Environmental justice through superblocks? A geospatial analysis of Berlin's Kiezblock initiatives
Research output: Contribution to journal › Research article › Contributed › peer-review
Contributors
Abstract
In urban planning, superblocks evolve as a concept that prioritizes liveability in urban spaces. The concept aims to reduce individual motorized transport while enhancing the quality of public spaces and is thus associated with improving health-related aspects. However, this paper asks whether superblocks emerge in those neighbourhoods that are environmentally the most disadvantaged and thus most in need of such an improvement. By using the distributional layer of environmental justice as a lens, the paper explores the spatiality of superblocks. We use Berlin and its 69 superblock initiatives (called Kiezblocks) as a case study to analyse whether these initiatives contribute to a more environmentally just city. We do so by joining data on environmental justice with the spatial distribution of superblocks, based on an existing environmental justice mapping tool. Our study shows parallels between the objectives of superblocks and environmental justice. There is a balanced distribution of Kiezblocks throughout the city, although they are more likely to be located in environmentally disadvantaged neighbourhoods. This study, therefore, insinuates that Kiezblocks indeed improve environmental justice in Berlin from a distributional perspective. However, a more strategic development of superblocks would be necessary to link such projects to each other and discuss lessons learnt.
Details
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Number of pages | 23 |
| Journal | Geografiska Annaler: Series B, Human Geography |
| Publication status | E-pub ahead of print - 10 Apr 2026 |
| Peer-reviewed | Yes |
External IDs
| Scopus | 105035399054 |
|---|---|
| ORCID | /0000-0003-0488-7297/work/212492637 |
Keywords
DFG Classification of Subject Areas according to Review Boards
Keywords
- Berlin, Kiezblocks, Stadtplanung, Superblocks, Umweltgerechtigkeit