Greenspace use can positively influence subjective wellbeing; but research often focuses on how nature as “part of self” affects this relationship. Instead, we should focus on both urban and natural place-related identities to enhance wellbeing for all greenspace users.
The sounds of our streets are closely linked to how people walk, cycle, and play. We reviewed global research showing that while traffic noise is associated with less activity, natural and human sounds often relate to safer and more enjoyable urban movement. Our aim is to support healthier city planning where soundscapes are not ignored but seen as essential to active lifestyles.
Cities increasingly rely on assessment tools to understand whether neighbourhoods and urban systems support health and wellbeing. Yet results can depend on which tool is used. We examined fourteen widely used health assessment tools using a structured analytical framework. Our study shows that divergence is not primarily about which indicators are included, but about how tools operate across multiple layers.
Across many cities, residents of informal settlements lack safe, nearby green space. Using Nakuru (Kenya) as a testbed, we show how opening schoolyards to communities outside school hours can rapidly expand walkable access at minimal cost. With basic security and governance measures, this dual-use model can advance health equity and resilience.
Our study explores how perceptions of urban green space quality and accessibility relate to loneliness in urban India. Findings show that subjective experiences, design features, and feelings of social exclusion shape engagement with green spaces. Inclusive, safe, and emotionally responsive green space design is crucial for reducing loneliness.Important to note; our study advances urban health and planning research by demonstrating that loneliness is shaped more by perceived quality and emotional experience of green spaces than by their physical presence alone.
How do children perceive and interpret different noises and how their personal experiences correlate with objective measurements? What are the long-term repercussions of sustained noise exposure during the formative years on adult cognition, behaviour, and health outcomes?
This research extends existing scholarship by contextualizing Healthy City principles within Saudi Arabia’s specific climatic conditions, demographic transitions, and centralized governance structures. Rather than advocating direct replication of international models, the study emphasizes learning from international experiences to inform context-specific strategies aligned with Vision 2030 and national sustainability priorities. By interpreting international experiences within Saudi urban realities, this work provides a geographically specialized and policy-relevant contribution to the discourse on sustainable and healthy urban development.
Climate change influences everybody in every sector. We gathered available evidence on the impacts of climate change and potential adaptations now and in the future in the UK. From this review, we developed systems diagrams that visualise the evidence in an accessible and interactive manner to facilitate the climate change planning process. These diagrams are part of the Local Climate Adaptation Tool (LCAT) which was co-produced with Cornwall Council and a National Stakeholder Group of local decision-makers. New interactive diagrams have been produced to show how and where climate change impacts occur, why they are interconnected, and their consequences on human health and wellbeing. These diagrams are part of the Local Climate Adaptation Tool (LCAT).
Green infrastructure has been conceived as something for the well-off in cities of developed countries. How green infrastructure contributes to quality of life and wellbeing in slums and informal settlements is largely unknown. A survey of the residents (sample size = 455) within a slum community (Ikorodu-Ajegunle) in Lagos, Nigeria. The survey was preceded by stakeholder forum where actors from health, urbanism, environmental sectors discussed the links and made inputs to the research instrument used for data collection.
Cities urgently need systemic health checks. Without them, they keep fixing symptoms, wasting scarce budgets, while hidden risks grow. This proposed approach helps cities understand their true health and activate their self-healing capacity instead of constantly firefighting.