Parks Please! Implementing the 3–30-300 green space rule in developing countries − The case of Surakarta, Indonesia

Abstract

Interest in the 3–30–300 green space rule has recently emerged in urban forest scholarship, but its applicability in developing country contexts, especially in intermediate cities, remains largely unexplored. This study assesses the feasibility of the rule’s three components—visibility of three trees from every building, achieving 30 % neighborhood canopy cover, and ensuring 300-meter walking access to 0.5-hectare parks—using geospatial analysis. We employ a combination of remote sensing data, local administrative records, and open-source global datasets to evaluate tree canopy cover, greenspace distribution, and accessibility under different scenarios. Our case study focuses on Surakarta, an intermediate city recognized as Indonesia’s most livable city. Results show that only 29 % of buildings meet the visibility requirement, 2 % are in neighborhoods with 30 % canopy cover, and 25 % are within 300 m of a greenspace. However, accessibility could increase to 79 % if all greenspaces were fenceless and high quality. Our findings highlight disparities in urban greening, as smaller residential buildings tend to have lower scores than larger office buildings. These results underscore the role of park governance in shaping access to green spaces and the persistent challenges of achieving the 3–30–300 targets. We propose place-based recommendations tailored for each urban commune and advocate for the adoption of the 3–30–300 rule as a target for national and local development planning to enhance urban green space accessibility and equity. This framework has the potential to be used in participatory planning processes for consensus-based siting of green infrastructure and nature-based solutions in cities in developing countries.