Beyond the luxury effect: Individual and structural drivers lead to ‘urban forest inequity’ in public street trees in Melbourne, Australia

Abstract

Urban trees are increasingly being used to help cities adapt to climate change, improve health and wellbeing, and promote biodiversity. Yet these benefits are distributed unequally, mirroring the uneven distribution of the urban forest in many cities. Contrasting theories have been proposed to explain these observed patterns that focus either on the economic wherewithal of individuals (the ‘luxury effect’), or the outcome of structural factors such as municipal decision-making processes. Here, we explore patterns across 10 municipal authorities in greater Melbourne, Australia to compare the relative importance of these competing mechanisms. We show that both individual and structural process..