A Study on Establishing Thermal Output Conditions of Radiant Ceiling Heating Panels for Improving Thermal Comfort of Perimeter Zone in Buildings

Amid concerns over airflow-induced transmission of the COVID-19 virus in buildings frequented by large numbers of people, such as offices, the necessity for radiant ceiling heating panels has increased. This is due to the concern that the airflows emitted from the convection heating systems installed near the ceiling or windows for winter heating may be a major cause of COVID-19 transmission. In this study, we aim to evaluate thermal comfort under various indoor and outdoor environmental conditions of a building and present the thermal output conditions of the radiant ceiling heating panel that can replace the convection heating system while ensuring comfort in the perimeter zone and handling the heating load. As a result, we were able to present, in a chart format, the thermal output conditions that can secure thermal comfort by analyzing the indoor airflow distribution depending on the surface temperature of the radiant ceiling heating panel, the interior surface temperature of the window, and the influence of internal heat generation. Moreover, through derived empirical formulas, we were able to determine the heating conditions of the panel that can secure the necessary heat dissipation while minimizing discomfort, such as downdrafts, even for indoor and outdoor conditions that were not evaluated in this study.

Moving Beyond the Frame: Flows and Relations in Hybrid Body–Screen Lifeworlds

This article employs both a written text and an artistic video encounter with the reader, to articulate human lived experience as a spatial and temporal semioscape of relations that flow across and between the inner-outer lifeworlds or Umwelten for individuals. Further, it asserts that such lifeworlds are experienced in continual and dynamic relation with nonhumans and non-life (human-devised technologies, circulations, and substances as well as planetary circulations and substances such as rock, sky, air, and so on)—an entangled and mobile situation that humans can notice and derive meaning from. Taking as its starting point a video performance-paper, Still/We noticed smallest things, created by the author, and originally presented to participants of Unruly Landscapes Colloquium in June 2020, the article will assert that immersion in a simultaneously embodied and screen-world semioscape that includes urbanwild entanglements demonstrates the human biophilic ability to attune to complex relations in hybrid bio/techno situations.

Jitney by August Wilson, and: Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare (review)

See PDF ] Jitney, part of Wilson's American Century Cycle exploring African American life in each decade of the twentieth century, directly explores notions of community through its depiction of a group of jitney drivers, men who use their own vehicles to provide rides to those in need of them. While it initially seemed incongruous to see Jitney with its realistic interior setting in an outdoor performance venue, the sense of strangeness faded quickly as the production began. [...]performing outside a conventional theatre space made the production viable in a city in which the Delta variant precipitated a rapid rise in COVID-19 cases during its run. During the exorcism scene, for instance, Sir Toby drenched Malvolio with liquid sprayed from a large plastic container labeled "Holy Water," and Feste performed a toe-tapping number, "Devil Be Gone," backed by an enthusiastic red-robed gospel choir.

Impact of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on attitude, behavior, and mental health of patients with rheumatic diseases

