Urban socio-ecological dynamics: applying the urban-rural gradient approach in a high Andean city

• Published in: Landscape research Vol. 45; no. 3; pp. 327 - 345
• Main Authors: Bonilla-Bedoya, Santiago, Estrella, Anabel, Vaca Yánez, Angélica, Herrera, Miguel Ángel
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Abingdon Routledge 02-04-2020; Taylor & Francis Ltd
• Subjects: Andean cities; Cause-effect relationships; Cluster analysis; Clustering; Ecology; Factor analysis; Image classification; Image processing; Land use; Land use management; Landsat; Landsat satellites; multivariate analysis; Remote sensing; Rural areas; Rural land use; Satellite imagery; Urban areas; urban dichotomy; Urban environments; urban management; urban-rural gradient; Urbanization
• ISSN: 0142-6397; 1469-9710
• DOI: 10.1080/01426397.2019.1641589

The urban-rural dichotomy and the simple cause-effect relationship do not allow establishing specific criteria for territorial management from a socio-ecological perspective. The gradient approach could be a powerful tool to understand urban socio-ecological dynamics. This research applied a methodological protocol to obtain urban-rural gradients while considering the specific characteristics of a mid-size Andean city. To achieve this goal, a mixed classification process was applied to a Landsat 8 image. Subsequently, a factor analysis (FA) grouped 25 urbanisation variables. Finally, we applied agglomerative hierarchical clustering.
FA established four factors that explained (72%) of the urbanisation metrics' variation. From this information, we obtained factor maps and a gradient map. The resulting map differentiated six gradients that contrast with the city's territorial planning based on the urban-rural dichotomy. This study is a starting point to apply the gradient approach in land-use management and urban ecology planning for Andean cities.