Recreational Benefits Research Articles

Muslim women's sporting spatialities: navigating culture, religion and moving bodies in Aotearoa New Zealand

Working at the intersection of feminist sport and leisure studies and Muslim geographies, this paper reveals gendered Islamophobia as a spatialized process occurring at different scales in sport: fields of play, indoor facilities, organizational policy, discourse, moving bodies and emotion. Drawing upon focus groups and interviews with 38 Muslim women (aged 16-63 years old) living in Aotearoa New Zealand, we explore the embodied experiences and socio-spatial practices of Muslim women across a range of sports and physical activities. In so doing, we highlight the agency of Muslim women in finding and creating ‘safe’ sporting spaces that allow them to maintain their ‘embodied respectability’ while also accessing the physical, social and psychological benefits of sport and active recreation. We then illustrate how the three hijabs—visual, spatial, ethical—operate as ‘genderizing discourse’ that is enacted and enforced by some within the sports sector, the public and the Muslim community, thus challenging Muslim women’s ‘right’ to sport. Finally, we reveal Muslim women’s active participation and refusal to be made ‘invisible’ in sport, thus offering an important example of the complex relationship between gender, culture, and religion, and the political reimaginings of Muslim moving bodies in public sporting spaces. Ultimately, focusing on the everyday and embodied sporting experiences of Muslim women, this paper offers an examination of gendered Islamophobia as it is lived and felt by Muslim women in everyday sporting spaces in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Integrated phytomanagement of a carbon tetrachloride-contaminated site in Murdock, Nebraska (USA)

The application of a large-scale ( ca . 59,000 m 2 ) integrated phytomanagement system at a carbon tetrachloride (CCl 4 )-impacted site at Murdock, Nebraska, USA, was assessed in terms of its effectiveness in mitigating site risk, and realizing wider social and environmental benefits. Volatile Organic Compound (VOCs) concentrations (including CCl 4 ) measured in surface water, groundwater, air and vegetation samples show that the Murdock system has achieved effective risk management over the 10+ year period since its implementation, with the phytomanagement component of the remediation system (consisting of a mixed stand of dominantly Niobe willow ( Salix x ‘Niobe’ ) and Eastern Cottonwood ( Populus deltoides )) removing 300g–600g of CCl 4 annually. Eastern Cottonwood played an increasing role in CCl 4 removal over time, from 55% of the total mass removal in 2008 to 69% in 2014. Using a site design focused on enhancement of the social and physical environment, in addition to risk mitigation, has enabled realization of a range of wider social and environmental benefits, which include carbon sequestration of ca. 77 tons CO 2 /ha/y, and educational and recreational benefits. The phytomanagement system applied at Murdock has incurred significant installation, and on-going monitoring and maintenance, effort and costs (exceeding $1.5 million) highlighting the importance of (a) sustained stakeholder engagement to ensure continued local community support, and (b) effective site design to realize as full a range of core (i.e. risk mitigation) and wider benefits as possible, to increase the overall value proposition of such schemes. • Large-scale phytomanagement was successfully applied at a CCl 4 -impacted site. • Effective risk management has been achieved over the 10+ years since implementation. • Ca. 300g–600g CCl 4 has been removed annually via plant uptake and translocation. • Effective design can realize significant socio-economic and environmental benefit.

Policy impacts on social innovation in forestry and back: Institutional change as a driver and outcome

The forest sector in various ways fosters employment, community development and prevents depopulation in marginalized rural areas. Since the economic recession in Europe from 2009, there has been a notable change regarding the roles that public and private actors play in tackling current social and economic problems. The term Social Innovation (SI) came up to denote the overcoming of complex societal challenges with an increase of engagement of civil society (private actors). So far, collective values of ecosystem services, health and recreational benefits have been researched extensively. But the role of policies in socially innovative forest sector activities for the enhancement of collective action and collective benefits still leaves room for research. This article asks how relevant were policies as drivers of institutional change for forestry related examples of social innovation? The question is examined across different European countries with a focus on the policies identified as relevant for these innovations by a panel of experts and researchers. We used selected case studies in combination with literature as well as policy document analysis and complementary policy expert interviews. We focus on the policies that have affected these activities and investigate in detail on their relevance for the outcome (the SI). Our findings indicate that there is more than one direction of policies impacting upon the SI initiatives, because vice-versa, there is also SI impacting on the policies. Both directions lead to institutional change in the final outcomes, either in the policy design (bottom-up influence) or in the social innovation (ultimately changes in the actors-institutions relations and the creation of new institutions with the SI). Policies can be either drivers of SI or they can be outcome when new policies were created because of the transformative effects of SI. Furthermore, we detect policies that turn out “neutral” towards social innovation at the moment but with potential effects in future.

