Aussie experts say urban green spaces boost our health, and governments should prioritise them

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2025-01-20 17:00

Australia; NSW; SA

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Australian experts say there's clear evidence of the benefits of green spaces for the mental and physical health of urban Aussies, and that such amenities should be a policy imperative for all governments. They suggest we adopt an approach developed by the World Health Organization (WHO), the Health in All Policies approach, which provides a framework for incorporating provision of green spaces in the decision-making of all government agencies. The new Australian Federal Climate and Health Strategy identifies Health in All Policies as one of its key objectives for action and this may create the space and opportunity to elevate trees and green space in the political decision-making process, the authors say.

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Editorial / Opinion Wiley, Web page

Journal/
conference: Medical Journal of Australia

Research:Paper

Organisation/s: University of South Australia, The University of Adelaide, The University of Sydney, South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI), The University of New South Wales

Funder: We acknowledge the HEAL (Healthy Environments And Lives) National Research Network, which receives funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council Special Initiative in Human Health and Environmental Change (Grant No. 2008937). Support was also provided by the Environment Institute at the University of Adelaide

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