Those who remove paving tiles may inspire their neighbours

Removing paving tiles from your front garden and replacing them with plants may inspire neighbours to do the same. That is the finding of new research by, among others, Tabea Hoffmann, Sandra Geiger, Jan Willem Bolderdijk and Ward Rauws.

The researchers followed an initiative in two Dutch neighbourhoods in which residents could replace paving tiles in their front gardens with greenery. In one neighbourhood, participants placed a sign reading ‘tile out, plant in’; in the other, they did not. 

The idea behind the intervention is simple: most people are concerned about environmental issues, but underestimate how concerned others are as well. Because sustainable behaviour is not always visible, people can easily get the impression that others are not taking action. This may make them less likely to act sustainably themselves.

Making other people’s actions visible may help to change this perception. The researchers found that residents in the neighbourhood with the signs were more likely to talk to their neighbours about greening their gardens. There were also indications that the signs encouraged more people to take part.

In total, the initiative replaced more than 500 paving tiles with greenery. According to the researchers, the approach could have an even greater impact on a larger scale. If several neighbourhoods start removing paving tiles at the same time, what begins with one green front garden could potentially spread across the rest of the city.