Green Care Research Articles

Classification and Prioritizing the Importance of the Facility and Program for Green Care Introduction

Classification and Prioritizing the Importance of the Facility and Program for Green Care Introduction

Can a Green Care Informal Learning Program Foster Active Aging in Older Adults? Results From a Qualitative Pilot Study in Central Italy.

Due to population aging worldwide, it is important for Health Care Systems to design new services fostering Active Aging dimensions (e.g., physical health, psychological well-being, social engagement, and lifelong learning). The aim of this pilot study was to develop new services fostering Active Aging dimensions by means of a 12-month green care informal learning program targeting 112 individuals among community-dwelling older people and day care center users. The impact of the intervention was assessed through three rounds of focus groups. Individuals' perception of the training benefits depended on their health and social condition at baseline. The program improved the social participation and learning attitudes of community-dwelling older people and the perceived well-being and health of day care center users. Green care activities triggered an Active Aging virtuous spiral where learning new practical and relational competencies helped older people recognize their value. Thus, it is recommendable to include green care therapy within the practice of services for older people, especially day care centers.

Exploring enabling resources for place-based social entrepreneurship: a participatory study of Green Care practices in Finland

Enabling resources are the array of tangible and intangible assets that social entrepreneurs mobilize or create to bring forward novel place-based initiatives, to respond to unmet sustainability challenges and ideally contribute to virtuous processes of socio-economic transformation. Understanding the role of resources in constraining or enabling the development of social enterprises holds important implications not merely for the initiatives, but also for the places where they are embedded. Existing studies fail to provide a comprehensive, empirically grounded account of resources for place-based social entrepreneurship. This paper aims to fill this gap, by exploring the array of resources that enable and constrain the development of Green Care practice, i.e., nature-based activities with a social innovation purpose. Three communities of Finnish practitioners—a nature-tourism company, a care farm, and a biodynamic farm—were involved over the span of 3 years in research activities conducted with an in-depth qualitative approach. Participants were engaged in several stages of iterative learning combining conventional and action-research methods: semi-structured interviews, participatory mapping, and a co-creation workshop. Results show that entrepreneurs resort to a great variety of enabling resources, inclusive of both tangible and intangible assets, that are only marginally considered by relevant literature. Based on these findings, the paper proposes a novel set of enabling resources, comprehensive of nine clusters: infrastructural, institutional, material, place-specific, organizational culture-related, social, ethical, affective, and competence-related. Two concluding insights can be inferred: understanding resources is paramount to grasp possibilities and challenges of place-based entrepreneurship; in-depth participatory processes are needed for a thorough and grounded investigation of enabling resources in places.

Health geography and the 'performative' turn: making space for the audio-visual in ethnographic health research.

The purpose of this paper is to critically reflect on the added value of video in ethnographic research that seeks to understand peoples' lived experiences of health and place. Of particular interest is the potential for video to elicit the embodied, multisensory and relational nature of people's place experiences that are the focus of much recent health geography research. We draw on our experiences of using video in an ethnographic study that sought to explore the experiences of people with intellectual disabilities engaged in nature based (or 'green care') therapeutic interventions for health and wellbeing. We argue that video has the potential to capture aspects of people's wellbeing experiences that may be lost using other methods, such as observational field noting. Consideration is also given to how researchers using video methods should seek to (re)present people's wellbeing experiences, as well as the practical and ethical challenges that this approach has for those working in the field of health geography.

Exploring the Development of Care Farming in South Korea

The positive effects of green care on human health are well acknowledged. As one of the green care types, care farming is novel practice, which combines agricultural production and providing care to people with different types of disabilities. In South Korea, care farming is relatively new. Initiatives have been taken by innovative farmers and social workers. This study provides a comprehensive understanding of the current status of care farming in South Korea and suggestions for further development of the field. The characteristics of care farming, and the experiences and perceived challenges of care farmers in South Korea were studied through 10 semistructured interviews. The majority of South Korean care farm users are people with intellectual disabilities. Financial problems are one of the crucial challenges threatening the sustenance of care farming. Care farming in South Korea lacks a clear orientation and description. Respondents indicated that proper regulations and agreements on the focus of care farming would significantly contribute to the development of care farming. The successful development of horticultural therapy in South Korea can serve as an inspiration.

