Multidisciplinary approaches for programming ecosystem services of urban green spaces

Widening the capacity of urban green spaces to provide ecosystem services needs multi-disciplinary approaches and has to bring together academic, professional and political spheres. In this study qualitative research topics were identified: (1) interdisciplinary contribution to introduce further improvement of currently monofunctional ecosystem services with awareness of contradictions among ecological, economical and socio-cultural requirements. Most of them can be reduced or minimized in ongoing design process allocating spatial and/or functional concepts; (2) increasing awareness of stakeholders of the importance of high quality and variety of green urban open spaces as a factor of citizen satisfaction; (3) need to improve and intensify the collaboration between public administration, service providers and private stakeholders; (4) stressing high significance of trees regarding climatic services as well as their contribution to quality of life in residential areas while considerable need for improving the ecological conditions of their growth, protection of existing ones against damage from building activities and vehicle impact as well as enhancing of resilience of urban forest towards climatic stress; (5) the existence of operational measures to manage and support the use of garden plots where strategic concepts to popularize and augment the quality of various forms of urban gardening and horticulture by offering space, information and technical support to potential users are missing. Advantages of multidisciplinary approaches are a better exchange of knowledge and ideas in a wider context, bringing up topics and recommendations for further developments. In addition, analytical findings, bridging visions, conceptual and management suggestions can include unconventional and long-term oriented ideas, thus stimulating a more sustainable self-guided development process. The study was conducted in the city of Magdeburg (Germany) in three different historical housing estates currently undergoing a process of revitalization and adjacent green open spaces.