Neighborhood Parks and Recreationists' Exposure to Ozone: A Comparison of Disadvantaged and Affluent Communities in Los Angeles, California

Community-Level Characteristics Associated With Resilience After Adversity: A Scoping Review of Research in Urban Locales

The objective of this study was to document the current knowledge on characteristics measured at the community level and their relationship to individual or community well-being. The review specifically focuses on studies in urban locations. The main aim was to describe and organize evidence-based community strengths using a multidimensional portfolio approach to resilience. A scoping review using PRISMA-ScR guidelines was performed through searches of English-language articles in PsycINFO and PubMed databases. Inclusion criteria encompassed strengths or deficit factors assessed at the community-level of analysis. Our initial searches produced a pool of 2,246 articles, with 87 meeting full criteria for this review. Community-level variables were often measured as deficits or risk factors. Most studies were conducted in North America. Relationships between community variables and individual well-being showed mixed results for social characteristics but, more consistently, positive associations for strengths-based measures of natural and built environments such as access to green spaces and walkability. Models of resilience, including those focused on individuals, should include environmental characteristics. Findings of the current study suggest foundational concepts for a community resilience portfolio model to complement the more individual-focused models currently in use.

Transforming Social Determinants to Educational Outcomes: Geospatial Considerations

In recovering from one of the worst educational crises in recorded history due to the pandemic, in a mission to rebuild and become more resilient, there has been a heightened urgency to provide resources to communities most in need. However, precisely identifying those needs have become all the more important due to the increase in popularity of e-learning as a suitable option and the improvement of technologies. Most notably, socially disadvantaged and historically marginalized communities were disproportionately and severely impacted by several aspects of the pandemic, in terms of health, economics, access to education, and sustainable well-being. This differential effect was modeled spatially with the combination of aerial photogrammetry, traditional geospatial mapping, and other robust AI-driven techniques to synthesize and analyze the various types of data. In this original research study, we apply various spatial health variables, relate them to educational variables in an initial empirical process of understanding how to address equity-related considerations from the context of the learner’s experience, providing the empirical evidence for the development of locally tailored learner support and assistance, meeting students where they are by specifically identifying and targetting geographically underserved areas. We found that there were clear statistically significant relationships between educational attainment and several physical (p < 0.001), mental (p = 0.003), access to healthy food/food security (p < 0.001), and uptake of preventative health measures (p < 0.001), which also varied geographically. Geographic variations in learning experiences demonstrates the unquestionable need to understand a variety of physical, mental, and dietary factors surrounding the student’s success. Understanding a combination of these factors in a geospatial context will allow educational institutions to best serve the needs of learners.

The potential of nature-based solutions to deliver ecologically just cities: Lessons for research and urban planning from a systematic literature review

Planning for and implementing multifunctional nature-based solutions can improve urban ecosystems' adaptation to climate change, foster urban resilience, and enable social and environmental innovation. There is, however, a knowledge gap in how to design and plan nature-based solutions in a nonanthropocentric manner that enhances co-benefits for humans and nonhuman living organisms. To address this gap, we conducted a systematic literature review to explore how an ecological justice perspective can advance the understanding of nature-based solutions. We argue that ecological justice, which builds on the equitable distribution of environmental goods and bads, social-ecological interconnectedness, nature's agency and capabilities, and participation and inclusion in decision-making, provides a transformative framework for rethinking nature-based solutions in and for cities. A qualitative analysis of 121 peer-reviewed records shows a highly human-centred worldview for delivering nature-based solutions and a relationship to social justice with no direct reference to the dimensions of ecological justice. There is, however, an underlying recognition of the importance of nonhumans, ecosystem integrity and well-being, and a need to consider their needs and capacities through multispecies nature-based solutions design and planning. We conclude with a discussion of the critical aspects for designing and planning ecologically just cities through nature-based solutions and future research directions to further integrate these fields.

A Methodology for the Identification and Assessment of the Conditions for the Practice of Outdoor and Sport Tourism-Related Activities: The Case of Northern Portugal

Tourists’ demand for outdoor sport-related activities has been growing in the last decade, leading to the recognition of the outdoor tourism potential of the development of rural and urban areas where the activities could take place. While the literature has recognized this potential, its features and the existing conditions for its practice are often not fully comprehended, mainly due to the lack of measurement systems and performance indicators. This study addresses this gap by proposing a wide-ranging assessment matrix of nine outdoor-related activities, employing northern Portugal as a study area. Based on an exploratory qualitative analysis employing semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders (public, private and third sector), the main contribution of this study lies in the development of the outdoor tourism assessment matrix (OTAM) to collect data. The OTAM matrix aims to identify and assess the conditions, namely the infrastructure and resources, for the practice of outdoor and sport tourism-related activities within the sustainable development pillars. The nine matrices comprising the OTAM allow the identification of the places where the outdoor activities can be practiced, and the conditions under which they can contribute to the definition of the development strategies of outdoor tourism.