Cancer-related fatigue: Patients’ experiences of an intervention at a green care rehabilitation farm

Cancer-related fatigue: Patients’ experiences of an intervention at a green care rehabilitation farm

Experiences of family caregivers in green care farms and other nursing home environments for people with dementia: a qualitative study

BackgroundHaving a match between a nursing home and the preferences of people with dementia is beneficial for their well-being. It is suggested that innovative types of nursing homes such as small-scale living facilities and green care farms create a better match between their care environment and their residents. However whether this is also reflected into the experiences of informal caregivers is not known. Therefore, this study explores what their positive and negative experiences are with regard to green care farms, other small-scale living facilities, and traditional nursing homes.MethodsA qualitative exploratory research design was used. Semi-structured interviews with 43 informal caregivers (2014–2015) were carried out. Topics discussed were: positive and negative experiences with the nursing home and reasons for choice of a particular type of nursing home. Thematic analysis including an iterative process of open, axial and selective coding, was used.ResultsFive themes emerged: (1) physical environment and atmosphere, (2) activities, (3) person-centred care, (4) communication, and (5) staff. Informal caregivers at green care farms were more positive about the physical environment, activities, and person-centred care compared with informal caregivers in the other types of nursing homes. Both positive and negative experiences regarding communication and individual staff members appeared across all types of nursing homes.ConclusionsExperiences of informal caregivers with a nursing home are dependent on the type of nursing home. However, experiences were also often related to individual nursing staff and their interpersonal, ‘human’ qualities.

Forests and public health: The Austrian experience and hopes. TheGreenCare Wald project

The Austrian authorities, including the Austrian Forest Research Centre [1], have been developing the Green Care Wald project since 2014. Its aim is to improve wellbeing in Austrian society by bringing together all the initiatives and activities related to forests so as to create additional sources of income and by encouraging rural development. A description of the project's background (the Vienna resolutions of 2003, the Green Public Health initiative conducted in cooperation with the Vienna Medical University and BOKU), its development and achievements (in particular the practical advice leaflets) is followed by more general considerations on the promising future prospects for interaction between forests and human health.

The preparation and performance of okra protein viscose fiber

The protein viscose fibers have a great application in the textiles. It is promising to develop the new-type and functional protein viscose fiber. The aim of this work was to prepare the protein viscose fibers which has the available performance in textile. The okra powder was emulsified and dispersed by surfactant. The spinning dope of viscose was blended with okra emulsion and cell wall protein gel solution. The okra protein viscose fiber was obtained by wet spinning. The morphological structure, main physical properties and wearing performance of the fibers were tested and analyzed. The surface of okra protein viscose fiber was smooth and uniform. The protein content of the fiber was stable, and the amount of protein loss was small. The strength of the fiber was unchanged compared with the ordinary viscose fiber and the friction coefficient of the fiber was small and it had soft hand feel. The fiber had high moisture regain and excellent moisture permeability and air permeability. The okra protein viscose fiber had a certain anti-inflammatory effect and good skin-friendly properties, which is of great significance for the future development of green health care fabrics.

