Others have pointed out in this thread that greenery may be a reflection of wealth which strikes me as true. I wouldn't discount state power either - in many ci

Others have pointed out in this thread that greenery may be a reflection of wealth which strikes me as true. I wouldn't discount state power either - in many cities the greenest areas are the ones inhabited by bureaucrats and soldiers. I also think we should be looking at d/dx(green) rather than |green| to detect the influence of wealth and power, especially in parts of the world where unchecked growth has decimated green space. Which is to say, don't perform your comparisons based on tree cover now but the change in tree cover over time, say, using satellite data over the years. Common sense suggests that by looking at the ebb and flow of greenery, we will find that the spots where the wealthy and the powerful live are less likely to see trees cut down and more likely to see new trees planted.