Cinderby, Steve orcid.org/0000-0002-8394-2831, Archer, Diane, Mehta, Vishal K. et al. (6 more authors) (2021) Assessing inequalities in wellbeing at a neighbourhood scale in low- middle-income-country secondary cities and their implications for long-term livability. Frontiers in Sociology. ISSN 2297-7775
Abstract
To ensure future sustainability, cities need to consider concepts of livability and resident wellbeing alongside environmental, economic and infrastructure development equity. The current rapid urbanization experienced in many regions is leading to sustainability challenges, but also offers the opportunity to deliver infrastructure supporting the social aspects of cities and the services that underpin them alongside economic growth. Unfortunately, evidence of what is needed to deliver urban wellbeing is largely absent from the global south. This paper contributes to filling this knowledge gap through a novel multidisciplinary study undertaken in two rapidly changing cities (one Thai and one Kenyan) using qualitative surveys, subjective wellbeing and stress measurements, and spatial analysis of urban infrastructure distribution. We find the absence of basic infrastructure (including waste removal, water availability and quality) unsurprisingly causes significant stress for city residents. However, once these services are in place, smaller variations (inequalities) in social and environmental conditions begin to play a greater role in determining differences in subjective wellbeing across a city. Our results indicate that spending time in urban greenspaces can mitigate the stressful impacts of city living even for residents of informal neighborhoods. Our data also highlights the importance of places that enable social interactions supporting wellbeing – whether green or built. These results demonstrate the need for diversity and equity in the provision of public realm spaces to ensure social and spatial justice. These findings strengthen the need to promote long term livability in LMIC urban planning alongside economic growth, environmental sustainability, and resilience.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
---|---|
Authors/Creators: |
|
Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2021 Cinderby, Archer, Mehta, Neale, Opiyo, Pateman, Muhoza, Adelina and Tuhkanen. |
Dates: |
|
Institution: | The University of York |
Academic Units: | The University of York > Faculty of Sciences (York) > Stockholm Environment Institute at York (York) |
Depositing User: | Pure (York) |
Date Deposited: | 11 Feb 2022 14:30 |
Last Modified: | 07 Feb 2025 00:32 |
Published Version: | https://doi.org/10.3389/fsoc.2021.729453 |
Status: | Published online |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.3389/fsoc.2021.729453 |
Related URLs: | |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:183521 |
Download
Filename: Cinderby_et_al._2021_Assessing_Inequalities_in_Wel.pdf
Description: Cinderby et al. - 2021 - Assessing Inequalities in Wel
Licence: CC-BY 2.5