ORCID

Abstract

There is now considerable evidence that access to good quality green and/or blue spaces is good for peoples’ health and wellbeing. Concomitantly, there has been increasing emphasis, in national policies, on finding ways to use the natural environment as a key resource to support people’s health: all of which has been accelerated since the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet, key research gaps remain. This chapter reviews what we do and don’t know about the impact of nature on people’s health. We argue that the integration of research with planning tools is key to achieving environmental planning and development that is beneficial to health. We consider the challenges of conducting evidence-based research that involves people and natural environments and provide directions for future research that can support policies that have the potential to make full use of green and blue spaces to enhance people’s health and wellbeing.

Publication Date

2023-12-27

Publication Title

Managing Protected Areas: People and Places

Publisher

Springer

ISBN

9783031407826, 3031407857, 9783031407833

Deposit Date

2024-06-14

First Page

167

Last Page

192

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