A Study on Development of Green Care Farming Module for Elementary School

A Study on Development of Green Care Farming Module for Elementary School

A novel technique and detailed study of concepts of low-cost hybrid vehicle design

In today’s scenario, the number of vehicles sold versus time is rapidly increasing and is almost linear. So, the vehicle traffic has become very dense, leading to pollution and poor fuel efficiency in city driving conditions. According to our study, more pollution and fuel wastage occurs at ‘stop and go’ conditions meaning frequent vehicle start from stand still. As we know, engines operate in fuel rich conditions at very low rpm’s (idling and stop-go conditions) resulting in poor combustion efficiency, thereby leading to fuel wastage and pollution. Declaration of stringent pollution norms by Government and other Green environment care organisations has made Automotive OEM’s to have their focus on design and development of Hybrid vehicles, downsizing of engines and longer gear ratios transmission. Even though engine downsizing and longer gear ratios results very good fuel efficiency and lower emissions, on the other hand we lose on cruising power and driving comfort. So, these ideas have also been a trade-off between Power and Performance.

Discussion on Green Building Design and Humanistic Care

Green building design is regarded as the key content of building design, which has been paid more and more attention in the development of the construction industry. Therefore, green building design is a new direction of architectural design development. Embodying humanistic care is the functional requirement of green building design in modern society. It’s crucial to study the correct direction of green building design and humanistic care development for the future of construction industry.

Observations on Green Care: My experience as an ecotherapy volunteer

Observations on Green Care: My experience as an ecotherapy volunteer

More Than Words: The Use of Video in Ethnographic Research With People With Intellectual Disabilities.

There is a tendency to exclude people with intellectual disabilities from participating in research about their own lives. While the use of participatory research approaches is increasing, the methods used for engaging people with intellectual disabilities in research are generally limited to interviews and focus groups. Yet a focus on the spoken or written word can present a challenge for those who may prefer to use alternative forms of communication. The purpose of this article is to share the methodological insights gained from a visual ethnographic study that sought to explore the experiences of people with intellectual disabilities engaged in nature based (or "green care") therapeutic interventions for health and well-being. If used within carefully negotiated relationships, we suggest that video can be an empowering visual medium for doing research that can help to elicit the experiences of people with intellectual disabilities firsthand, without having to rely on the views and perspectives of other people.

The Physical Environment of Nursing Homes for People with Dementia: Traditional Nursing Homes, Small-Scale Living Facilities, and Green Care Farms.

It is well recognized that the physical environment is important for the well-being of people with dementia. This influences developments within the nursing home care sector where there is an increasing interest in supporting person-centered care by using the physical environment. Innovations in nursing home design often focus on small-scale and homelike care environments. This study investigated: (1) the physical environment of different types of nursing homes, comparing traditional nursing homes with small-scale living facilities and green care farms; and (2) how the physical environment was being used in practice in terms of the location, engagement and social interaction of residents. Two observational studies were carried out. Results indicate that the physical environment of small-scale living facilities for people with dementia has the potential to be beneficial for resident’s daily life. However, having a potentially beneficial physical environment did not automatically lead to an optimal use of this environment, as some areas of a nursing home (e.g., outdoor areas) were not utilized. This study emphasizes the importance of nursing staff that provides residents with meaningful activities and stimulates residents to be active and use the physical environment to its full extent.

Co-designing green social care services: Farmers and social entrepreneurs as new social care providers for vulnerable populations