BackgroundThe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has become a global health, social, and economic crisis. Healthcare professionals, patients, healthy individuals, and the whole community are under inevitable psychological pressure which may cause different psychological problems as fear, anxiety, depression, and insomnia. The aim was to assess the impact of the COVID19 pandemic on the attitude, behavior, and mental health of rheumatic patients and to compare them with healthy individuals. This is a case-control study, 360 participants were included and divided into a patient group composed of 180 patients with rheumatic diseases, and a control group composed of 180 healthy people. Data were collected via a self-administered structured questionnaire designed on Google forms. It was sent to participants via social networks and emails to different rheumatic patients and healthy individuals. Mental health was measured by the 5-item Brief Symptom Rating Scale (BSRS-5).ResultsThe mean age of cases and control were (35.05 ± 8.79 vs 34.56 ± 9.06) years. In comparing attitudes and behavior toward COVID 19, there was a statistically significant difference (p ≤ 0.05) between both groups regarding washing hands, going outdoors, wearing masks and gloves outdoors, and staying in their rooms. Patients depended mainly on telehealth more than usual where about 50% used either phone calls, internet or sent their relatives to their physicians;moreover, 20% did not contact their physicians at all the past few months. There was a statistically significant difference (p ≤ 0.05) between both groups regarding feeling angry/irritated, inferior and insomniac. The BSRS-5 total score and being defined as a psychiatric case (according to the BSRS-5 scale) also differed significantly between patients and controls. Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients showed more adherence to their medications and stayed mostly at home and they have higher BSRS scores.ConclusionPatients with rheumatic diseases show comparable degrees of anxiety and depression to healthy individuals, but higher distress symptoms and panic in the form of anger, irritability, and insomnia. They have a significantly higher sense of inferiority and a higher total BSRS compared to controls. SLE patients show more adherence to their medications and stay mostly at home as a reflection of feeling more vulnerable. Moreover, they have higher degrees of psychological affection in the form of higher BSRS scores. Abandoning drug purchasing without medical prescription is necessary in Egypt to protect our patients from unnecessary drug shortages adding to their fear and anxiety. Mental health should be addressed in the same manner we deal with the infectious disease itself, being of no less importance. Mental health professionals, social workers, and support groups need to provide psychological support to vulnerable populations, including patients with rheumatic diseases. Rheumatologists should be aware of the need for psychiatric consultation for their patients whenever necessary.

Sustainable Outdoor Education: Organisations Connecting Children and Young People with Nature through the Arts

There is an increasing concern regarding the mental health and wellbeing of children and young people;as a result, schools are increasingly expected to provide support, but they have few resources to do so. As such, there is a need for establishing mechanisms for supporting the health and wellbeing of children and young people that are relatively easy and cost-effective and that can be embedded within the school day to ensure sustainability. The overarching aim of our Branching Out project was to understand how successful elements from one such programme that supports children's mental health through the art-in-nature-based practice can be expanded from school-based approaches that reach small numbers of children to include whole communities. This paper reports on one strand that examined the practice of organisations offering arts and/or nature-based activities outdoors in schools, either as part of the curriculum or as an extra-curricular activity. Survey questions served as an a priori thematic framework around the characteristics of arts-in-nature activities delivered;the perceived impacts of activities;working with volunteers, teachers, and schools;and barriers to expansion and sustainability. Despite extensive searching, identifying, and recruiting relevant arts organisations was difficult;however, respondents strongly supported the notion that the arts-in-nature practice has a positive impact on children and young people's connection to nature, supports their mental health and wellbeing, and engages them with their local environment. Yet, challenges were identified in engaging teachers and schools and funding such projects, suggesting a need for a multi-professional approach to creating more sustainable and impactful practice for children, young people, and communities.

Raising Healthy Children: Promoting the Multiple Benefits of Green Open Spaces through Biophilic Design

Several studies have indicated that children who grow up in green environments enjoy beneficial impacts on their development. However, to date, very little attention has been paid to the types and characteristics of dedicated public open green space for children. In addition, studies on biophilic design that could help landscape architects to design open spaces for children are limited. In order to fill this gap, this perspective examines the scientific literature on the relationship between open spaces and children. The authors specifically discuss and analyze the following points: (1) pathways to and effects on children's health and well-being;(2) types and characteristics of open spaces for child-dedicated facilities (e.g., schools, hospitals, fitness camps, playgrounds, etc.), as well as for child-friendly urban open spaces. Finally, the authors provide inspiring examples and case studies of biophilic design for children's health and well-being. Conclusions from this perspective show that biophilic design could benefit both the physical and mental health of children, as well as improve children's overall resilience to pandemics and other diseases. This perspective provides, for the first time, new insights for designing biophilic and child-friendly cities, and explores areas of future research.

Mothers' accounts of the impact of being in nature on postnatal wellbeing: a focus group study.

