NAAEE

Social sustainability is a process or framework that promotes positive social interactions and cultural life within local environments while also supporting the abilities of future generations to maintain a healthy community. Access to high quality local facilities and services plays a critical role in social sustainability. This study explored several participatory research methods to access children’s perspectives about one community facility, the neighborhood-school.

Two groups of Iranian children participated in this study. Approximately 100 children in an older group (age 11-15) completed semi-structured questionnaires relating to four indicators of affective aspects of their neighborhood schools. The four indicators were derived from the academic literature and consisted of (1) physical appearance and visual presentation; (2) outside spaces; (3) pedestrian and vehicles paths; and (4) health and safety. Children in the older group were asked to rank and rate each of the four indicators based on their personal opinions in order of importance. Approximately 100 children in a younger group (age 7-10) completed drawings and paintings about their life in their neighborhoods. They were also given the opportunity to talk about their drawings and paintings.

Children in both groups expressed a need for increased safety between home and their neighborhood-school and for more green spaces in their neighborhoods. For the older children, providing sidewalks and footpaths to ensure their safety and security while walking and biking to the neighborhood-school was the most important issue. Other important issues noted by the older group included “Appearance of outside and inside spaces” and “Plantings and attractive architecture for liveability.” The older group’s specific recommendations for a more livable environment included (1) legible paths, (2) noise control, (3) reduced vehicle traffic, (4) reduced density of buildings, and (5) more variety to increase attractiveness. Concerns expressed by the younger group included a lack of safety and suitable paving or surface material on sidewalks. What children in the younger group wanted included (1) shared playgrounds (youth/children and boys/girls), (2) green spaces between the buildings and near their homes, (3) safe playgrounds, (4) drinking fountains, and (5) specific furniture for parents at the playground. The young children also wanted more  colorful pavements and facades.

The overall findings indicate that young people want attractive neighborhoods that are legible and walkable. They want green spaces and playgrounds that afford diverse activities and provide opportunities to interact socially with their friends. The findings also indicate that the interests and ideas of young people need to be considered in the making of a socially sustainable neighborhood. The methods used in this study – the semi-structured questionnaires and the writing or drawing activities – proved to be effective in accessing children’s concerns, preferences, and recommendations for their neighborhood-school.