Impacts of Urban Green Space on Wellbeing

People living in urban areas tend to report greater wellbeing if they have parks and gardens nearby, says a new study from the UK that suggests green spaces have a positive impact on mental health in cities. Mathew White and colleagues from the University of Exeter Medical School's European Centre for Environment & Human Health, in Truro, Cornwall, write about their findings in a paper due to be published online this week in the journal Psychological Science. They describe how they examined data from a national survey that followed UK households over time, and even after taking into account differences in income, marital status, employment, physical health, and type of housing, they found city dwellers reported higher life satisfaction and less mental distress when they lived in greener areas.


Investigating the impacts of urban green spaces on wellbeing from ECEHH on Vimeo.
Considering greenspace improvements like parks, gardens, trails, etc., in new development of cities can pay off for the city and its residents in the long run!