Co-governance arrangements for the operationalization of procedural justice in the design of Nature Based Solutions (NBS) in cities: Case study research of the emergent co-governance arrangements of Meu Barri Verd and Pla Verd Escolar in Valencia, Spain
(2025) In IIIEE Master Thesis IMEM02 20251The International Institute for Industrial Environmental Economics
- Abstract
- As cities increasingly turn to nature-based solutions (NBS) as panaceas for addressing climate challenges and other social, economic, and environmental issues, questions of urban governance and justice have become more prominent. While much of the existing literature on NBS justice assessments focuses on distributional aspects through quantitative methods, procedural justice remains underexplored, particularly in relation to the types of governance structures which shape participatory processes. This thesis investigates how different co-governance arrangements shape the operationalization of procedural justice in the design of urban NBS projects, using the city of Valencia, Spain as a case study. Moreover, this thesis seeks to explore... (More)
- As cities increasingly turn to nature-based solutions (NBS) as panaceas for addressing climate challenges and other social, economic, and environmental issues, questions of urban governance and justice have become more prominent. While much of the existing literature on NBS justice assessments focuses on distributional aspects through quantitative methods, procedural justice remains underexplored, particularly in relation to the types of governance structures which shape participatory processes. This thesis investigates how different co-governance arrangements shape the operationalization of procedural justice in the design of urban NBS projects, using the city of Valencia, Spain as a case study. Moreover, this thesis seeks to explore challenges and opportunities for the operationalization of procedural justice, hoping to extract valuable recommendations for practitioners in Valencia.
Through multiple case study research utilizing Qualitative Content Analysis (QCA), this thesis analyzes two participatory NBS initiatives: Meu Barri Verd (MBV), which engaged community organizations in a neighborhood-led greening process, and Pla Verd Escolar (PVE), which aimed to co-design climate-adaptive schoolyards in three municipal schools. Both cases were coordinated by the municipal foundation València Clima i Energia (VCE), in collaboration with hired facilitators and local enablers. Data was collected between the months of January and May of 2025 through semi-structured interviews (7 for MBV, 5 for PVE; 12 interviews in total), project documentation, and field visits. The frameworks by Bradley et al. (2022) and McCormick et al. (2024) were used to describe and assess the co-governance arrangements of each project. Moreover, the framework by Ruano-Chamorro et al. (2022) was used to assess the operationalization of eleven procedural justice criteria across three dimensions: process design, agency, and interpersonal treatment.
Findings reveal that while both projects show significant strengths in operationalizing procedural justice, their unique governance structures and institutional contexts shaped justice dynamics in different ways. MBV fostered more community-embedded interactions with a greater degree of governance sharing, while PVE showcased strong manifestations of correctability, transparency, and voice even amidst changing institutional constraints. Shared key challenges included time constraints due to grant deadlines, early expectation management, municipal funding limitations, and community distrust in municipal authorities. The thesis demonstrates that there is no one-size-fits-all model for achieving procedural justice through co-governance, highlighting the relevance of flexibility, adaptability, embedded iterative learning, and lasting trust in co-governance settings.
This study fills academic gaps on procedural justice operationalization in NBS projects, while also contributing practical insights for practitioners in Valencia interested in enhancing the procedural justice of environmental and climate-related co-creation processes. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
http://lup.lub.lu.se/student-papers/record/9209836
- author
- Cantu Bautista, Silvia LU
- supervisor
- organization
- course
- IMEM02 20251
- year
- 2025
- type
- H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
- subject
- keywords
- Nature-Based Solutions (NBS), Co-governance, Procedural justice, Urban climate adaptation, Public participation
- publication/series
- IIIEE Master Thesis
- report number
- 2025:31
- ISSN
- 1401-9191
- language
- English
- id
- 9209836
- date added to LUP
- 2025-08-19 09:04:23
- date last changed
- 2025-08-19 09:04:23
@misc{9209836,
abstract = {{As cities increasingly turn to nature-based solutions (NBS) as panaceas for addressing climate challenges and other social, economic, and environmental issues, questions of urban governance and justice have become more prominent. While much of the existing literature on NBS justice assessments focuses on distributional aspects through quantitative methods, procedural justice remains underexplored, particularly in relation to the types of governance structures which shape participatory processes. This thesis investigates how different co-governance arrangements shape the operationalization of procedural justice in the design of urban NBS projects, using the city of Valencia, Spain as a case study. Moreover, this thesis seeks to explore challenges and opportunities for the operationalization of procedural justice, hoping to extract valuable recommendations for practitioners in Valencia.
Through multiple case study research utilizing Qualitative Content Analysis (QCA), this thesis analyzes two participatory NBS initiatives: Meu Barri Verd (MBV), which engaged community organizations in a neighborhood-led greening process, and Pla Verd Escolar (PVE), which aimed to co-design climate-adaptive schoolyards in three municipal schools. Both cases were coordinated by the municipal foundation València Clima i Energia (VCE), in collaboration with hired facilitators and local enablers. Data was collected between the months of January and May of 2025 through semi-structured interviews (7 for MBV, 5 for PVE; 12 interviews in total), project documentation, and field visits. The frameworks by Bradley et al. (2022) and McCormick et al. (2024) were used to describe and assess the co-governance arrangements of each project. Moreover, the framework by Ruano-Chamorro et al. (2022) was used to assess the operationalization of eleven procedural justice criteria across three dimensions: process design, agency, and interpersonal treatment.
Findings reveal that while both projects show significant strengths in operationalizing procedural justice, their unique governance structures and institutional contexts shaped justice dynamics in different ways. MBV fostered more community-embedded interactions with a greater degree of governance sharing, while PVE showcased strong manifestations of correctability, transparency, and voice even amidst changing institutional constraints. Shared key challenges included time constraints due to grant deadlines, early expectation management, municipal funding limitations, and community distrust in municipal authorities. The thesis demonstrates that there is no one-size-fits-all model for achieving procedural justice through co-governance, highlighting the relevance of flexibility, adaptability, embedded iterative learning, and lasting trust in co-governance settings.
This study fills academic gaps on procedural justice operationalization in NBS projects, while also contributing practical insights for practitioners in Valencia interested in enhancing the procedural justice of environmental and climate-related co-creation processes.}},
author = {{Cantu Bautista, Silvia}},
issn = {{1401-9191}},
language = {{eng}},
note = {{Student Paper}},
series = {{IIIEE Master Thesis}},
title = {{Co-governance arrangements for the operationalization of procedural justice in the design of Nature Based Solutions (NBS) in cities: Case study research of the emergent co-governance arrangements of Meu Barri Verd and Pla Verd Escolar in Valencia, Spain}},
year = {{2025}},
}