Combating climate change is a daunting task…a big…scary…but necessary task. Science has shown time and time again the physical and mental tool that climate change has on our earth and those who populate it. The question on so many minds are: what can we do? The answer to that question is lengthy. In truth, there are so many things that people can do to get involved. However, in this particular post I am going to take you on a journey exploring urban greenspaces and what they do to help protect us against climate change.

One of the most prominent ideas on the mind of urban and city planners is how to adapt cities and urban life to climate change-especially man-made climate change. It’s known that climate change brings a lot of unfortunate effects on our environments and bodies. Examples of this include food scarcity, high temps, and water shortages. There have been some methods put in place by city planners to combat climate change, however, many of these methods are very expensive and not all cities have the funds to adopt these new methods on their home base. However….

One alternative to these costly methods is creating urban greenspaces. While it is questionable the effectiveness and adaptability that urban greenspaces will have-it is still something being explored. The benefits of urban greenspaces have already been established and include regulating temperatures, filtering dust, gathering storm water, lowering energy consumption, and preserving biodiversity.

In addition to the positive urban effects these greenspaces will have, benefits to city inhabitants are also thought to take place. Urban greenspaces are found to provide stress relief, reduce anxiety, and promote illness recovery for those living in urban centers. Greenspaces also encourage a more active lifestyle that fosters general well-being for children and adults.

All in all-urban greenspaces could be a small stepping stone in combatting the big monster known as climate change…and urban dwellers will be basking in all kinds of benefits from them.

The following hyperlink will take to Greenspace Alliance-a nonprofit in Pittsburgh that is working toward the promotion of greenspaces.  So if you’re looking for more local info or local ways to get involved that will tell you how!

References:

Byrne, J., & Jinjun, Y. (2009). Can urban greenspace combat climate change? Towards a subtropical cities research agenda. Australian Planner, 46(4), 36-43. doi:10.1080/07293682.2009.10753420