Improve Mood/Increase Feelings of Wellbeing

Dang and team studied how people spend time on green roofs.  They report that their research focused on a green roof space in Sydney, Australia which included “a garden, a concrete open space and a raised grass area amounting to 1,200 m2, [that] is above parts of the university’s library and classrooms, and is easily accessible by staff, students, and members of the public. . . . users, most commonly, relaxed or socialised on the green roof, with exercise a far less frequent activity.

Barron and Rugel argue that greenspace planning needs to better reflect the usage-related needs of young adults.  The pair state that “The voices of young adults (15−24) ring faintly in the conversation around nature-based solutions (NBS). . . . NBS clearly shape young adults — including their connections with nature, engagement in pro-environmental behaviours, and social and psychological health — but the dramatic reshaping of urban areas via rapid growth, densification, and technological innovation means today’s young adults have fewer opportunities to benefit from NBS.

The Facilities Guidelines Institute has released an important new whitepaper, “Design of Behavioral Health Crisis Units,” available at https://fgiguidelines.org/resource/design-of-behavioral-health-crisis-units/.   As the website at which the whitepaper is provided explains, “This white paper supports the minimum requirements for behavioral health crisis units included in the 2022 Hospital and Outpatient Guidelines documents.

Hammond and team studied the mental health benefits of encountering (seeing or hearing birds). They relate that they “used the Urban Mind smartphone application to examine the impact of seeing or hearing birds on self-reported mental wellbeing in real-life contexts. A sample of 1292 participants completed a total of 26,856 ecological momentary assessments between April 2018 and October 2021. Everyday encounters with birdlife were associated with time-lasting improvements in mental wellbeing.

Anyone who is familiar with Ulrich’s work in the 1980’s won’t be surprised by a study presented at the 2022 Scientific Forum of the American College of Surgeons (ACS) Clinical Congress.

Research at the University of California, Berkeley’s Center for the Built Environment (CBE)  indicates that there may be more flexibility in setting workplace temperatures than previously thought.