ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Sustain.
Sec. Circular Economy
This article is part of the Research TopicGreen entrepreneurship and waste management: strategies and policies for future sustainable and circular economyView all 6 articles
Citizens in the Green Transition: Perceptions of Urban Forestry and Biomass Use, and Strategies for a Sustainable Future
Provisionally accepted
- 1Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy
- 2Universita degli Studi dell'Aquila, L'Aquila, Italy
Select one of your emails
You have multiple emails registered with Frontiers:
Notify me on publication
Please enter your email address:
If you already have an account, please login
You don't have a Frontiers account ? You can register here
Urban forestry is recognised as a strategic lever for addressing the environmental and social challenges of cities, improving quality of life and promoting sustainable regeneration processes. This paper aims to investigate how urban forestry and the use of wood biomass are perceived by citizens, assessing their role in terms of collective well-being, environmental sustainability and territorial regeneration, with particular attention to differences related to gender, age and value orientations. The research is conducted through an online survey carried out in Italy, aimed at gathering the opinions and perceptions of the population on the subject. The results show broad consensus, with generally very positive assessments, but with interesting differences: women and young people are more sensitive to behavioural aspects and more willing to financially support forestry initiatives, while men and older people favour structural and collective benefits. The analysis also identified two main profiles: a pragmatic cluster, oriented towards tangible and immediate interventions, and a value-based cluster, more attentive to widespread benefits and everyday sustainability practices. The findings highlight the need for differentiated communication and governance strategies. Interventions targeting more pragmatic citizen groups should prioritise communicating tangible local benefits, such as visible improvements in urban quality, environmental mitigation and direct improvements in everyday life. Conversely, strategies targeting value-oriented groups should emphasise collective responsibility, long-term environmental stewardship, and the integration of sustainable practices into daily routines, ensuring that policy narratives are aligned with citizens' normative commitments. Overall, the study provides actionable and context-sensitive insights for designing participatory frameworks that can strengthen institutional trust and promote a just, inclusive, circular and effective green transition.
Keywords: biomass, Circular economy, Social analysis, sustainability, urban development
Received: 24 Sep 2025; Accepted: 25 Nov 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 D'Adamo, Gastaldi, Iannilli and Manzotti. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Idiano D'Adamo
Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.