Identifying the factors affecting citizens' willingness to participate in urban forest governance: Evidence from the municipality of Palermo, Italy

Abstract

Urban and peri-urban forests provide a wide range of benefits especially by providing the inhabitants with numerous ecosystem services that contribute to maintaining and improving the quality of life and environment in urban areas. Studies on urban and peri-urban forests have mainly focused on analyzing citizens' perception of benefits provided by urban green spaces. However, less attention has been paid to the influence that a positive perception of urban and peri-urban forests benefits has on citizens' willingness to play an active part in the planning and management process of green urban spaces. This study aims to explore the willingness of the citizens of the city of Palermo, in Italy, to devote time in the planning, design and management of urban forestry projects and identify which factors (perception, socio-demographic, and attitudinal factors) affect this choice. Results highlight that the socio-demographic characteristics (e.i. gender, income, number of family members) and frequency of visits are the main predictors of an individual's intention to commit time to urban forest projects. Our results also reveal a moderate impact of perception and psycho-attitudinal factors on citizens' intention to participate in urban forestry plans. It is thus evident that knowledge of urban and peri-urban forest characteristics and of the ecosystem services they are able to provide are the key factors to promoting effective conservation and management of green spaces, and to motivate citizens' participation through effective engagement strategies put in place by local governments.