BACKGROUND: The postnatal period is a vulnerable time for mothers to experience stress and mental health difficulties. There is increasing evidence that spending time in nature is beneficial for wellbeing. Nature-based interventions have been developed to support mental health, but not specifically tailored for mothers during the postnatal period. Understanding mothers' views and experiences of nature would help determine the suitability for and potential impact of such interventions on postnatal wellbeing. AIMS: To explore mothers' views on the impact of spending time in nature on their postnatal mental wellbeing. METHODS: Focus groups were held with mothers of young children (under five), including mothers from migrant and refugee communities, mothers living with mental health difficulties, and disabled mothers. Data were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis. RESULTS: Four focus groups were held, with a total of 30 participants. Six themes were developed: (1) mothers' experiences of what constitutes 'nature'; (2) sensing nature improves wellbeing; (3) natural spaces facilitate human connection; (4) nature provides escape and relief from daily indoor stressors; (5) nature allows new perspectives; and (6) mothers face a variety of environmental, practical, psychological, physical, socioeconomic, and cultural barriers to spending time in nature during the postnatal period. CONCLUSIONS: Mothers report significant benefits to their postnatal wellbeing when spending time in nature. Further research is warranted to understand whether nature-based interventions have the potential to support postnatal wellbeing, socially, mentally, and physically.

Mask Adherence and Social Distancing in Houston, TX from January to April 2021.

Shortly after the identification of COVID-19, public health experts recommended the use of face masks and social distancing to slow the spread of the virus. Early research indicates that there are associations between gender, age, and mask-wearing behavior. The primary aim of this paper was to explore how demographics, location, and mask mandates may affect COVID-19 mitigation strategies such as mask-wearing and social distancing. A prospective, cross-sectional observational study was conducted in Houston, TX from January to April 2021 at three outdoor locations: an urban park, an urban park with a trail, and a farmer's market. During each two-hour data collection period, trained observers recorded the total number of people in the designated spaces; people were categorized by approximate age, sex, race/ethnicity, physical activity level, social distancing, and mask adherence using the Systematic Observation of Mask Adherence and Distancing (SOMAD) protocol. Multivariable logistic regression was used to determine associations with gender, race, age, location, and the mask mandate. A total of 7778 observations were recorded after exclusion of inconclusive demographic data. Females had higher odds, reported as an odds ratio, of mask use than males (OR = 1.35, 95% CI 1.18-1.54). Compared to White individuals, Asian individuals had higher odds of mask use (OR = 1.84, 95% CI 1.48-2.30). The odds of mask use were higher while the Texas mask mandate was in effect (OR = 1.60, 95% CI 1.40-1.84). Regarding location, the odds of mask use were much higher in the urban park than in the urban park with a trail (OR = 13.33). Individuals had higher odds of social distancing at the urban park with a trail compared to the farmer's market (OR = 4.61, 95% CI 4.10-5.17). Mask wearing and social distancing behaviors differ by demographics, locality, and mask mandate. Thus, state policies can be effective tools to encourage mask wearing for disease mitigation.

Arduino Uno and Ultrasonic Sensor Based Social Distancing Model to Avoid Spread of COVID

Social isolation has been shown to be the sole effective defense against COVID-19, according to the World Health Organization. In this study, a prototype for tracking human positions in an outdoor setting utilizing sensors and a microcontroller is proposed. This tool is especially beneficial for keeping a safe distance from people in public settings, which was crucial during the COVID-19 epidemic. Getting a signal to preserve social distance from someone approaching us is crucial. Social distance is necessary at workplaces, on public transit, and in grocery shops. We deployed the sensors on the rear to inform the individual for preserving social distance since, in general, we are mindful on the frontside but not on the backside. © 2022 IEEE.

