A Multicriteria Decision-Making Approach of “Tree” Meaning in the New Urban Context

Future cities will need to plan and design urban green spaces and woodlands to meet diverse interests and needs, provide ecosystem services required by an evolving urban society and improve continuity between urban and rural spaces. This future planning approach calls for more sustainable patterns of urban growth, where forests and green spaces can help create more sustainable, resilient and inclusive cities, and address the challenges of a growing urban population. Green areas are of strategic significance because in addition to absorbing harmful pollutants, improving temperatures, and mitigating the impacts of climate change, they have a positive effect on people’s health and well-being and help to create inclusive societies. The values considered are manifold and a multi-criteria assessment, including an evaluation of citizens’ perceived needs, allowing policy-makers to steer choices towards green-oriented urban planning tools, where green spaces and urban forests enable them to meet the challenges of future cities. The research presented here is part of this line of study in order to propose a tool to support stakeholders’ decisions on urban green planning. The objectives of the study are to find out about the perception of urban green spaces and examine what kind of relationship should be established between the local authority and the population with regard to information and participation in the planning of green areas. The results highlight that citizens recognise the importance of ecosystem services and perceive green areas as strategic elements of urban quality of life, in agreement with some previous studies conducted in Italy and other countries.