Methodological development of cultural ecosystem services evaluation using location data

Cultural ecosystem services (CES) are some of the most significant benefits nature provides to humans, but often suffer from poor understanding and quantification, due to inconsistent conceptualizations and methodological challenges. This research first examined and proposed a CES theoretical framework, and then, developed a method employing smartphone location data that can be extended and generalized to quantify CES. Nagoya City, Japan, was used as a case study to explain how to employ this proposed methodology in the practical level and its results showed that in Nagoya City, Nagoya Castle, Atsuta Jingu, and Tsuruma Park were the three sites with the largest CES values in September 2019; and among the various CES subtypes, cultural heritage, aesthetic, and mental health were the three most perceived. With the proposed methodology, CES can be evaluated in a more objective and comprehensive fashion; compared across space, time, and cultural diversities; and further integrated into ecosystem services assessments.