Informing Future Land Systems Using Self-Reported Pathways and Barriers to Connections to Nature: A Case Study in Auckland, New Zealand

Empirical research exploring what increases an individual's connection to nature is growing, however research seeking respondents to self-report what they feel acts as a barrier or pathway to their connection to nature is scarce. Previous empirical literature suggests a link between connections to nature and pro-nature actions. Therefore, understanding what acts as a barrier or pathway to people's connection to nature can provide insight as to what may promote, or hinder, pro-nature actions. From a land systems perspective, the research is crucial, given that human disconnection from nature is argued to be the reason behind large scale ecological crises and species extinction which threaten the land systems in which we live. Consequently, a cross-sectional qualitative study was undertaken in 2019 with 976 respondents from Auckland, New Zealand to explore self-reported perceptions of what acts as a barrier or pathway towards their connections to nature. The findings suggest that respondents perceive modern society modalities such as 'life takes over', 'urban life', etc., as being barriers to their connections to nature. Being exposed to nature, was perceived as a pathway to prompting, and/or sustaining their connections to nature. These learnings highlight the benefit of exploring the perceived influences on connections to nature and the findings can be applied to improve the human-nature connection and therefore potentially increase pro-nature actions. We also use the findings to provide practical actions for environmental managers in the Auckland region by advising as to how the human-nature connection can be supported through future urban planning and better designed urban land systems.

Automatic Tuberculosis and COVID-19 cough classification using deep learning

We present a deep learning based automatic cough classifier which can discriminate tuberculosis (TB) coughs from COVID-19 coughs and healthy coughs. Both TB and COVID-19 are respiratory diseases, contagious, have cough as a predominant symptom and claim thousands of lives each year. The cough audio recordings were collected at both indoor and outdoor settings and also uploaded using smartphones from subjects around the globe, thus containing various levels of noise. This cough data include 1.68 hours of TB coughs, 18.54 minutes of COVID-19 coughs and 1.69 hours of healthy coughs from 47 TB patients, 229 COVID-19 patients and 1498 healthy patients and were used to train and evaluate a CNN, LSTM and Resnet50. These three deep architectures were also pre-trained on 2.14 hours of sneeze, 2.91 hours of speech and 2.79 hours of noise for improved performance. The class-imbalance in our dataset was addressed by using SMOTE data balancing technique and using performance metrics such as F1-score and AUC. Our study shows that the highest F1-scores of 0.9259 and 0.8631 have been achieved from a pre-trained Resnet50 for two-class (TB vs COVID-19) and three-class (TB vs COVID-19 vs healthy) cough classification tasks, respectively. The application of deep transfer learning has improved the classifiers' performance and makes them more robust as they generalise better over the cross-validation folds. Their performances exceed the TB triage test requirements set by the world health organisation (WHO). The features producing the best performance contain higher order of MFCCs suggesting that the differences between TB and COVID-19 coughs are not perceivable by the human ear. This type of cough audio classification is non-contact, cost-effective and can easily be deployed on a smartphone, thus it can be an excellent tool for both TB and COVID-19 screening. © 2022 IEEE.

An exploration of children’s experiences of the use of digital technology in forest schools

Forest schools are distinctive outdoor spaces that are often regarded as an alternative to mainstream education. Their increasing popularity in the United Kingdom is often attributed to a perceived decrease in children’s outdoor play, due to a concomitant increase in children’s use of digital technologies in the home;further compounded by the Covid-19 pandemic. This study explores how iPads can enhance outdoor learning activities. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 32 Key Stage 2 children selected from two UK primary schools. The interviews explored the experiences and opinions of the children about the role of iPads in the forest school space using Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). Findings suggest that Forest School spaces can accommodate new technologies through accommodation of the outdoor environment and technology. Suggestions for future research include the meaningful integration of iPads into Forest School practice while considering the relative influences of space and place. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Journal of Adventure Education & Outdoor Learning is the property of Routledge and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Las aulas fuera del colegio. Aprendizajes docentes de tres experiencias educativas en un período singular (Classrooms outside the school. Lessons for teachers from three educational experiences during exceptional times)

