Disparities in Exposure to Green Spaces Remotely Sensed

Residential segregation based on socioeconomic status has long attracted the attention of researchers in the fields of human geography and sociology. This study examines whether disparities in exposure to natural environments, such as green spaces, also exist based on socioeconomic status. Using remote sensing, we analyzed Tokyo, Japan, and calculated the mean NDVI; Normalized Difference Vegetation Index for each 250m grid. We then investigated its relationship with average household income. The results revealed that grids with higher average household income tend to have higher NDVI. Additionally, we explored whether NDVI could be predicted from socioeconomic and demographic variables. The findings indicate that NDVI can be partially predicted based on these variables. This suggests that exposure to natural environments is influenced by social science factors. Although natural environments appear to be open-access resources, our study demonstrates that disparities arise due to socioeconomic and demographic factors.