Sustainable Heritage Management: Exploring Dimensions of Pull and Push Factors

While determining sustainable heritage development, it is important to consider how heritage satisfies human needs. The purpose of this study is to explore the pull and push factors in heritage tourism. This study generated 38 initial items of pull factor and 18 initial items of push factor toward heritage tourism to assess the significance of items influencing people’s decision to visit heritage sites. The study obtained 332 valid questionnaires to implement exploratory factor analysis to capture the pull and push factors. Four pull factors with 15 items and 2 push factors with 9 items were extracted. The pull factors consisted of heritage architecture, art activity, wide nature, and regional attraction, while the push factors comprised recreational benefits and long-term values. The study suggests that the heritage’s outdoor environment should be planned through wide landscaping and natural elements, while art activities can be promoted to enhance attractiveness.

Benefits of recreation in the “Nad Tanwią” nature reserve determined by the travel cost method

The quality and quantity of valuable natural areas is assessed through the prism of benefits derived from all the functions performed by them, among which tourist and recreational functions play an increasingly important role. The main purpose of this paper was to determine economic benefits obtained by tourists visiting the “Nad Tanwią” nature reserve located in the south-eastern part of Poland, calculated using the travel cost method, TCM. The survey method was used as part of the research. Surveys were conducted from May to September 2017 on a group of 341 respondents. Data regarding the length of the visit and the amount of costs related to the stay in the reserve were subject to statistical analysis using the CART method. The results of the survey showed that the respondents reported a need for 14 types of visits depending on their duration. The value of the consumer surplus amounted to PLN 986/person, and the value of the gross benefit amounted to PLN 1,069/person. The value of the consumer surplus, which was the share of tourists visiting the reserve during the year, amounted to PLN 108 million, and the gross value of non-market benefits for this group was PLN 118 million. The developed model of travel costs in the reserve allows for the assessment of recreational benefits of this place. The development of tourism and recreation in areas attractive in terms of nature contributes to improvement regarding meeting recreational needs of tourists and the existing transportation infrastructure. 
 
 Keywords: leisure, tourism, valuation, protected area, “Nad Tanwią” nature reserve, travel cost method, consumer surplus

Outdoor recreational activities and its relation to learning motivation among Mansoura University students

The researcher carried out this study to study the identification of activities of outdoor recreation and its relationship to the motivation of learning among students. The researcher used the descriptive approach, a scale of outdoor recreational activities and learning motivation was applied by the researcher design to collect data. The research was applied to a sample of (727) students from Mansoura University to conduct the basic experiment and (50) for the exploratory experiment. The most important results were the realization and awareness of most university students of the concept of outdoor recreation activities . Most students are interested in outdoor trips activity. The presence of a high level of outdoor and motivational activities for learning among students, There is a positive correlation between practicing outdoor recreational activities and the motivation to learn. The most important recommendations were to pay attention to the necessity of holding joint cooperation protocols between the university and the various recreational institutions in civil society in order to benefit from the benefits of outdoor recreation in them for the benefit of students practicing these activities and programs , The need of the consideration of the different media (visual – acoustic-legible) in setting a cultural media strategy and allocating space in its programs to educate the masses about the positive impact of recreational activities on the individual and society.

