Greening for meaning: Sense of place in green citizen initiatives in the Netherlands

Mellany N.C. van Bommel, Marthe L. Derkzen, Lenneke Vaandrager

This mixed methods study aimed to understand the meanings attributed to green citizen initiatives by using the concept of sense of place and to investigate which factors predict this sense of place. 

Greening for meaning: Sense of place in green citizen initiatives in the Netherlands - ScienceDirect

• First study to combine a survey and interviews to explore sense of place in green citizen initiatives.
• Sense of place was stronger when participants performed green activities.
• Green citizen initiatives facilitate attachment, identification and goal achievement.
• Green citizen initiatives provide meaning on an individual and societal level.
• Green citizen initiatives are promising health promoting settings.