Public attitudes toward green infrastructure during implementation: a case study of a medium-sized Hinterland city

Abstract Knowledge of social perceptions and attitudes has emerged as a cornerstone for the successful implementation of Green Infrastructure (GI) projects. Relevant studies to date have almost always focused on large cities and ex-ante planning contexts. This paper aims to explore how citizens’ perceptions in the face of climate change adaptation and, particularly, Human Thermal Comfort enhancement and other co-benefits of diverse urban GI projects are being shaped during the GI implementation. Empirical data were gathered from a medium-sized hinterland city situated in northeastern Greece. The research included 200 respondents from the study population, and Principal Component Analysis, K-means clustering, and Discriminant Analysis were employed to depict citizens’ behavioral patterns. Three attitude patterns emerged through the study: i) climate detractors, ii) climate advocates, and iii) climate neutrals. The predicted classification of group membership exhibited overall very good accuracy, with 97.5% of the original grouped cases being correctly classified. This study can guide authorities of small and medium-sized cities as they develop GI projects aimed at climate change adaptation and other co-benefits, providing the required knowledge to formulate more effective communication strategies, encourage public participation, and increase the social acceptability of GI facilities.