Background: Local health and social care partnerships that stimulate community engagement of vulnerable populations are promising for health promotion. In the Netherlands, some of these partnerships include in addition to stakeholders from the health and social care sector, also stakeholders from the green, agricultural and voluntary sector. Examples are green care farms, farms that combine agricultural activities with social care and support services, e.g. day services for people with dementia and supported workplaces for vulnerable populations such as vulnerable youth and people with mental health problems or intellectual disabilities. Clients, or participants in the vocabulary of care farmers, are involved in agricultural production and farm-related activities. In addition to these initiatives in rural areas, an increasing number of green social care services is developed in urban settings. Examples are community gardens, green enterprises and urban farms. These initiatives are embraced by many municipalities because they aim to empower vulnerable populations and stimulate social participation. They are characterized by meaningful activities with plants and animals and an informal open atmosphere facilitated by a person-centred approach of the professionals and volunteers involved. Initiators of the green social care services design these services in collaboration with stakeholders such as participants, professionals and volunteers involved in the initiative and/or the community. During the last decade, researchers, farmers, social entrepreneurs, care organizations and municipalities collaborated to get a better understanding of the experiences with and impact of these green urban and rural initiatives. Although the initiatives are promising, they face many challenges and more knowledge is needed about their reach and impact and on individuals, communities and organizations. Aims and objectives: The aims of our workshop are to: 1. give an overview of the different types of green rural and urban initiatives, and how vulnerable citizens and communities are empowered and engaged respectively within these initiatives and 2. share the lessons learned from the different initiatives so far, e.g. the major obstacles for collaboration, how innovative initiatives gain legitimacy and access to funding and what conventional social care providers can learn from these initiatives. Format: During this session, we will present findings of different research projects on green care farms and green urban and initiatives offering services such as rehabilitation of different groups of vulnerable citizens and adult day services for people with dementia. Initiators of different types of initiatives will present their experiences and main challenges. After that, we will discuss the following topics with the audience: 1. What is the value of these initiatives?; 2. What is necessary to increase their impact and tackle challenges they are facing? and 3. To what extent is it feasible to implement such initiatives in other countries? Target audience: The workshop is targeted at researchers, policy-makers and practitioners who want to know more about innovative initiatives such as green social care services. Learnings: Participants obtain insight in green social care initiatives and their potential impact on wellbeing, participation and empowerment of different vulnerable populations. They will have learned about challenges initiators are facing and how these may be solved.

Community-Based Green Care Initiative-A Catalyst for Sustainable Parenting Styles, Teaching Patterns and Early Child Self-Esteem in Nigeria

Community-Based Green Care Initiative-A Catalyst for Sustainable Parenting Styles, Teaching Patterns and Early Child Self-Esteem in Nigeria

Farming for Life Quality and Sustainability: A Literature Review of Green Care Research Trends in Europe.

Green care is an innovative approach that combines simultaneously caring for people and caring for land through three elements that have not been previously connected: (1) multifunctional agriculture and recognition of the plurality of agricultural system values; (2) social services and health care; and (3) the possibility of strengthening the farming sector and local communities. The current research provides a comprehensive overview of green care in Europe as a scientific discipline through a literature review (n = 98 studies). According to our results, the Netherlands, the UK, Norway and Sweden followed by Italy have led the scientific studies published in English. Green care research comprises a wide range of perspectives and frameworks (social farming, care farming, nature-based solutions, etc.) with differences in their specificities. Green care studies have mainly focused on measuring the effectiveness of therapeutic interventions. Studies that evaluate its relevance in socio-economic and environmental terms are still limited. According to our results, the most common users studied were people suffering from psychological and mental ill health, while the most common activities were horticulture, animal husbandry and gardening. Finally, we discuss the potential of green care to reconnect people with nature and to diversify the farming sector providing new public services associated with the relational values society obtains from the contact with agricultural systems.

Educational Needs Assessment of Green Care Business Managers

Educational Needs Assessment of Green Care Business Managers

Community-Based Green Care Initiative

Community-based green care initiative is an intervention geared towards satisfying the environmental, social, psychological, medical and material care for stimulating healthy well-being of children, adolescence and adults. Evidence-based studies have established that there is continual degeneration of self-esteem among adolescence in developing countries including Nigeria due to problems associated with unsustainable parenting styles and teaching patterns. It is in the light of this, the study examines a community-based green care initiative as a catalyst for sustainable parenting styles, teaching patterns and child self-esteem in Ogun State, Nigeria. The study adopted exploratory survey design and tested three hypotheses on the subject matter. A self-structured questionnaire and in-depth interview guide were used for data collection. Quantitative data were analysed through percentage distribution table and multiple regressions while qualitative data were analysed using direct quotes. Findings were discussed with reference to relevant empirical literatures and future research highlighted.