The restorative power of natural and built environments

This thesis explores the relationship between environmental affect and mental health using restorative theory as an organising framework. Environmental affect can be described as how the physical environment (home, park etc) and social context (being with a friend) influence emotion and thereby various activities and outcomes. Three types of psychological experiences are explored, theoretically grouped under the rubric “restorative”: discrete (short-term) psychological restoration, instoration (longer term strengthening of internal resources) and person-environment fit conceptualised as niche environments supportive of 1) personal goals and 2) mood regulation. Mixed research methods (qualitative and quantitative) were used to elicit the affective dimensions of different settings (natural vs. built-external vs. built-internal) across several different groups within the population. A key aim was to explore whether restorative experiences would differ between settings in adults and young people with and without mental health problems. Five studies are presented, each exploring one or more aspect of the three part restorative framework outlined above, with one additional study focusing on social restoration. Two aspects of psychological restoration are examined: firstly, mood and secondly, cognitive reflection (defined as “changes in perspective” on life tasks over time1) using personal project analysis (Little 1983). Evidence of discrete restoration: the research supports existing empirical evidence linking activity in natural settings with mood restoration and adds to the evidence base by showing the benefits also extend to manageability of life tasks. New evidence is provided showing people with variable mental health differ in their potential for restoration, both in terms of the intensity of the experience and in response to the places in which the process occurs. People with poor mental health experienced more intensive restoration in a natural setting, but also responded more favourably to the urban setting than people without mental health problems. Natural settings promoted a mental equanimity2 across individuals with variable mental health as compared to the built setting where group outcomes diverged. 1For simplification this is referred to as “mindset” in the research 2 A levelling out of mood differences iii Evidence of instoration; the research supports the notion that activity in green settings can sustain longer term instorative benefits in adults and young people with mental health problems including increased capacity for trust and recollection, exploratory behaviour and social cohesion. Evidence of person-environment fit: a. niche environments supportive of mood regulation: the research extends existing evidence by showing natural and built settings support the continuum of good mood as well as the negation of bad mood in young people. b. niche environments supportive of personal goals: natural settings support age specific needs in young people for new experiences and community cohesion (in the form of societal projects), two dimensions supportive of well-being. Affect was found to be a significant discriminator between settings with positive affect aligned with the natural environment. Conclusions: results are consistent with a restorative effect of landscape and suggest differing states of mental health moderate in restorative processes. The research has also shown that the built environment is potentially restorative amongst certain health groups. The affective quality of environments varies and the ‘personal project’ research has shown the potential impact on well-being. Items flagged for further research include firstly, the need for further evidence on the relationship between the challenge of green activity and self-esteem in poor mental health groups; and secondly, the need to identify exactly what aspects of the built environment cause restorative differences to occur (i.e. the social context v. physical).Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC)Forestry CommissionCOST Action E5

Flourishing ‘older-old’ (80+) adults: Personal projects and their enabling places

This paper sets out a framework for exploring flourishing in older age through the lens of what older adults are doing in their lives. Applying a model from positive psychology called personal project analysis (PPA) our study captures a snapshot of older people's goals and their environmental context. Targeting older people aged 80+ we applied PPA methods in a semi-structured interview to elicit participants’ personal projects which were scored on eight wellbeing dimensions (e.g., fun, stress). Qualitative data analysis identified what types of personal projects are employed by this older demographic and the environments in which they are carried out. Results showed our participants were vitally engaged in a wide spectrum of projects exercised in a range of ‘enabling places’ which we categorised as (1) restorative niches (places that afford psychological restoration) such as nature settings (e.g. a garden, local park or riverside); (2) affinity niches (places that afford social opportunities) such as religious venues, social clubs, or cafés; and (3) flow niches (places that afford immersion in mental or physical tasks) such as the home (e.g. the kitchen) or a place associated with a previous career or amateur sport (e.g. cricket club). Our findings are discussed in relation to older people's wellbeing and the role of the built environment. Despite the increasingly negative stereotyping of the ‘older-old’ our study shows that the final decades of life can be a period of continuing growth and learning, a life stage with its own distinct character, rather than a period of decline

Seasonal blooms of neutrophilic Betaproteobacterial Fe(II) oxidizers and Chlorobi in iron-rich coal mine drainage sediments

Waters draining from flooded and abandoned coal mines in the South Wales Coalfield (SWC) are substantial sources of pollution to the environment characterized by circumneutral pH and elevated dissolved iron concentrations (>1 mg L−1). The discharged Fe precipitates to form Fe(III) (oxyhydr)oxides which sustain microbial communities. However, while several studies have investigated the geochemistry of mine drainage in the SWC, less is known about the microbial ecology of the sites presenting a gap in our understanding of biogeochemical cycling and pollutant turnover. This study investigated the biogeochemistry of the Ynysarwed mine adit in the SWC. Samples were collected from nine locations within sediment at the mine entrance from the upper and lower layers three times over one year for geochemical and bacterial 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis. During winter, members of the Betaproteobacteria bloomed in relative abundance (>40%) including the microaerophilic Fe(II)-oxidizing genus Gallionella. A concomitant decrease in Chlorobi-associated bacteria occurred, although by summer the community composition resembled that observed in the previous autumn. Here, we provide the first insights into the microbial ecology and seasonal dynamics of bacterial communities of Fe(III)-rich deposits in the SWC and demonstrate that neutrophilic Fe(II)-oxidizing bacteria are important and dynamic members of these communities

Concert recording 2015-02-14

[Track 01]. Escape velocity / Dave Hall -- [Track 02]. Ceiling full of stars / Blake Tyson -- [Track 03]. Indefinite architectures. Arcus / Michael Roe -- [Track 04]. Gainsborough. Fast ; [Track 05]. Slow, hesitant ; [Track 06]. Presto-march-presto / Thomas Gauger -- [Track 07]. Catching shadows / Ivan Trevino

Concert recording 2015-03-06

[Track 01]. Jubilate! / Ronald Caravan -- [Track 02]. Little symphony. Poco adagio-allegro-poco adagio ; [Track 03]. Andante tranquillo ; [Track 04]. Burleske ; [Track 05]. Intermezzo ; [Track 06]. Finale / Harald Genzmer -- [Track 07]. Rondo / Zdenek Lukas