February 22, 2021

Green space research leads way for better city design

The Sax Institute recently interviewed PowerLab Director Professor Thomas Astell-Burt to discuss research he is leading at UOW on environmental change and human health.

The article reports key findings from Prof Astell-Burt’s recent cohort studies involving residents of Sydney, Wollongong and Newcastle. These studies indicate that restoring urban tree canopy may help strengthen our cardiometabolic health, improve mental health, and could potentially even reduce the risk of dementia.

Not only relevant to health, these findings are highly applicable to sustainable development and actions to help avert climate crisis, such as Wollongong’s Urban Greening Strategy 2017-2037. They also support tree canopy restoration targets of 30% or more in other cities in Australia and around the world, including Canberra, Vancouver, Seattle, and Barcelona.

Read on to see how these findings are helping to reveal the connections between urban green space and population health.