Urban Green Areas – their functions under a changing lifestyle of ...

environmental functions cause costs – from a naive and short-term perspective. To
calculate, explain and disseminate the positive economic long-term effects of green areas is
difficult and frustrating because the public as well as decision makers focus too much on
short-term effects.
The quantitative pressure, meaning more visitors, on UGAs will grow very quickly and
sharply due to population growth and demographic change: There will soon be many more
elderly people who use and need parks much more than other age groups and they visit
parks more often (mostly daily) and stay longer.
Additional demand will arise through several developments in society – summarized by the
term “Social Change”: An increasing awareness of environmental aspects and a fastgrowing
consciousness regarding civil rights, supported by the power of new technologies
(social media), will be the background of more claims for further and better green areas in
Hanoi by the local population.
On an individual level, western lifestyle also pushes the demand of parks.
Thus, to summarize these different aspects: It will be unavoidable that more UGAs are
needed.
It is the duty of responsible public bodies for the organization, design and maintenance
currently (administration in general, perhaps one or several departments), out in particular
those who are responsible for planning and future development of UGAs must balance and
evaluate the different influencing interests and needs. On the one hand, it depends on their
competence, but much more on their reliability and power of resistance against single
interests and corruption and the energy to enforce governmental objectives and the future
needs of common societies.
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