INVITING LANDSCAPES: RESILIENCE THROUGH ENGAGING CITIZENS WITH URBAN NATURE A thesis submitted to The University of Manchester for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Faculty of Humanities 2014 JANICE ASTBURY SCHOOL OF ENVIRONMENT, EDUCATION AND DEVELOPMENT Table of Contents Abstract ........................................................................................................................................... 7 Declaration .................................................................................................................................... 8 Copyright Statement ................................................................................................................... 8 Acknowledgements ..................................................................................................................... 9 1 Introduction ............................................................................................................... 11 2 Literature Review ..................................................................................................... 17 2.1 Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 17 2.2 Framing urban problems and solutions ................................................................. 17 2.3 Resilience in Urban Social-Ecological Systems – a role for citizens and nature? ........................................................................................................................................... 21 2.4 Seeing the System through Landscape .................................................................... 32 2.4.1 The Material Landscape .....................................................................................................34 2.4.2 The Experienced Landscape .............................................................................................39 2.4.3 The Inviting Landscape ......................................................................................................49 2.5 Conclusions ....................................................................................................................... 51 3 Research Methodology ........................................................................................... 53 3.1 Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 53 3.2 Research Objectives and Research Questions ...................................................... 54 3.3 Situating the researcher ............................................................................................... 55 3.3.1 Normativity .............................................................................................................................55 3.3.2 Positionality ............................................................................................................................56 3.4 Research Strategy ........................................................................................................... 57 3.4.1 Using critical realism to explore SESs ..........................................................................57 3.4.2 A retroductive approach ....................................................................................................61 3.4.3 Examining people’s experience of landscape ............................................................62 3.4.4 A fine-grained analysis of urban systems using case studies .............................65 3.5 Research Design .............................................................................................................. 68 3.5.1 Defining the study area ......................................................................................................69 3.5.2 Data collection in two parts and three stages ...........................................................70 3.5.3 Analysis .....................................................................................................................................81 3.6 Conclusion ......................................................................................................................... 89 4 The Lay of the Landscape ....................................................................................... 90 4.1 Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 90 4.2 Citizen interaction with urban landscapes in North West England ............. 91 4.2.1 Who is doing what and where? .......................................................................................91 4.2.2 Validation of the research project with practitioners ...........................................94 4.2.3 Conceptualising citizen interaction with urban landscapes ...............................99 4.2.4 People-landscape interactions: Emerging themes ............................................... 101 4.3 Zooming in on local landscapes in Manchester ................................................ 107 4.4 Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 115 5 Citizens at work in Manchester’s Landscapes .............................................. 116 5.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................. 116 5.2 Platt Fields Park and environs ................................................................................ 117 5.2.1 A landscape called ‘park’ is more likely to have friends .................................... 118 5.2.2 Re-inhabiting wildscapes through community events ....................................... 120 5.2.3 Multiple generations of landscape interventions ................................................. 121 2 5.2.4 Virtual communities seeking a home and investing in place........................... 125 5.2.5 Undervaluing the landscape undermines engagement ...................................... 126 5.2.6 The opportunity of a blank slate in the right system .......................................... 128 5.2.7 Recognising and working with ecosystem services ............................................ 130 5.2.8 Confronting the knowledge gap ................................................................................... 134 5.2.9 Seeing the system: The Platt Fields SES reaches a tipping point ................... 136 5.3 Ashton and Rochdale Canals at Ancoats, Miles Platting, Newton Heath .. 139 5.3.1 History casts a long shadow .......................................................................................... 140 5.3.2 A lens of pessimism and exclusion ............................................................................. 142 5.3.3 Newcomers to a different experienced landscape ............................................... 144 5.3.4 The people in the landscape – perceiving engaged citizens............................. 145 5.3.5 The beginnings of an invitation ................................................................................... 149 5.3.6 Early engagers lay the groundwork ........................................................................... 152 5.3.7 Starting with provisioning ecosystem services ..................................................... 153 5.3.8 Subtle differences in local landscapes ....................................................................... 153 5.4 An Inviting Landscape continuum within a panarchy .................................... 155 5.5 Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 159 6 An Inviting Landscape ........................................................................................... 161 6.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................. 161 6.2 Characteristics of Inviting Landscapes ................................................................ 163 6.2.1 Thought provoking ............................................................................................................ 163 6.2.2 Legibly including nature and people ......................................................................... 167 6.2.3 Safe ........................................................................................................................................... 176 6.2.4 Intriguing ............................................................................................................................... 178 6.2.5 Social ....................................................................................................................................... 180 6.2.6 Storied .................................................................................................................................... 182 6.2.7 Welcoming ............................................................................................................................ 190 6.2.8 Home-like .............................................................................................................................. 194 6.2.9 Needing your help ............................................................................................................. 199 6.2.10 Transformable .................................................................................................................