Analysis of Strategic Green Infrastructure Planning Guided by Actors’ Perceptions: Insights at the Regional Level in the Netherlands and Spain

The European Commission promotes the inclusion of green infrastructure (GI) in spatial planning across member states. For strategic GI planning to be effective and ensure long-term sustainability and functionality, it must involve collaboration among relevant actors at all governance levels. However, less attention has been given to the required tools and decision-making processes necessary to foster such collaboration (particularly at regional scale) that determine the success of GI implementation. This study addresses this gap by analyzing two strategic planning projects carried out at the regional level within the Vallei en Veluwe and the Arnhem–Nijmegen regions (The Netherlands) and in Galicia (Spain). The aim was to explore the role of stakeholders in the strategic GI planning process and identify factors that promote their effective collaboration by using an analytical framework based on qualitative interviews and grounded theory (GT). The findings provide insights into how stakeholders influence decision-making and outcomes, highlighting the factors that foster their active participation, commitment, and collaboration. Trust-building initiatives, continuous communication throughout the process, network creation, hopeful narratives, as well as inclusive, flexible, and adaptable frameworks were identified as key elements for implementing sustainable GI strategies.