Pathways towards equity: Solutions-focused workshops with urban greening professionals

Abstract

Urban green governance refers to the complex network of actors working across sectors to manage urban vegetation. While recent research has identified barriers to addressing green space inequities, there has been much less focus on how these barriers interact as self-reinforcing systems or on potential solutions. This study explores how urban greening professionals understand and operationalize pathways toward more equitable governance, applying a multidimensional justice framework that considers distributional, procedural, and recognitional aspects of equity. We conducted participatory workshops with 28 urban greening professionals in two Canadian metro regions, using a Future Wheel methodology that had participants collaboratively analyze barriers to equity and strategies for addressing them across seven locally relevant greening initiatives.

Participants’ equity-related concerns included documented experiences of recognitional injustice, ambiguity regarding implementation processes, and competing priorities between actors. These concerns were reinforced by interconnected barriers: limited resources, insufficient coordination, and systemic constraints from existing governance structures. To overcome these challenges, participants recommended policy changes that prioritize multi-level collaboration and community engagement throughout planning processes. Participants believed addressing these interconnected barriers would have mostly positive implications—including improved governance capacity, more meaningful community engagement, and more equitable access to green spaces—though some acknowledged potential negative outcomes such as displacement or political backlash. Our findings highlight how barriers to equity persist through mutually reinforcing feedback loops, demonstrating the importance of reflexive, collaborative governance approaches that can address multiple dimensions of equity simultaneously while remaining adaptable to local contexts.