2018 Fiscal Year Research-status Report
Understanding threats to young childrens green space access in unlicensed daycare centers
| Project/Area Number |
17K15407
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| Research Institution | Research Institute for Humanity and Nature |
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Principal Investigator |
ルプレヒト クリストフ 総合地球環境学研究所, 研究部, 上級研究員 (90783895)
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| Project Period (FY) |
2017-04-01 – 2020-03-31
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| Keywords | 緑地計画 / green space / public health / children / environmental justice / social infrastructure / green infrastructure |
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| Outline of Annual Research Achievements |
The second year saw three major achievements and one minor change in research plans due to new insights from the research results.
First, the survey of unlicensed daycare centers was completed successfully and results were analyzed. The survey found that unlicensed daycare center staff believe green space is highly important for children’s development. However, the green spaces available do not satisfy the staff’s expectations (provision gap). Staff also encountered various issues in accessing green space, including conflicts with other users. Children’s access is therefore dependent on caregivers’ social skills and capital. Willingness to pay compensation for green space use was limited, caregivers placed responsibility for providing green space with municipalities.
Second, above results were communicated at the world’s largest geography conference in a session on social infrastructure. Framing green space as social infrastructure in addition to green infrastructure highlights conceptual implications of environmental justice, which will feature prominently in subsequent research.
Third, a related paper on informal green spaces as additional sources of green space was published in an internationally renowned peer-reviewed journal.
Minor change in research plans: The planned parent survey was delayed to allow results of the unlicensed day care center survey to inform the survey instrument. For this reason, it was also decided to delay publication of the daycare center survey results in favor of combining them with results from the parent survey.
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| Current Status of Research Progress |
Current Status of Research Progress
2: Research has progressed on the whole more than it was originally planned.
Reason
Initial plans were to conduct the parent survey earlier. This part was deliberately delayed to reflect results of the daycare survey and improve the questionnaire, likewise leading to a delay in the survey results in favor of a higher-impact paper. Overall, the research (having progressed more quickly than anticipated in the last FY) is now again mostly in line with the originally assumed progress (with some changes to the plan as outlined in the summary above).
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| Strategy for Future Research Activity |
Daycare center results will be used to improve the parent survey instrument. The parent survey will be conducted, and results from both will be combined in a high-impact paper. These data will then be further combined with the already prepared green space GIS database to conduct the hotspot mapping and publish those results.
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| Causes of Carryover |
The planned parent survey was delayed to allow results of the unlicensed day care center survey to inform the survey instrument. For this reason, it was also decided to delay publication of the daycare center survey results in favor of combining them with results from the parent survey. Therefore both the funds for the parent survey as well as for associated publication fees will be used in the coming financial year.
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Research Products
(2 results)
