Conference Agenda

Purpose:

This study aims to develop a Healthy Cycling Environment Index (HCEI) that integrates cycling infrastructure quality with surrounding urban vegetation exposure. This index provides a novel spatial framework to assess how cycling environments support health and equitable access to nature across Dublin City.

Methods:

We analyse open-access geospatial data on cycle lanes in Dublin City and a high-resolution Urban Green Space Indicator (HUGSI) dataset including vegetation vitality (NDVI) and tree canopy coverage metrics. Cycle lane segments are assigned an infrastructure quality score (1-4) based on City Council lane typology. A combined Green Score is calculated from weighted NDVI and canopy coverage attributes from the HUGSI dataset within a 30m buffer around each segment. Each segment is plotted within a quadrant scatter graph representing infrastructure quality and Green Score. Their composite HCEI score, and total network length (km) within each quadrant, is then calculated.

Results:

Preliminary exploration of the datasets suggests substantial variation in both infrastructure quality and surrounding vegetation across the cycle network, with lower-quality cycle lanes associated with reduced green exposure.

Conclusions:

The HCEI provides a replicable spatial metric for evaluating the combined infrastructure and green exposure of urban cycling environments. Safe cycling infrastructure also supports mobility aid users, who often face limited access to nature due to infrastructure barriers. Integrating green space with active travel supports biodiversity-health pathways and may encourage 24-Hour Movement Behaviours. Monitoring the environmental context of cycling infrastructure could inform urban planning strategies promoting mobility and inclusive access to nature.

Support/Funding:

No funding received.

Purpose: Urban greenspaces support physical activity, mental wellbeing, and restorative health. However, women often experience lower access and engagement due to perceived social threats. Women also report lower physical activity, higher stress and sedentary behaviour, spend 24% more time in poor health than men, and face higher risks of poor mental health. These trends highlight a stark gender–health gap, emphasizing women as an at-risk group. This study examines how gendered perceptions of safety influence engagement in greenspaces integrating social psychology of gender and feminist urbanism into nature–health research. The findings identify barriers to health-enhancing physical activity.

Methods: Three experiments were conducted with residents in England (total n = 1,020; mean age 21–36). Participants viewed images and videos of park environments varying in vegetation density and potential threats, including animals and social hazards. Measures assessed perceived fear, risk, likelihood of visiting again. Data were analyzed with Analysis of Variance, Multivariate Analysis of Variance, contrast analyses, and interactions.

Results: Women consistently reported higher fear and perceived social risk than men, particularly in dense greenspaces. These perceptions reduced their likelihood of visiting again. Among danger types, social threats were the strongest predictors of reduced engagement.

Conclusions: The findings highlight a “nature disconnect” for women, limiting opportunities for physical activity and restorative experiences. Addressing gendered experiences is critical for equitable engagement in greenspaces. Design strategies (visibility, lighting, paths), alongside interventions to reduce harassment and shift cultural norms, are needed to improve health and health equity.

Greenways are key features in a recreational infrastructure that provide for a multitude of benefits including health and wellbeing. A substantial literature is available, but little is known about how greenway interventions stimulate behaviour change. Drawing on the Behaviour Change Wheel this study aims to investigate how multi-component interventions impact behaviour change of residents living nearby six intervention greenways in Denmark. By means a cross-sectional survey (n=3262) descriptive analysis showed that restructuring the physical environment and restructuring the social environment had the highest level of reach of all intervention functions. Further, linear regression analysis showed that the number of different intervention functions noticed by the users correlated positively with self-reported behaviour change. The strongest correlation was found for the intervention function restructuring the physical environment. Less strong correlations were found for persuasion, restructuring the social environment, and incentivisation. Psychological capability, social opportunity, and reflective motivation for use of the greenways correlated with behaviour change. So did age, educational level, limitations in physical capacity, and municipality context. The strong positive correlation between the number of intervention functions noticed and behaviour change underscores the importance of integrated multi-component approaches. Additionally, the differential reach and impact of specific interventions provide practical insights for policymakers and planners. The correlations between behaviour change and user age, education, and physical capacity are noteworthy, as they highlight equity dimensions of greenway interventions. From a policy perspective, the findings advocate for targeted investments in inclusive and accessible green infrastructure that considers diverse user needs and local contexts.