Association between Urban Greenspace and Health: A Systematic Review of Literature

The current review aimed to explore the association between urban greenspaces and health indicators. In particular, our aims were to analyze the association between publicly accessible urban greenspaces exposure and two selected health outcomes (objectively measured physical activity (PA) and mental health outcomes (MH)). Two electronic databases—PubMed/Medline and Excerpta Medica dataBASE (EMBASE)—were searched from 1 January 2000 to 30 September 2020. Only articles in English were considered. Out of 356 retrieved articles, a total of 34 papers were included in our review. Of those, 15 assessed the association between urban greenspace and PA and 19 dealt with MH. Almost all the included studies found a positive association between urban greenspace and both PA and MH, while a few demonstrated a non-effect or a negative effect on MH outcomes. However, only guaranteeing access is not enough. Indeed, important elements are maintenance, renovation, closeness to residential areas, planning of interactive activities, and perceived security aspects. Overall, despite some methodological limitations of the included studies, the results have shown almost univocally that urban greenspaces harbour potentially beneficial effects on physical and mental health and well-being.

A dual-method approach toward measuring the built environment - sampling optimization, validity, and efficiency of using GIS and virtual auditing

In recent years, GIS and virtual auditing have been widely used to measure the built environment, and each method carries its strengths and weaknesses. To generate higher quality, more cost-effective, and less time-consuming measures, it is necessary to explore dual- or multi-method strategy toward sampling optimization, improvement of measurement, and enhancement of efficiency. To justify the proposed dual-method approach, the study has three major objectives. First, it examines the uncertainties associated with different sample sizes by using GIS to generate scenarios that contrast the validity of measurements to aid sampling optimization in auditing. Second, it compares the validity of GIS measures with those generated through Google Street View Auditing (GSVA) by human raters. Third, it further examines the efficiency of the proposed dual-method approach in comparison to the two individual methods. Such investigation generates several novel findings. First, the study presents important evidence to support that GIS measures can offer sampling guidance applicable to the GSVA method. It leads to a recommendation of sampling sizes (5%-20%) for cases in settings with a mixture of affluent and disadvantaged neighborhoods. Results further indicate that different communities and certain individual features and characteristics may demand different sampling practices. Second, the study found that while GSVA is trustworthy for most characteristic variables, especially those that required subjective input, GIS provides well-validated measures for certain objective environmental attributes. Furthermore, the study reports that a dual-method approach of GIS and GSVA had a lower financial and time burden than using GSVA alone and is thus recommended as a comprehensive solution for optimal measurement of an objective built environment in mixed urban neighborhoods.

Outdoor Recreation, Nature-Based Tourism, and Sustainability

This Special Issue addresses the intersections of outdoor recreation, nature-based tourism, and sustainability. Outdoor recreation and nature-based tourism provide essential benefits to individuals, communities, and society and thereby contribute to sustainability. Equitable provision of opportunities, cultural variations in desired experiences, barriers to outdoor recreation, and diverse perceptions of both nature and recreation add to the complexity in outdoor recreation and nature-based tourism service delivery. Outdoor recreation and nature-based tourism occur within a socioecological system with feedback loops to changing social, economic, technological, and ecological conditions. On a global scale, climate change and other disturbance factors are impacting ecosystems and opportunities, increasing the importance of adaptation strategies for longer-term planning. Population growth and regional shifts in demographics and distribution (e.g., urbanization), as well as socioeconomic trends, affect who engages in outdoor recreation and nature-based tourism, opportunities sought, nature access, and governance of outdoor services. Overall the complexity of sustainable outdoor recreation and tourism may suggest a need for different approaches to service delivery, culture change among service providers and managers of natural spaces, and novel approaches to inclusive governance and shared stewardship. Given the clear importance of outdoor recreation and nature-based tourism to society, we invite you to consider this initial introduction to our assembled collection, which is meant to advance our understanding of the intersections of outdoor recreation, nature-based tourism, and sustainability.