Inclusiveness of Urban Space and Tools for the Assessment of the Quality of Urban Life—A Critical Approach

• Main Authors: Agata Gawlak, Magda Matuszewska, Agnieszka Ptak
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2021-04-01
• Series: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
• Subjects: aging societies; quality of urban life; age-friendly design; universal design; inclusive design; tools of assessment
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/9/4519
• ISSN: 1661-7827; 1660-4601

This article aims to compare the international tools assessing the quality of life and to carry out their multifaceted qualitative analysis, emphasizing spatial aspects (architecture, urban planning) and demographic changes. Comparative analysis of three guidelines and 13 rankings includes a comparison of a wide range of domains (2–15), criteria (4–66), and indices (22–223). The already observed worldwide trends of aging societies and increasing urban populations have largely drawn the attention of researchers to the urban life quality. Since the early 1990s, many international tools have been developed for that purpose. Although urban practitioners progressively rely on instruments measuring urban quality of life, in the development of urban policy, there is still little research comparing the already available appraisal instruments in view of their measurement criteria. The results of the research on the global tools show that there are major differences between them, either in view of the purpose, the contracting authorities, research focus group, scale, or in view of the importance of spatial and demographic factors. Such findings can contribute to the development of local guidelines and recommendations for self-government authorities and communities, in this the seniors and future generations, in view of improving the urban life quality.