Enhance Satisfaction/Quality of Life

Living near greenspace makes it less likely that people will experience postpartum depression (PPD).  Sun and colleagues found that “A reduced risk for PPD was associated with total green space exposure based on street-view measure [500 m buffer. . .], but not NDVI [normalized difference vegetation index], land-cover greenness, or proximity to a park. Compared to other types of green space, tree coverage showed stronger protective effects. . . . Street view-based green space and tree coverage were associated with a decreased risk of PPD.

Swartjes and Berkers studied designing spaces for festivals; their findings have implications for the development of all sorts of public areas.  The investigators found after interviewing festival organizers that “Spaces with varied rhythms of movement, such as parks and streets, provide the opportunity for encounters as people engage in activities of lingering, people-watching and playing. . . . if one can see the whole route at once before starting to walk, it will feel as a ‘tiring length.’ . . .

 Research by Phillips and colleagues verifies the value of having access to nature.  The team reports on experiences during the COVID pandemic: “we examine which types of nature engagement (i.e. with nearby nature, through nature excursions and media-based) are more strongly associated with well-being. . . . Overall, nature engagement was a consistent predictor of well-being, but different types of activities predicted varying outcomes. . . .