Urgent biophilia describes the conscious desire of humans to seek interactions with nature during periods of stress. This study examines the changes in frequency and reason for visiting urban green spaces by residents of Wellington, New Zealand, to determine whether resident behavior during a stressful period exemplifies the principles of urgent biophilia. The COVID-19 pandemic and resulting lockdowns were used as the study period due to the significant physical and mental health stressors they triggered. Pedestrian and cyclist counters located in key urban green spaces in Wellington were used to collect data on visits pre- and post-pandemic. Two surveys were used to assess residents’ reasons for visiting urban green spaces during lockdowns. Increased green space visits were seen during the strictest lockdowns, though there was some variation in visits depending on the location of the green space. The most frequently reported reason for visiting green spaces during lockdown was mental wellbeing, followed by recreation. These results suggest that Wellington residents used urban green spaces as a coping mechanism during stressful lockdown periods for wellbeing benefits, exemplifying the principles of urgent biophilia. Urban planners and policymakers must consider and implement urban green infrastructure as a public health resource.
The practice of reconciliation ecology in urban environments relies heavily on urban green space as the primary source of vegetated habitat in cities. However, most cities lack the quantity, connectivity, and accessibility of green space needed to provide essential ecosystem services for the health, well-being, and resilience of human and non-human species. In reaction to urban densification and the increasing frequency and severity of climate change impacts, this study argues that architecture could strategically provide vegetated habitats to supplement existing urban green space and provide refuges for non-human species during extreme disturbances. A spatial analysis was conducted to test the performance of the existing green space network against targets for human well-being and Indigenous avifauna habitat needs in a 1.93 km2 neighborhood in Wellington, Aotearoa New Zealand, during normal conditions and flooding. The results showed an insufficient quantity and connectivity of green space during both normal conditions and flooding to meet the habitat needs of Indigenous avifauna. Though the per capita green space and accessibility targets for human well-being are met under normal conditions, there is insufficient green space to meet those targets during flooding. During normal conditions, 9% of the roofs in the neighborhood need to be converted to green roofs to achieve the targets for both human well-being and Indigenous avifauna. The amount increases to 17% if the targets are to be maintained during flooding. At least 3% of the roofs need to function as small and medium-sized habitat patches in key locations to increase the existing green space network's connectivity. The study concludes that though ground-level green space is limited, with regenerative architecture strategies and supporting governance policy, the surplus of existing roofs could be used to increase urban habitat provision, thereby enhancing the health and resilience of humans and Indigenous avifauna in cities.
Many cities are vulnerable to flooding due to their high proportion of impervious surfaces and lack of vegetated land cover. This vulnerability will often be exacerbated by changing rainfall and storm patterns due to climate change. Using the principles of urban biomimicry, this study aims to show an ecosystem service-based approach to designing an urban green infrastructure network for stormwater management in densely built areas that more closely emulates natural hydrology processes. Nature Braid (next-generation LUCI) is an ecosystem services assessment tool that was used to simulate flood mitigation ecosystem services in a 13.7 km2 urban water catchment in Wellington, Aotearoa New Zealand. The simulation results revealed that 59% of the catchment does not contain or benefit from flood-mitigating land cover features. Adding 0.6 km2 (4% of the catchment) of green roofs alongside major stormwater flow paths resulted in a nearly three-fold decrease (11%) in the unmitigated flooding area. These results suggest that green roofs could help manage stormwater and mitigate flooding in the densely built areas of the catchment. Using ecosystem service assessment tools, like Nature Braid, can inform the design of more regenerative and resilient urban green infrastructure networks that help mitigate climate change impacts on urban residents.
Aims and MethodA national survey of members of the Scottish division of the Royal College of Psychiatrists to establish the training in neuropsychology they have received, their views on neuropsychology service provision and on potential formal postgraduate neuropsychology training opportunities.ResultsA 54% (n = 288) consultant psychiatrist response rate was achieved. the responses suggest that where specialist neuropsychology services exist, they are not perceived to be sufficient to deal with clinical demand. Consultant psychiatrists indicated that there are limited training opportunities in neuropsychology for psychiatrists, and this seems to be reflected in their limited confidence in interpreting basic recommended neuropsychological assessment tools. There seems to be a definite desire among consultant psychiatrists for postgraduate training opportunities.Clinical ImplicationsScottish psychiatrists desire an increase in formal neuropsychology training opportunities.
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