Fast Fact Library

Green spaces, particularly around schools, improve cognitive development in children 7-10 years old. In a Barcelona study, reduced exposure to elemental carbon (a traffic-related air pollutant) associated with green...

Dadvand, Payam, Mark J. Nieuwenhuijsen, Mikel Esnaola, Joan Forns, Xavier Basagaña, Mar Alvarez-Pedrerol, Ioar Rivas, Mónica López-Vicente, Montserrat De Castro Pascual, Jason Su, Michael Jerrett, Xavier Querol, and Jordi Sunyer. (2015). Green spaces and cognitive development in primary schoolchildren. PNAS, published ahead of print June 15, 2015, doi:10.1073/pnas.1503402112

Trees in bioswales reduce runoff and discharge and return stored water to the atmosphere. Transpiration from trees in bioswales at The Morton Arboretum parking lot in Illinois accounted for 46-72% of the lot’s total...

Scharenbroch, Bryant C., Justin Morgenroth, and Brian Maule. (2015). Tree Species Suitability to Bioswales and Impact on the Urban Water Budget. Journal of Environmental Quality.

Environments supportive of risky (challenging and exciting) outdoor play promoted increased play time, physical activity, social interactions, creativity, and resilience among children. The overall positive health...

Brussoni, Mariana, Rebecca Gibbons, Casey Gray, Takuro Ishikawa, Ellen Beate Hansen Sandseter, Adam Bienenstock, Guylaine Chabot et al. (2015). What is the relationship between risky outdoor play and health in children? A systematic review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 12(6), 6423-6454.

A review of 28 studies found that children aged 3-12 years who spend more time outside are more active and less sedentary than children who spend more time inside. This was apparent across ages, sexes, and contexts.

Gray, Casey, Rebecca Gibbons, Richard Larouche, Ellen Beate Hansen Sandseter, Adam Bienenstock, Mariana Brussoni, Guylaine Chabot et al. (2015). What Is the Relationship between Outdoor Time and Physical Activity, Sedentary Behaviour, and Physical Fitness in Children? A Systematic Review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 12(6), 6455-6474.

Green spaces can improve cognitive development in children. A one-year study of 2,593 Barcelona schoolchildren indicated that exposure to green space at home, while commuting, and in schoolyards is associated with...

Payam Dadvand, Mark J. Nieuwenhuijsen, Mikel Esnaola, Joan Forns, Xavier Basagaña, Mar Alvarez-Pedrerol, Ioar Rivas, Mónica López-Vicente, Montserrat De Castro Pascual, Jason Su, Michael Jerrett, Xavier Querol, and Jordi Sunyer (June 2015) PNAS 112 (26) 7937-7942.  https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1503402112

Study participants who went on a 90-minute walk through a natural environment reported lower levels of rumination (repetitive thought focused on negative aspects of the self) than participants who walked through an...

Bratman, Gregory N., J. Paul Hamilton, Kevin S. Hahn, Gretchen C. Daily, and James J. Gross. (2015). Nature experience reduces rumination and subgenual prefrontal cortex activation. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 201510459.

In a large, international study of urban residents, researchers found that only access to green space and recreational areas made a difference in reducing neighborhood socioeconomic health inequalities, while...

Mitchell, Richard J., Elizabeth A. Richardson, Niamh K. Shortt, and Jamie R. Pearce. (2015). Neighborhood Environments and Socioeconomic Inequalities in Mental Well-Being. American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

Increasing the number of native mature trees preserved in new urban housing developments is an effective way to increase bird diversity, according to this study in Queensland, Australia. Streets that retained mature...

Barth, Benjamin James, Sean Ian FitzGibbon, and Robbie Stuart Wilson. (2015). New urban developments that retain more remnant trees have greater bird diversity. Landscape and Urban Planning, 136, 122-129.

Improved water clarity is associated with increased numbers of recreational visits to lakes in Minnesota and Iowa. People were willing to travel 56 minutes farther for every one-meter increase in water clarity based...

Keeler, Bonnie L., Spencer A. Wood, Stephen Polasky, Catherine Kling, Christopher T. Filstrup, and John A. Downing. (2015). Recreational demand for clean water: evidence from geotagged photographs by visitors to lakes. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment 13(2), 76-81.

Urban middle school students in Canada were more physically active when their neighborhoods contained undeveloped natural areas with trees but not meadows. For every 5% increase in tree-covered land, there was a...

Janssen, Ian, and Andrei Rosu. (2015). Undeveloped green space and free-time physical activity in 11 to 13-year-old children. International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity, 12(1), 26.