Green schoolyards are an effective nature-based solution that can bolster human-nature relationships and contribute to ecological health Nature-based solutions (NbS) are a strategy for addressing urban environmental issues through ‘greening’ initiatives. This approach seeks to address social, economic, and environmental challenges, while promoting human well-being, ecosystem health, climate resilience, and biodiversity. Cities are increasingly adopting NbS such as schoolyard greening to address climate change impacts and other socio-environmental challenges. This interdisciplinary case study explored how the greening of schoolyards contributes to the aims of NbS through an examination of the OASIS program, a large-scale initiative to re-naturalize schoolyards, in Paris, France. The study provides an in-depth consideration of the processes that are involved in naturalizing schoolyards, the ecological contribution of green schoolyards, and how green schoolyards can facilitate human–nature interactions.
The City of Paris launched the OASIS program in 2018 to green the schoolyards of all 650 nursery, primary, and secondary schools in the city by 2050 with the goal of reducing urban heat impacts. The program’s schoolyard transformations include replacing asphalt with permeable surfaces and incorporating more natural materials, diverse landscape features, and vegetation. Sixteen schoolyards were intentionally selected for participation in this case study of the program to ensure diverse representation from a range of funding models, neighborhood income levels, and proximity to public green spaces. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews and group discussions with key stakeholders, including 16 project coordinators at the city or neighborhood level and five school staff (teachers, headmasters, and maintenance staff). A variety of documents related to schoolyard design and municipal governance frameworks were reviewed to examine their integration with the OASIS initiative. Observations of the schoolyards with headteachers or teachers were conducted to explore their perspectives of children’s use of the schoolyards. These data sources were analyzed using qualitative content analysis. Schoolyard biodiversity was assessed using inventories of arthropod (insect, spider and crustacean) populations as an indicator of habitat quality. The inventories were conducted at each of the 16 schools as well as their nearest urban green space. Statistical analysis compared the diversity of schoolyard and green space arthropod communities.
Examination of program’s approaches to schoolyard greening reveal a broad range of stakeholder involvement which consist of multiple city departments and local services that contribute to schoolyard design, implementation, and management. Design of the schoolyards employs a collaborative, co-design framework that involves children, teachers, school staff, urban planners and landscape architects. The school’s children are the first to participate in schoolyard design through a project-based approach. Workshops are then held with a range of stakeholders—school administrators, teachers, city officials, maintenance staff, parents, and school doctors and psychologists—who review children’s designs and finalize implementation plans. The management of completed schoolyards varies but are typically the responsibility of the city’s school and early childhood affairs division. However, some stakeholders reported management issues, with schools unsure who to contact for support or who is responsible for planting and maintaining vegetation. This finding “highlights the critical need to clarify the governance structure for managing OASIS schoolyards, particularly during the operational phase.”
Interviews with teachers and school principals revealed the perception that green schoolyards strengthened interactions between children and nature. Students demonstrated respectful interactions with nature, and living components, such as insects and plants, created opportunities for play and “wonderment.” Further, some principals and teachers reported that schoolyard greening positively impacted student behavior. The ecological diversity of the schoolyards was perceived to encourage more prosocial and cooperative play. Plantings served to create distinct areas within schoolyards that were reported to reduce conflicts and create more play opportunities for girls which helped to “reduce gender inequalities in the use of space.” However, teachers also indicated that vegetated areas could make play supervision more difficult. Finally, arthropod inventories revealed that the schoolyards supported diverse communities, although often at lower levels than nearby urban green spaces.
Overall, findings suggest that as a NbS, green schoolyards can bolster human-nature relationships, support biodiversity, and contribute to the ecological health of cities. Green schoolyards also offer rich potential to support academic learning and may help students develop pre-environmental attitudes. However, the sustainability of NbS schoolyard greening initiatives is dependent on the active commitment of numerous community stakeholders. Such commitments must involve sustained funding for and management of green schoolyards. Teachers and school staff must also be willing to integrate green schoolyards into their educational practices. Continued interdisciplinary research is needed to evaluate the potential of NbS in promoting inclusive and equitable schoolyard design.
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