The role played by children's motor skills, socialisation and the outdoors during the coronavirus pandemic has highlighted the importance of a more outward-looking education. Linked to this, we can identify two other less obvious pandemics: sedentary lifestyles and social isolation. This article presents the results of three studies involving several educational experiences during this unique period between the academic years 2019/20 and 2021/22. It provides a voice to the protagonists: schoolchildren (n=123), educators (n=14) and families (n=128), to understand their experiences and expectations of active and outdoor based education in the different settings in which this took place during the period: the playground, the home, the street, the outdoors and indoor classrooms. As a result, the impact of confinement, both at home and school, on childhood as well as the value of utilising the outdoors and nature as an educational space become clear. We can verify that barriers can be broken down and that outdoor education can overcome difficulties when the teachers set their minds to it. Some of these difficulties are related to a certain reluctance to go outside the classroom, despite scientific evidence indicating that we are safer against COVID-19 in outdoor spaces. This contradiction seems to stem from an excess of zeal and liability, especially on the part of education authorities, which prevented or hindered outdoor education while taking great care to establish strict health prevention measures inside schools. It ends with a message of optimism and realism on the part of educators, who now have the certainty that this pandemic has shown us the great value of outdoor learning. Alternate : El papel que ha jugado la motricidad infantil, la socialización y el aire libre durante la pandemia del coronavirus ha puesto de manifiesto la importancia de una educación más abierta al exterior. Asociadas a esta, podemos apreciar otras dos pandemias menos evidentes: el sedentarismo y el aislamiento social. Este artículo muestra el resultado de tres estudios vinculados a diferentes experiencias educativas durante este singular periodo situado entre los cursos 2019/20 y el 2021/22. Se da voz a sus protagonistas: escolares (n=123), educadores (n=14) y familias (n=128), con la finalidad de conocer sus experiencias y expectativas sobre una educación activa y al aire libre en las diferentes aulas por las que ha transcurrido este periodo: el patio, el hogar, la calle, la naturaleza y las aulas interiores. Como resultado, se pone de manifiesto el impacto que tanto el confinamiento domiciliario como el escolar tiene sobre la infancia y el valor del aprovechamiento educativo de los espacios al aire libre y en la naturaleza. Podemos comprobar que las barreras se derriban y la educación al aire libre logra superar las dificultades cuando los educadores se lo proponen. Algunas de estas dificultades están relacionadas con ciertas resistencias a salir fuera del aula, a pesar de las evidencias científicas que indican que los espacios más seguros ante la COVID-19 están fuera. Esta incoherencia parece tener origen en el exceso de celo y responsabilidad, manifestado especialmente por la administración educativa que impedía o dificultaba la educación al aire libre mientras se esmeraba por establecer férreas normas para la prevención en el interior de los colegios. Finaliza con un mensaje de optimismo y realismo por parte de los educadores, quienes tienen la certeza de que esta pandemia nos ha mostrado el gran valor de la educación en la naturaleza.Alternate :O papel desempenhado pelas habilidades motoras, socialização e atividades ao ar livre das crianças durante a pandemia de coronavírus destacou a importância de uma educação mais aberta ao mundo exterior. Associado a isso, podemos ver duas outras pandemias menos óbvias: o sedentarismo e o isolamento social. Este artigo mostra o resultado de três estudos ligados a diferentes experiências educativas durante este período único entre os anos letivos 2019/ 0 e 2021/22. Dá-se voz aos seus protagonistas: escolares (n=123), educadores (n=14) e famílias (n=128), para conhecer as suas experiências e expectativas sobre uma educação ativa e ao ar livre nas diferentes salas pelas quais este período decorreu: o pátio, a casa, a rua, a natureza e as salas de aula interiores. Como resultado, destaca-se o impacto que o confinamento domiciliar e escolar têm nas crianças e o valor do uso educacional dos espaços ao ar livre e da natureza. Podemos ver que as barreiras são quebradas e a educação ao ar livre consegue superar as dificuldades quando os educadores se dedicam a isso. Algumas dessas dificuldades estão relacionadas a certa resistência em sair da sala de aula, apesar das evidências científicas indicarem que os espaços mais seguros diante da COVID-19 são os do lado de fora. Essa inconsistência parece ter origem no excesso de zelo e responsabilidade, manifestado especialmente pela administração educacional que impediu ou dificultou a educação ao ar livre ao mesmo tempo em que se esforçava para estabelecer regras rígidas de prevenção dentro das escolas. Termina com uma mensagem de otimismo e realismo dos educadores, que estão certos de que esta pandemia nos mostrou o grande valor da educação na natureza.