Supply and demand assessment of urban recreation service and its implication for greenspace planning-A case study on Guangzhou

Nature-based recreation in urban areas is important for the well-being of citizens. Spatial quantification of recreation service supply and demand can support urban greenspace (UGS) planning by revealing if supply meets demand. This research proposes a comprehensive framework to assess urban recreation service supply (characterized by available UGS area within a certain radius around a residence) and demand (characterized by UGS area required by the population for recreation) in the context of UGS planning. This framework contains three elements: (a) multi-scale spatial quantification of the supply–demand balance; (b) spatial match of supply and demand; (c) spatial clustering analysis of the supply–demand balance. We present a case study for the city of Guangzhou, China, and discuss its implications for UGS management. We found that although there is a high supply of UGS in Guangzhou, between 88% and 96% of inhabitants have a recreation service deficit, depending on the demand criteria. Recreation service supply–demand balance showed a strong clustering pattern. The top 10% of deficit clustering area accounted for 47% of the under supplied population and 57% of the UGS deficit. Our study indicates that the demand for recreational UGS must be considered to adequately represent recreation benefits in urban areas, and illustrates how hotspot analyses can be used to target prioritized area for UGS management. We discuss the limitations of the framework and possible improvements for future studies.

Exploring perceptions of how nature recreation benefits mental wellbeing: a qualitative enquiry

ABSTRACT Evidence suggests that experiences in nature enhance mental wellbeing. However, we are yet to clearly understand the processes through which this occurs. This study employed an exploratory qualitative approach to investigate how time spent in nature supports mental wellbeing. In-depth interviews were conducted with 15 participants. Thematic analysis yielded three dominant themes: (1) ‘a sense of perspective’, (2) ‘mental and emotional sanctuary’ and (3) ‘being immersed in the moment’. Themes echoed relaxation and restoration of mental functioning, enhanced positive affect in natural environments and feelings of oneness with nature. However, participants also described experiences that reflected increased mindfulness, gratitude and awe, gaining a broader perspective on their concerns and feeling humbled in nature. Findings extend previous theoretical perspectives suggesting a more interactive relationship between people and their environment. The implications being that a more nuanced approach may better inform policy, research and practice in this area.

Outdoor Programs for Veterans: Public Land Policies and Practices to Support Therapeutic Opportunities

Abstract Many veterans returning from military deployment experience stress- or trauma-related symptoms that make reintegration with civilian society difficult. Nature exposure and outdoor recreation can be important parts of alternative and complementary approaches to reduce symptoms and build on veterans’ pre-existing strengths. Multiple outdoor programs now exist for veterans; many of these occur on federal public lands and present a variety of needs, opportunities, and challenges. This paper relies on interviews (n = 36) with public land managers, program providers and participants, health professionals, and veterans to enhance understanding about outdoor programs for veterans (OPVs). We develop a typology of OPVs to help land managers understand current and potential programs, and then describe programs’ varying dimensions. We examine opportunities and challenges for land managers in their interactions with OPVs. Results inform policymakers and public officials interested in developing more effective institutional partnerships and programs that engage and serve veterans and their communities. Study Implications: With growing scientific evidence of the benefits of nature-based therapy, nature exposure, and outdoor recreation for veterans, programming for veterans on public lands has proliferated. Public land-management agencies vary in the extent to which they have systematically organized to provide opportunities for veterans, developed partnerships to support veterans’ health, and explicitly acknowledged agency roles in serving veterans. We describe seven types of outdoor programs for veterans (OPVs) that currently serve this population: supported outdoor activity; guided outdoor activity; retreat; outdoor job training; stewardship or service; horticulture, farming or gardening; and animal-assisted therapy. Each OPV type has different needs for infrastructure, outdoor spaces, and administrative or programmatic engagement. OPVs occurring on public lands typically involve one or more partner organizations, such as commercial outfitters and guides, health providers, veterans’ associations, foundations, corporations, and research institutions. There is potential for public land-management agencies to expand their role as institutional leaders in support of veterans’ health by facilitating the use of public lands as therapeutic landscapes. By enhancing new and existing relations with OPV providers, health providers, and other government agencies, public land agencies could expand benefits to veterans and spur broader societal benefits.

