Changes in Green Space Intensity in Budapest’s 14th district

Abstract

This research used the ”Green Space Intensity” (GSI) index to describe the changes in green space within Zugló, Budapest’s 14th district, from 1992 to 2020. The GSI index is based on the NDVI (Normalized Difference VegetationIndex), but the values have been revised and adjusted to high-resolution ortho imagery and validated by VHR satellite images. It has been developed over the last two decades, it is well known and has been used in the last ten years in research to analyze green spaces within the towns and cities of Hungary. Analysis of green space changes provides reasonable decision-support in urban planning and city development. It helps to define the drivers of change and the effects of changes on the urban climate, paved and built-up areas, the urban habitat of wildlife species and the role of endemic, invasive and ornamental plant species in the city’s green infrastructure. From an urban ecology perspective, this research supports better and more sustainable planning and design solutions.