The importance for wellbeing of having views of nature from and in the home during the COVID-19 pandemic. Results from the GreenCOVID study.

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic has influenced the daily lives of people and may affect their well-being. The aim of the present study is to assess well-being and associated factors during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in the general population in three European countries. Methods: GreenCOVID was an observational cross-sectional study using an online survey (7 April 2020 to 24 July 2020) promoted by the Health & Territory Research (HTR) of the University of Seville in Spain, Maynooth University in Ireland, and the University of Winchester in England, which included a sample of 3109 unselected adults. Well-being was measured using the World Health Organization-Five Well-Being Index (WHO-5) scale. Seven aspects, related to the natural environment of the home, were evaluated (role of outdoor views in coping with lockdown, importance of blue spaces during lockdown, importance of green spaces during lockdown, quality of view from home, use of outdoor spaces or window views, elements of nature in the home, and views of green or blue spaces from home). Binary logistic regression was conducted to identify the parameters associated with poor well-being. Results: Mean age was 39.7 years and 79.3% lived in Spain, the majority in urban areas (92.8%). 73.0% were female and 72.0% had undertaken university studies. Poor well-being was reported by 59.0%, while 26.6% indicated the possible presence of clinical depression. The factors most associated with poor well-being were students (OR = 1.541), those who had no engagement in physical activity (OR = 1.389), those who reported 'living in Spain' compared to Ireland (OR = 0.724), being female (OR = 1.256), poor quality views from home (OR = 0.887), less benefit from views of the natural environment to cope with lockdown (OR = 0.964), and those younger in age (OR = 0.990). Conclusions: More than half of participants reported poor well-being and one in four indicated the possible presence of clinical depression during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. We identified that belonging to a younger age cohort, being a student, being female, not being able to continue with daily pursuits such as physical activity, and having poorer quality of views from home led to poor well-being among participants. Our study highlights the importance of continued physical activity and views of nature to improve the well-being of individuals during times of crisis such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

[The benefits of nature in the age of anthropocene education]. / Les bienfaits de la nature à l'ère de l'éducation en anthropocène.

Few children today enjoy regular contact with nature. The youngest children go from home to nursery school without having the opportunity to dip their hands in the earth or to watch the leaves of a tree playing with the wind. After several months of Covid-19 developing new variants, the situation has worsened. This makes it all the more important to demonstrate the benefits of welcoming toddlers outdoors.

Mohawk Hudson Folklife Festival

On the other end of the spectrum, events and social gatherings were back in force: event vendors, including tents and chair rental, sound and technical services, and food trucks were difficult to confirm. Both The Daily Gazette and the Times Union-the Capital Region's leading newspapers-picked up the story of our festival and shared features before the event. [...]people did choose to attend our event-some found us as they walked in the park, but many came to the park specifically to attend the festival.

Park access and mental health among parents and children during the COVID-19 pandemic

Background Time spent outdoors and in nature has been associated with numerous benefits to health and well-being. We examined relationships between park access and mental health for children and parents during the COVID-19 pandemic. We also explored associations between park access and co-participation of parent and child in time outdoors, and child and parent physical activity. Methods We used data from 1,000 respondents to a nationally representative U.S. survey of parent–child dyads during October–November 2020. Park access was defined as an affirmative response to: “do you have a park that you can safely walk to within 10 min of your home?” Child mental health was operationalized as the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) total difficulties score. The Patient Health Questionnaire-4 (PHQ-4) total score assessed parent mental health and the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) assessed parent physical activity. Child physical activity and co-participation in outdoor activity were reported as number of days in the prior week. Linear regression was used to examine relationships between park access and health outcomes in models adjusted for child and parent characteristics and COVID-19 impact. Results Our sample included 500 parents of children ages 6–10 years, and 500 parent–child dyads of children ages 11–17 years. Park access was associated with a lower SDQ total score among children (β: -1.26, 95% CI: -2.25, -0.27) and a lower PHQ-4 total score among parents (β: -0.89, 95% CI: -1.39, -0.40). In models stratified by child age, these associations were observed for SDQ scores among adolescents ages 11–17 and for PHQ-4 scores among parents of children ages 6–10 years. Park access was also associated with 0.50 more days/week of co-participation in outdoor time (95% CI: 0.16, 0.84), and higher levels of parent physical activity (β: 1009 MET-min/week, 95% CI: 301, 1717), but not child physical activity (β: 0.31 days/week, 95% CI: -0.03, 0.66). Conclusions Park access was associated with better mental health among children and parents, and more parent physical activity and parent–child co-participation in outdooractivity during the COVID-19 pandemic. Access to nearby parks may be an important resource to promote health and well-being, for both individuals and families.

