Children’s Understanding of the Concept of Child-Friendly Places and Their Assessment of Their Living Environments: The Case of Istanbul

Abstract

This paper aims to investigate whether children living in Istanbul view their neighborhoods as ‘child-friendly’ based on their understanding of the concept of ‘child-friendly places’. In this context, the author focuses on the results of a child-friendly city project, which was conducted with approximately 240 nine- to-eleven-year-old children living in six neighborhoods of Istanbul. Data are obtained from focus groups, nominal groups, and mapping and neighborhood planning workshops. Results show that local governments, which participated in the project, failed to meet the commitments they have made to children in the Convention on the Rights of the Child, Agenda 21 and the Habitat Agenda. It was found that many children do not view their neighborhood as a child-friendly place. Many children supported their views by referring to the following problems of their neighborhoods:  the lack of environmental (spatial) quality, poor social capital, and safety and security issues. The author argues that the methods and results discussed here would help researchers interested in conducting similar studies and enlighten local governments in the production of more child-friendly environments.  

Keywords

• Child-Friendly Place,Child-Friendly Cities,Children’s Assessment Of Their Environments,Focus Groups,Nominal Group,Mapping Workshops,Neighborhood Planning Workshops

Çocukların Gözünden Çocuk Dostu Yer Kavramı ve Yaşanılan Çevrelerin Değerlendirilmesi: İstanbul Örneği

Abstract

Bu makale, çocuk dostu yer kavramının İstanbul’da yaşayan çocuklar için ne anlam ifade ettiğini, bu tanım bağlamında yaşadıkları mahalleleri çocuk dostu olarak görüp görmediklerini nedenleriyle anlamayı amaçlamaktadır. Bu kapsamda yazar, İstanbul’un altı mahallesinde 9-11 yaş aralığındaki yaklaşık 240 çocuğun katıldığı bir çocuk dostu şehir projesindeki grup söyleşisi (odak grup ve nominal grup), haritalama ve mahalle planlama atölyesinde elde ettiği bulguları okuyucuya sunmaktadır. Bulgular, İstanbul’daki çalışmaya dahil olan yerel yönetimlerin, Birleşmiş Milletler Çocuk Hakları Sözleşmesi’nde, Gündem 21’de ve Habitat Ajandası’nda belirtilen hükümlere uyma konusunda yetersiz kaldıklarını göstermektedir. Çalışmada yer alan çocukların büyük bir kısmı, çeşitli nedenden dolayı mahallesini çocuk dostu görmemektedir. En fazla üzerinde durulan sorunlar yaşanılan çevrelerin mekânsal ve sosyal nitelik sorunları ve bu yerlerin güvensiz ve emniyetsiz oluşları ile ilişkilidir. Bu makalede paylaşılan yöntem ve bulgular ile benzer çalışmaları yürütmek isteyen araştırmacılara yol gösterilmesi ve yerel yönetimlerin daha çocuk dostu çevreler yaratma konusunda bilinçlendirilmesi hedeflenmektedir.  

Keywords

• Çocuk Dostu Yer,Çocuk Dostu Şehirler,Çocukların Çevrelerini Değerlendirmesi,Odak Grup,Nominal Grup,Haritalama Çalışması,Mahalle Planlama Atölyeleri

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