Urban Forestry & Urban Greening 4 (2006) 125–134 Residents and urban green spaces: The case of Bari Giovanni Sanesi a,Ã , Francesco Chiarello b a Department of Plant Production Science, University of Bari, 70122 Bari, Italy b Department of Historical and Social Sciences, University of Bari, Italy Abstract The total area of public green spaces in the city of Bari, Italy is more limited than in most other Italian cities (2.9 m 2 / inhabitant). This fact makes it an interesting subject for research into the general perception that the residents of the city have of green spaces and their behaviour patterns when using them. A questionnaire (27 questions) was presented by telephone to a representative sample (n ¼ 351) of the population of Bari. The aims of the study were: (a) to gain insight in the perception of green spaces with particular reference to those green areas within the city itself; (b) to examine behaviour during visits to parks and gardens and means of transport used to reach them; (c) to investigate what kind of relationship should be set up between the local authority and the population regarding information and participation. The results show that respondents perceive the green areas as a life quality enhancer in accordance with some previous studies carried out in Italy and in other countries. Citizens are moreover conscious of the limitations in quality and quantity of green areas in their own city, although this result needs to be more closely analysed in the future. Patterns in the use of public green areas proved to be strictly connected with age, sex, marital status, area of residence. Another conditioning factor was the system of mobility. The results moreover underline how citizens see the public and private green areas as single beneficial system. The research also demonstrates the potentials of applying telephone surveys in studies concerning urban forests. r 2005 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved. Keywords: Urban forest; Citizens’ perception; Citizens’ behaviour; Telephone interviews Introduction In recent years more and more interest has been given to urban green space. Originally, merely a decorative element in towns and cities, green space has now taken on a new value and function, the importance of which is widely acclaimed within the parameters of sustainable development. The presence of green spaces represents a funda- mental asset above all when considering contemporary urban reality, with its traffic congestion, pollution and lack of space for socialising. However, the presence of urban furniture, flowerbeds and public parks is not in itself sufficient for claiming the town to adhere to a sustainable model. The efficiency of urban green space lies largely in its overall structure – as an integral part of the entire system of green space throughout the whole metropolitan area – and in the function which it serves in relation to both the entire territorial context in which it is inserted, and to whom is envisaged to be using it. The greatest asset of the multifunctionality of urban green spaces (the term should be extended beyond parks ARTICLE IN PRESS www.elsevier.de/ufug 1618-8667/$ - see front matter r 2005 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.ufug.2005.12.001 Ã Corresponding author. E-mail address: sanesi@agr.uniba.it (G. Sanesi).