A Systematic Review of Arts-Based Interventions Delivered to Children and Young People in Nature or Outdoor Spaces: Impact on Nature Connectedness, Health and Wellbeing.

Background: The time that children and young people spend in nature and outdoor spaces has decreased significantly over the past 30 years. This was exacerbated with a further 60% decline post-COVID-19. Research demonstrating that natural environments have a positive impact on health and wellbeing has led to prescription of nature-based health interventions and green prescribing, although evidence for its use is predominantly limited to adults. Growing evidence also shows the impact of arts on all aspects of health and wellbeing. However, what has received scant attention in literature is the interconnection between the two: arts and nature. Aims: This review synthesizes the literature surrounding the interconnectedness between arts and nature, and their impact on the health and wellbeing of children and young people. Methods: Eight major electronic databases were systematically searched, while hand-searching included 20 journals, six books, and contact with experts. The review was conducted using the Cochrane handbook for systematic reviews, PRISMA guidelines and TIDieR template. All stages were conducted independently by two researchers and the protocol was published on PROSPERO (Registration no.: CRD42021286574). Results: Although 9,314 records were identified, only 11 records were included as most studies focused either on arts or nature, but not both. Studies were conducted in United Kingdom, United States, Ireland, Australia, and Hong Kong, in a range of spaces such as forests, woodlands, beaches, parks, fields, gardens, and school playgrounds. The review encompasses data from 602 participants in total. Discussion: Arts-in-nature offered an inclusive medium to engage all children and young people, especially those who might otherwise remain disinterested about environmental issues and disengaged with educational programs. Further, arts-in-nature provided stimuli to increase nature connectivity, understand environmental issues and explore ways to prevent environmental disasters. This led to higher environmental awareness and pro-environmental behaviors, and potential decrease in eco-anxiety. Conclusion: Although the quality of qualitative studies was high, the quality of quantitative studies was low or unclear, thus quantitative evidence is still at its infancy. Implications for research, policy, and practice are discussed, such as methods and activities to strengthen future interventions. Scaling-up existing interventions may lead to wider recognition and inclusion of arts-in-nature in future health guidelines, including green prescribing.

Are Physically Active Breaks in School-Aged Children Performed Outdoors? A Systematic Review

(1) Background: Children spend an ever-increasing amount of time performing sedentary behaviors, and an important part of their daily life is at school. Learning in an outdoor environment improves children’s physical activity levels, and their cognitive and social spheres. Furthermore, physically active breaks are a solution to reduce sedentary behaviors and improve well-being and academic performance. The study evaluated the published literature on physically active breaks during school hours and explored (a) if the interventions were proposed in an outdoor context and (b) the outcomes of these interventions. (2) Methods: This review collected 31,559 articles from different electronic databases. After the screening, the results were analyzed narratively. (3) Results: 41 studies have been included in the analysis. As reported by the results, most of the interventions took place in the classroom, and only three studies were performed outside. A common aspect of all studies is the feasibility of active breaks, assessing positive outcomes. (4) Conclusions: Physically active outdoor breaks are poorly adopted, highlighting the necessity for deeper study on this topic. Although the protocols considered present differences, generally breaks increase physical activity levels, present positive learning outcomes, and improve social well-being. Furthermore, they are sustainable in terms of time, cost, and effort of the teacher.