Residents and urban green spaces: A case study in Rasht (North of Iran)

Abstract

One of the most important and effective factors of human life is urban forests and green spaces. These urban green infrastructures may have different effects, at different levels: Some physiological and others socio - economical. Sometimes it may be hard to see by which mechanisms the urban green spaces affect people's health. However, we will focus on the of green spaces on the urban residents. This study investigates vitality and health effects of green space use in light of physical and mental aspects regarding effective factors (including different social sex and age groups with different levels of education, income and access) in quantity and way of Rasht residents use of these spaces by the method of the questionnaire. The clean and healthy spaces encourage people to walk and spend much leisure time in green spaces and therefore they have mental and physical benefits. A detailed analysis shows how people's attitudes and socio- demographic characteristics affect the ways and amount in which green spaces and forests are used. Key words: Health effects, human life, leisure time, urban forest and green spaces, urban residents.