Visiting urban green space as a climate-change adaptation strategy: Exploring push factors in a push–pull framework

Gwendolyn K. L. WONG, Anson T. H. MA, Lewis T. O. CHEUNG, Alex Y. LO, Chi Yung JIM

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlespeer-review

1 Citation (Scopus)

Abstract

Urban green space (UGS) offers users multiple ecosystem services and amenities. This study investigated whether residents used UGS visitation in summer as a sustainable measure to tackle hot weather and associated climate-change impacts in humid-subtropical Hong Kong. Attributes of the indoor residential environment, seldom examined in park-visitation studies, were evaluated as push factors to visit UGS through a push–pull theoretical framework. A questionnaire survey of 483 respondents targeted urban park users. The results indicated that UGS visit frequency and stay duration were relatively low in hot summer. Ordinal multiple regression showed that indoor living conditions, residence location, living routine, and habit and personal health impacts were significantly correlated with UGS visits. Interdependence between push and pull factors was detected, demonstrating that intrinsic UGS environmental conditions could constrain UGS visits despite the motivations of push factors. The results indicated the need to improve the microclimate-regulating function in UGS. It could be achieved mainly by optimizing the nature-based design to promote UGS as an adaptive measure to combat the thermal stress brought by climate change. The findings yielded hints to shape visiting habits and suggestions to improve UGS management. Copyright © 2024 The Author(s).

Original languageEnglish
Article number100589
JournalClimate Risk Management
Volume43
Early online dateFeb 2024
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2024

Citation

Wong, G. K. L., Ma, A. T. H., Chung, L. T. O., Lo, A. Y., & Jim, C. Y. (2024). Visiting urban green space as a climate-change adaptation strategy: Exploring push factors in a push–pull framework. Climate Risk Management, 43, Article 100589. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.crm.2024.100589

Keywords

  • Urban green space
  • Urban park
  • Push and pull factor
  • Climate change adaptation
  • Summer heat stress
  • Thermal perception

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