Lu Ke’s doctoral project investigates how green infrastructure interventions reshape social-spatial justice in urban communities, with a particular focus on areas vulnerable to green gentrification.
As cities increasingly implement green renovation strategies—such as park improvements, street greening, and climate-adaptation infrastructures-questions arise regarding who benefits, who is excluded, and how these transformations may reinforce or mitigate existing inequalities.
The project consists of two interconnected research components:
(1) an empirical assessment of green gentrification vulnerability in Berlin, and
(2) an equity-oriented transport and accessibility evaluation in Karlsruhe, as mobility is a central pathway through which residents experience and access social functions.
The project combines two complementary analyses: a Berlin-based assessment that uses a multi-indicator framework to identify neighbourhoods vulnerable to green gentrification, and a Karlsruhe study that evaluates equity in 15-minute social functional infrastructure access through GIS-based modelling and socioeconomic analysis. Together, these approaches reveal how green transformations and mobility conditions shape spatial inequalities across urban communities.

Overall Aim:
The research ultimately seeks to inform planning practices and policy frameworks that balance environmental improvements with equitable urban development, preventing unintended gentrification dynamics and ensuring fair mobility facilities for all residents.