through which its functions are prioritised. A critical approach towards the production of urban natures stresses that green infrastructure does not intrinsically result in sustainable and just outcomes. Deconstructing narratives around the conceptualisation, planning and implementation of green infrastructure is thus necessary. The thesis adopts an interdisciplinary approach to examine the plural values articulated through the practice of linear park strategies in São Paulo in Brazil. It explores the way linear park projects have emerged in the city over the past decades for the restoration of river and streams’ health, through integration into wider urban strategies involving the development of sanitation and housing plans, among others. Drawing from empirical evidence collected through a mixed methods approach, the research exposes conflicts of meanings, representations and identity among different actors affected by these projects. A focus on discursive constructions establishes a relation between the articulation of values by decision-makers and residents’ perceptions. Contrasts are established between project (non-)performance, local experiences and everyday practices. An environmental justice and urban political ecology lens reveals how the (re)production of environmental injustices is underpinned by driving forces at global, city and neighbourhood levels. The conceptualisation of ‘the edge’ helps highlight dialectic relationships that produce conflicting dynamics between the human and non-human in urban areas qualified as ‘informal’. Findings highlight why and how socio-environmental injustices emerging from green infrastructure in favelas paradoxically relate to the presence of infrastructure or its absence, thus highlighting the need to further democratise the practice of nature-based interventions.
| Type: | Thesis (Doctoral) |
|---|---|
| Qualification: | Ph.D |
| Title: | Green Infrastructure at the Edge: Justice Perspectives on Nature-Based Stream Restoration in the Context of Urban Informality |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | Copyright © The Author 2022. Original content in this thesis is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0) Licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/). Any third-party copyright material present remains the property of its respective owner(s) and is licensed under its existing terms. Access may initially be restricted at the author’s request. |
| UCL classification: | UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Engineering Science UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Engineering Science > Dept of Civil, Environ and Geomatic Eng UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS UCL |
| URI: | https://discovery-pp.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10149701 |
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