Urgent Biophilia: Green Space Visits in Wellington, New Zealand, during the COVID-19 Lockdowns

Maggie MacKinnon, Rebecca MacKinnon, Maibritt Pedersen Zari, Kain Glensor and Tim Park
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Maggie MacKinnon: Wellington School of Architecture, Faculty of Architecture and Design Innovation, Te Herenga Waka Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington 6011, New Zealand
Rebecca MacKinnon: Graduate School of Life Sciences, Faculty of Science, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, 3584 CH Utrecht, The Netherlands
Maibritt Pedersen Zari: School of Future Environments, Faculty of Design and Creative Technologies, Te Wānanga Aronui o Tāmaki Makau Rau Auckland University of Technology, Auckland 1010, New Zealand
Kain Glensor: Analytics and Modelling, Ministry of Transport, Wellington 6011, New Zealand
Tim Park: Parks, Sport and Recreation, Wellington City Council, Wellington 6011, New Zealand

Land, 2022, vol. 11, issue 6, 1-14

Abstract: 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.

Keywords: urgent biophilia; urban green space; nature-based coping; human wellbeing; pandemic; COVID-19; urban green infrastructure (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

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