Inclusion of Women in Public Spaces

In the mid-1990s, local officials in Vienna observed a notable decline in girls' presence in parks and playgrounds starting at age ten. Suspecting that park designs were the issue, they launched pilot projects and began collecting data. Their research revealed that large, open spaces forced girls to compete with boys for space, leading many to withdraw. To address this, officials divided parks into smaller sections and redesigned sports facilities. Previously enclosed by wire fencing with a single entrance dominated by boys, the new design included areas for both formal sports like basketball and informal activities favored by girls. These changes effectively reversed the decline in female park usage and increased informal activities.

Similarly, in Malmö, Sweden, officials found a male bias in their youth urban regeneration plans. Spaces were typically designed for activities like skating, climbing, and graffiti, predominantly participated in by boys, with girls comprising only 10-20% of users. Turning to data collection, officials asked girls what they wanted before converting a car park into a leisure area in 2010. The resulting space was well-lit and divided into various sections to increase female users.

In 2010, UN Women launched the “Safe Cities, Safe Public Spaces” program, partnering with over 20 cities worldwide, including those known for being particularly unsafe for women and girls, such as Cairo, New Delhi, and Port Moresby. More cities and communities are recognizing that public spaces are gendered and that strategic urban planning is essential to make women feel safe.

Pay Attention to Data and Take Action: women's safety in public spaces​

The Public Space Site-specific Assessment involves four phases and helps users evaluate the quality of public spaces. Each phase includes activities and tools that explain how to gather and analyze data and determine the necessary level of participation. These guidelines are a valuable resource for assessing the quality of existing public spaces that need improvement and for establishing a quality framework for creating new sites.

1. Pre-assessment
2. Data- gathering
3. Analysis
4. Evaluation

Pre-assessment

Once the project's objective is defined, a core team of both experts and non-experts is assembled. A pre-assessment exercise provides essential information such as context, demography, history, culture, infrastructure, and social dynamics of the study area. The core team then creates a project timeline that includes activities from the methodology framework. Conducting a stakeholder mapping exercise is essential to involve key individuals in the process.

Data- gathering

This phase focuses on gathering valuable data with and by the community using various tools designed to provide comprehensive information on the five dimensions of high-quality public space:

1. Use and user
2. Accessibility
3. Amenities and furniture
4. Comfort and safety
5. Green environment

Data-gathering includes both digital and traditional methods to collect quantitative and qualitative data. During this phase, civic engagement is at its peak, allowing the community to participate in the assessment and express their spatial perceptions and needs. By the end of this phase, all relevant data on accessibility, the green environment, use and users, amenities and furniture, and comfort and safety will be collected.

Analysis

The collected data is cleaned and analyzed to identify the main issues related to the public space and its walkable radius. The technical team maps the findings and highlights the key challenges and opportunities for each dimension. These results pinpoint areas needing improvement within the five dimensions and aid experts in offering technical recommendations and solutions. This phase is crucial for informing the subsequent design process and defining tailored solutions for enhancing public spaces.

Evaluation

This phase involves evaluating the public space after implementation to understand its impact on the neighborhood. It is essential to revisit the site one year after construction to assess whether the public space has achieved its goals and objectives. This evaluation includes empirically measuring people's enjoyment of the space, as well as its inclusiveness, meaningfulness, safety, and comfort. Experts conduct a comparative analysis to determine if key indicators have improved. Continuous evaluation of public spaces should be planned from the beginning, and securing additional resources is recommended to scale up successful ideas. After the comparative analysis, it is advised to extract lessons learned and apply the knowledge from previous phases to future work. This approach will help refine the design, improve the process, and extend the impact beyond the neighborhood.

Conclusion

Failing to consider gender in urban planning results in public spaces becoming male-dominated by default. Half the global population is female, and many women face daily threats of sexualized violence. Effective urban planning must account for women's care responsibilities, sexual violence, and socialization to ensure equal participation in public spaces. This not only promotes justice but also makes economic sense by enhancing women's participation in the workforce, reducing violence-related costs, and improving long-term mental and physical health.

This article is inspired by the following resources:

Caroline Criado Perez, Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men

16 Actions That Cities Can Take To Become Safer For Women and Girls (UN Habitat)

Public space site-specificassessment (UN Habitat)