Cities have a wide variety of green infrastructure types, such as parks and gardens. These structures can provide important ecosystem services (ES) with a major impact on human well-being. With respect to urban planning, special consideration must be given to such green infrastructure types when implementing measures to maintain and enhance the quality of life. Therefore, generating knowledge on the urban ES of differently scaled green infrastructure types is important. This systematic literature review provides an overview of existing studies which have explicitly investigated the urban ES of differently spatial-scaled green infrastructure types. By reviewing 76 publications, we confirm rising academic interest in this topic. The most frequently assessed urban ES belong to the category Regulating and Maintenance. Only a few have considered individual small structures such as green roofs or single gardens; green spaces are often aggregated into one, mostly city-wide, object of investigation, with resulting oversimplifications. Moreover, generalizing methods are mostly applied. Simultaneously, many studies have applied methods to evaluate location-specific primary data. More research is needed on small-scale structures, in particular to consider site-, and thus location-specific, parameters in order to successfully implement the ES concept into urban planning and to obtain realistic results for ES assessments.

Globally Covid-19 has proven how important nature and landscape are to ensure human well-being physically and mentally. This research used a systematic literature review method to get an overview of existing research articles that specifically assess landscape quality in large scale landscapes using nowadays widely used ecosystem service approach. Research answers four key questions – (1) Which ES were assessed to evaluate the quality of landscape? (2) Which methods were used to assess ES? (3) Which ES indicators were used to determine the quality of landscape? (4) What data were used to conduct the research? The most widely assessed ecosystem service group is focused on the visual quality of the landscape. The most frequently used method group includes statistical analysis and surveys and questionnaires, followed by spatial assessment methods. Indicators that were frequently used in research included general land-use types and separate landscape elements. In order to use such indicators, qualitative and large amount of spatial data are needed to evaluate the quality of the landscape. Wider research is needed to understand landscape quality assessment methods before the ecosystem service term appeared in the research field.

In recent years, global research in spatial planning has focused on the sustainable development of green infrastructure (GI) in order to reduce the consequences of urbanization processes on the ecological, socio-economic and visual quality of the environment. Problems with stormwater management, floods, storms and global warming in general are just some of the reasons why GI planning has gained popularity. According to other current strategies (EU Biodiversity Strategy, EU GI strategy, Green Deal initiatives, etc.), GI plans, which include social, economic and ecological aspects, are being developed for territories of different scales. Until recently, green infrastructure was just an added value to real estate, but today it plays a completely different, much more important role. In Europe, the GI planning process has already begun, with several European countries developing GI plans in urban environment, different scales across country and even at national level. Depending on the scale chosen, the principles of GI planning differ. In European examples, GI is considered in large-scale regional landscapes, where the green network and connections are formed from natural areas, but at the urban scale, the creation of GI goes hand in hand with the creation of a green network in the city, connecting the largest green areas with each other (squares, parks, urban forests, etc.). However, in the scientific literature, the basic principles and the correlation of GI planning at different scales have not been widely studied and analyzed. Therefore, the purpose of the article is to define the main principles in the planning of GI in Latvia using a three-level approach. Each level corresponds to a specific scale of the territory, starting with the regional scale, moving to rural and urbanized areas and concluding with the site scale. Each lower level is subordinated to the highest, thus forming a single GI planning system. At each level, GI key planning principles and prerequisites to be considered are defined. The town of Aizpute, its neighboring villages and rural areas in Latvia were chosen as a case study territory for the article. Article discusses the planning of GI in the context of three levels and also the different approaches of GI planning in the rural and urban landscape.

Ecosystem services (ES) have been widely researched for several years, but cultural ecosystem services (CES) have gained importance in recent years due to pressure on human well-being and public health. This literature review aims to continue research about ES assessment methods used in the valuation of landscape quality, analysing methods for CES assessment. The most assessed CES is aesthetic value being one of the most appreciated and widely known CES. Landscape quality assessment is complicated and rarely assessed, but several methods evaluate separate features of landscape quality, which gives an insight into accessible methods for landscape valuation. In this article, methods are analysed and categorised into four groups – economic, spatial evaluation, social and statistical analysis. Most analysed articles use several methods in one assessment giving more precise results. In CES assessment, the most used method is surveys and questionnaires and usually incorporating mapping methods to spatially explicitly represent the data.

Cultural ecosystem services (CES) represent the non-material relationships between people and nature, yet their intangible nature poses challenges for spatial planning and policy integration. This study examines CES in Gauja National Park, Latvia, focusing on symbolic, sacred, educational, and cultural heritage values—types often underrepresented in CES assessments. Using a Participatory Geographic Information Systems (PGIS) approach, a map-based public survey was conducted via ArcGIS Survey123, enabling respondents to mark and describe places of personal significance. While widely applied internationally, PGIS remains rarely used in Latvia, especially in planning and municipal decision-making. This study explores the use of the PGIS method for the assessment of CES, serving as a pilot application to test its suitability and potential for integration into spatial planning. Points of value were successfully georeferenced and reflect diverse associations. While well-known heritage sites were commonly mentioned, respondents also identified personally meaningful locations, sometimes situated outside the park’s formal boundaries. The findings highlight both the strengths and limitations of digital participatory methods, including issues related to response rates, accessibility, and digital literacy. The study demonstrates that mapping CES with PGIS can offer valuable insights for inclusive landscape governance and supports the incorporation of local perspectives into spatial planning.

Izstrādātās vadlīnijas paredzēts kā informatīvs, metodisks un izglītojošs materiāls par dabas resursu integrētu plānošanu un pārvaldību pilsētvidē, ietverot gan teorētiskās atziņas, gan praktiskus piemērus. Materiālu veido trīs tematiskās sadaļas. Pirmajā iekļauts stratēģiskais un teorētiskais ietvars, kur raksturotas galvenās atziņas par dabas resursiem pilsētvidē, urbāno ekoloģiju un stratēģiskajiem dokumentiem, kas ietver dabas resursu integrētu plānošanu un pārvaldību. Otrā sadaļa apskata galvenās metodiskās pieejas un koncepcijas, bet trešā nodaļa apkopo jau esošos rīkus, kas saistīti ar integrētu dabas resursu plānošanu un pārvaldību. Materiāla noformējums veidots sekojoši – pamatu veido vispārīga informācija par tēmu, kas papildināta ar nodaļai atbilstošās krāsas izceltajām galvenajām atziņām un ar pelēkā fona krāsojumā atzīmētajiem piemēriem no prakses.