Urban forest research in the Mediterranean: A systematic review

The Mediterranean region is facing many challenges, some of which can be addressed by nature-based solutions such as urban forests and green space. However, at best, urban forest research from Mediterranean countries has been only briefly addressed in review papers up to date. This Scopus-based review paper provides first insights into the development of urban forest research in the Mediterranean in the 20-year period from 1996 to 2015. The purpose of the review was to a) analyse distribution of urban forest research in the Mediterranean and identify countries that are forerunners based on the number of publications, b) to analyse distribution of research themes across the Mediterranean and per country, and hence point to research gaps and needs. Researchers from Italy, Turkey and Spain were the most productive in the analysed period. Research is mainly concentrated in the North, while it is scarce to non-existent in South and Eastern Mediterranean countries (excluding Turkey and Greece). Papers dealing with pollution, human health and sociocultural values were the most frequent. Some countries exhibited research specialisation with regard to certain themes. For instance Italian researchers mostly focused on topics related to pollution and urban forest management, the majority of Spanish papers addressed urban forests in the context of human health, while sociocultural values were the main research theme for researchers from Turkey. Papers were analysed also based on research methods, approaches and study locations. Suggested future research includes analysis of the quality of knowledge related to urban forests in the Mediterranean as well as of collaboration between researchers, research institutions and countries.