Community gardens are increasingly recognised as urban spaces that promote physical activity, social interaction, relaxation, and contact with nature. In Porto, Portugal, LIPOR converted a vacant area into a community garden comprising 230 plots. Two plots were allocated to the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Porto, allowing members of the academic community to engage in gardening and enabling examination of perceived health and movement-related benefits. This study explored how participants experienced horticultural involvement on health and movement behaviours. A mixed‑methods pilot study was conducted with six participants who regularly cultivated the university plots. The project coordinator was also interviewed as an information-rich case. Data collection combined a questionnaire with “farm‑along” interviews carried out during gardening activities. Only qualitative data were analysed for this report, using inductive thematic analysis. Participants primarily associated gardening with improvements in mental well-being, noting reductions in stress and anxiety and a sense of calm linked to time spent in nature. The garden was described as a space to disconnect from work demands and digital environments. Social interaction, knowledge sharing, and exchanging produce contributed to a stronger sense of community. Gardening also encouraged participants to cook and consume the vegetables they grew. In contrast, gardening was viewed as contributing minimally to overall physical activity, apart from occasional strenuous tasks. No consistent changes in sleep patterns were reported. Community gardening appears to support mental well-being and social connectedness. University-led gardens may promote both individual and environmental health and merit further exploration within urban horticulture research.

Background: E-bikes offer a co-beneficial travel solution, providing both health and environmental benefits compared to private car use. However, there is ongoing debate about whether e-biking qualifies as moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) due to variable assistance from a battery-powered motor.

Objectives: This study investigates the effects of ebike power settings and cycling intensity on minutes of MVPA.

Methods: Adult participants completed six 5km e-biking trials on the same route, with a factorial combination of ebike power setting (Off/Mid/Full) and cycling intensity (Natural/Brisk). Heart rate while cycling was measured by a Polar HR monitor.Using either age-estimated or lab-measured maximum heart rate, minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity was calculated for each 5km trip.

Results: Nineteen participants completed 114 trips, with six trips excluded for data quality issues. Cycling 5km with the ebike motor switched off led to participants completing 14 minutes of MVPA on average, significantly higher than the 11 minutes with the motor set to either mid or full power. Cycling briskly led to participants completing around 90 seconds more MVPA over 5km (and notably more minutes of vigorous physical activity).

Conclusions: Despite small differences in the total number of minutes of MVPA over 5km, cycling with electrical assistance still produced meaningful amounts of physical activity. E-biking offers a flexible means to achieve MVPA, benefiting both commuting and overall physical activity, especially compared to sedentary transportation modes like car journeys.

Background and aim

Urban environments strongly influence opportunities for daily physical activity, which is an important determinant of mental health and psychological wellbeing. Access to green spaces, walkable neighbourhoods and safe infrastructures for active mobility facilitates regular physical activity and contributes to improved population wellbeing. Public health policies in France integrate the principles of health-promoting urban planning in order to encourage physical activity. This abstract aims to present selected public policy initiatives that mobilize urban planning and environmental design as levers to promote physical activity and, indirectly, mental health.

Methods

Health Impact Assessments (HIA) are used in urban development projects to anticipate the potential effects of planning decisions on health determinants. National and local policies promoting active mobility, notably through the Cycling and Active Mobility Plan, and through participation of local authorities of the WHO Healthy Cities Network, which promotes the integration of health considerations across urban policies. France has developed ISadOrA, a decision-support tool designed to assess the potential impacts of urban development projects on key health determinants such as physical activity, access to green spaces, air quality and social cohesion.

Results

These initiatives illustrate how urban planning policies can encourage daily physical activity by improving access to green spaces, walkable public spaces and active mobility infrastructures. Intersectoral collaboration between health authorities, urban planners, transport actors and local governments appears to be a key enabling factor for implementation. By fostering environments that are more conducive to physical activity, these policies indirectly contribute to promoting population mental health and wellbeing.