Epsilon Open Archive

The objective of this thesis is to contribute to an increased knowledge on work within Swedish park management organisations. To understand the complex reality that work in park management organisations entails the following research questions are addressed: What is work like within Swedish park management organisations with regard to interaction between groundsmen and officials? How is urban biodiversity perceived by park managers in relation to maintenance? Three park management organisations have been studied in-depth with reference to work at the tactical and the operational levels, focusing on interaction between groundsmen and officials regarding maintenance and views on urban biodiversity. Methods used are deep interviews with staff with different professional roles and participating observation of day-to-day work. Different views on maintenance are identified and described as management styles: the aesthetic, the economic, the ecologic and the social management style. A profound study reveals six different views on urban biodiversity. The variety in views makes com¬munication on biodiversity complicated and causes the issue to fall between the cracks or to be overlooked. Interaction between staff in park management organisations varies from intentionally creating new arenas between the operational and the tactical levels to missing links in communication. Sometimes, organisational and cultural obstacles impede interaction between organisational levels and between park and nature sectors. Within the organisational culture of park management organisations two subcultures appear: the traditional and the innovative. The traditional culture is distinguished by experiences from years of practice. The innovative culture is distinguished by higher education, questioning of traditions and creative thinking together with an encom¬passing kind of leadership, staff collaboration, networking and increased responsibility. Divergent views on biodiversity, management styles and cultures may lead to ob¬jectives for park maintenance not always being coherent. Development of park manage¬ment and creation of sustainable urban green spaces require skills development as well as increased interaction, within organisations, working towards coherent objectives and strategies.