Healthy living in five steps, is it that easy?

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Health seems to be increasingly cited as an argument for greening. Associate Professor Jolanda Maas from Vrije University says the scientific evidence is accumulating and it can no longer be avoided. A study conducted by her university among 250 participants showed that people are 1.5 times more likely to feel unhealthy in an environment with little green space than in an environment with plenty of green space.

There are now enough studies proving the link between greening and health, but in practice it is not always easy to get started. In a webinar, the council members were updated on the theory, but also explained what it could look like in practice. Danny Coray from IVN Nature Education demonstrated this. Coray, the project leader for the Nature in the Neighbourhood project, works within the Healthy Neighbourhoods project to green and beautify neighbourhoods by improving the quality of public spaces. IVN Nature Education shared more broadly on September 10th. Call for citizens to participate in this process.

IVN Nature Education is working on this project together with Jantje Beton and JOGG. Thirty healthy neighbourhoods have already been created, and a new round of fifteen new neighbourhoods will start soon. The two parties are working to achieve this healthy neighbourhood in five steps.

Koray goes through a five-step plan: “We start every project by discovering our neighborhood. This can be done, for example, with a neighborhood safari. During neighborhood safaris, residents walk through their neighborhood with IVN to see where they can be greened. “You look at what people are using. Or specifically what places are lacking in quality.

“There is a lot that is possible, as experience shows,” says Koray. A water tap, a vegetable and flower garden, a live dog, a hut or a tennis table. Koray advises council members to let residents dream, but to clarify the prerequisites in advance, so that they know what to take into account.

This also works with children: in separate design sessions, they can be given a number of points that they can allocate to specific facilities and functions. This teaches children how to compromise and discuss what they would like to see in the final result among themselves.

The third step is to provide feedback on the initial design. At this stage, residents can look at the plans for what is to come and say whether they have any additions. “This is often a confirmation that residents are happy with the major changes that will follow,” says Koray. “Where possible, do it through an activity, for example in Enschede we held a winter barbecue.”

He also recommends a long-term budget and calendar of activities, which he believes is essential to making new neighborhood spaces popular with residents. It’s also an opportunity to build relationships with private parks by encouraging children to work in the green spaces there, too.

The fourth step is to install greenery. By allowing locals to contribute to this, the sense of ownership increases. However, Stadsveld has a separate dog park, a play area, a ball court and some flowering trees.

The following also applies to every successful project: celebrate the result. “The responses from local residents clearly show that more can finally be done in this area.” Even negative feedback, says Koray. He recalls a project where broken glass appeared on the pitch immediately after the conversion.

“You’ve been bothered by the glass shards there for years. But now that the field is actually part of the neighborhood, you’re seeing locals indicate that they think it’s worth reporting.”

cost and benefit

Now for questions from council members. Because while they may already have a good appreciation for the value of green space, many are wondering: How do you realize the benefits of greening within your organization and to your residents?

It helps, says Maas, that revenues are usually higher than costs. For example, a study by KPMG found that carefully expanding green spaces in the living environment of ten million people could save more than €400 million. These savings are mainly in absenteeism and healthcare costs.

Joop Spijker, senior researcher at the Department of Forestry, Nature and Urban Green Spaces at WUR, talks about another study, this time from Utrecht: “The nearly 150,000 trees in Utrecht collectively generate more than 1.5 million euros in benefits per year by capturing CO2.₂Emissions, air purification and water capture. In Dordrecht, the Green Benefits Scheme, a calculator of the benefits of greening and climate adaptation measures, has a cost-benefit ratio of 3.7. Speicher: ‘This means that every euro invested returns 3.7 times the benefits.’

All costs and benefits together produce a net profit, but does that profit also accrue to the municipality? According to Spiker, local governments, along with property owners, are the main lenders, but they don’t always receive the benefits of their investments directly. In addition, health benefits also go to insurance companies, employers, employees, and residents themselves.

According to Maas and Spiker, a possible solution, and at the same time a necessity, lies in a more integrated approach. If green spaces contribute to achieving multiple political goals, it is also possible to use budgets more intelligently. To achieve this, municipal administrations must work together better. Spiker: ‘You are free to ask your councillor what funds are available in the budget for a particular project. For example, you see that targeted measures to alleviate sanitation problems are being taken from green pots in a number of municipalities.

External partners, such as schools, care facilities and employers, can also be involved in the financial picture. In these locations, it is easy to establish a connection between the users of green spaces and their well-being. The municipality can rely on them for funding.

“If you look at existing green spaces, you also see that the costs of upgrading a grassless lawn to a flowering garden are not that bad. This is often possible even within the current budget,” Spiker advises council members to develop multi-year plans that help provide an overview of how to provide neighborhoods with quality green spaces step by step.

children

Spiker and Mass also mention 3-30-300 base As a tool to identify where greening is most needed. “You should prioritize neighborhoods that score the worst on this scale.” These are typically neighborhoods with more socially vulnerable families. Low-income families rely more on neighborhood green spaces for recreation.

In addition, Mas adds, scientific research shows that the well-being and health effects of greening are greatest for populations that need it most.

IVN’s Koray believes that health should also be more clearly included in policy. He explains that this means that the municipal executive branches can act more quickly. He also stressed the importance of involving all health-related departments, so that funds can be shared more easily.

If it were up to Mas, who points to Koray’s presentation, it starts fundamentally with involving children. “It’s an indication of how far we’ve come as a society from nature. If you don’t involve children in greening projects now, they’re less likely to ask about them or take action on them later.