Crossing Borders: Review of Concepts and Approaches in Research on Greenspace, Immigration and Society in Northwest European Countries

Abstract

Relations between greenspace, immigration and society are emerging issues in policy and science. However, up to now research has been fragmented and no overview of approaches exists. This review describes concepts and approaches in Northwest European research on immigrants’ recreational use and perceptions of nature, rural landscapes and urban parks and on societal aspects of migration and greenspace. We show that national research traditions vary considerably, reflecting national ‘contexts of reception’ and conceptualisations of immigrants. Links between outdoor recreation and perceptions of greenspace have not been properly researched and explanatory factors are only superficially touched upon. Borders seem difficult to cross: learning processes and cooperation of scholars across approaches and countries are scarce. Furthermore, current research often lacks an explicit theoretical framework. We argue that the concept of identity-in-context can form a good starting point to build an internationally relevant theoretical framework on the greenspace–immigration–society interface.

Key Words:

• nature
• countryside
• ethnicity
• immigration
• identity

Notes

1. We use the term ‘natives’ to distinguish ‘nonmigrants’. This term is common in scientific papers on migration, however, it also has other connotations. In the UK ‘natives’ is historically used as another word for ‘savages’ or ‘uncivilised’ people, while in the US the term refers to ‘indigenous people’. These connotations do not apply in this paper.