Aptitud social de la percepción ambiental en el Parque Metropolitano Bicentenario, ciudad de Toluca, México

La urbanización inclusiva incorpora áreas verdes como estrategia para la adaptación a la variación climática, a nivel local se desconoce la capacidad social para el manejo resiliente de los parques urbanos. El estudio analiza la aptitud social a través de la percepción ambiental en el Parque Metropolitano Bicentenario. La pregunta y el constructo proponen: ¿cómo influye la percepción ambiental en la aptitud social? La aptitud social es una capacidad adaptativa condicionada por factores subjetivos y socioculturales. A través de un diseño no experimental, observación directa y un cuestionario aplicado a una muestra de visitantes y residentes, se identifica el patrón de percepción y las áreas de oportunidad para la mejora ambiental. Los resultados establecen que la aptitud social exhibe un bajo nivel de empatía e intersubjetividad, falta de participación, especialmente en estados de neutralidad e indiferencia, debido a problemas económicos y personales. Se concluye que el potencial social de la capacidad de adaptación se articula a través de juicios de valor que definen una fuerte disposición proambiental, la selección y clasificación de opciones de mejora que implican necesidades y expectativas de responsabilidad ambiental, participación social vinculada al bienestar emocional y beneficios de recreación, deporte y salud. La operación depende del sistema de decisión que organiza los programas y proyectos de mejora continua, los procesos de cooperación y negociación, y el marco regulatorio para el manejo socio-ecológico de las áreas verdes en Toluca.

Meta-Analysis of Wetland Classification Using Remote Sensing: A Systematic Review of a 40-Year Trend in North America

North America is covered in 2.5 million km2 of wetlands, which is the remainder of an estimated 56% of wetlands lost since the 1700s. This loss has resulted in a decrease in important habitat and services of great ecological, economic, and recreational benefits to humankind. To better manage these ecosystems, since the 1970s, wetlands in North America have been classified with increasing regularity using remote sensing technology. Since then, optimal methods for wetland classification by numerous researchers have been examined, assessed, modified, and established. Over the past several decades, a large number of studies have investigated the effects of different remote sensing factors, such as data type, spatial resolution, feature selection, classification methods, and other parameters of interest on wetland classification in North America. However, the results of these studies have not yet been synthesized to determine best practices and to establish avenues for future research. This paper reviews the last 40 years of research and development on North American wetland classification through remote sensing methods. A meta-analysis of 157 relevant articles published since 1980 summarizes trends in 23 parameters, including publication, year, study location, application of specific sensors, and classification methods. This paper also examines is the relationship between several remote sensing parameters (e.g., spatial resolution and type of data) and resulting overall accuracies. Finally, this paper discusses the future of remote sensing of wetlands in North America with regard to upcoming technologies and sensors. Given the increasing importance and vulnerability of wetland ecosystems under the climate change influences, this paper aims to provide a comprehensive review in support of the continued, improved, and novel applications of remote sensing for wetland mapping across North America and to provide a fundamental knowledge base for future studies in this field.

Positive play and its relationship with gambling harms and benefits.

BackgroundEngagement in responsible or ‘positive play’ strategies is known to be negatively associated with problem gambling, as indexed by measures such as the Problem Gambling Severity Index (PGSI). Less is known about whether positive play is associated with reduced harm or a greater ability to enjoy the recreational benefits of gambling.AimsThis study investigated the relationship between positive play and gambling harm after controlling for PGSI scores and whether positive play moderated the relationship between PGSI scores and harm. It also examined whether positive play was related to perceived benefits associated with gambling.MethodsThe study utilised an online panel sample of 554 respondents who completed a survey that included the PGSI, measures of gambling harm drawn from Browne et al. (2016), and the newly developed Positive Play Scale (Wood et al., 2019). The study involved predominantly monthly gamblers with higher levels of gambling risk: 23% problem gamblers; 36% moderate risk; and 21% low risk gamblers.ResultsThe results indicated that positive play was negatively associated with reduced gambling harm. The behavioural Positive Play subscales relating to pre-commitment and honesty and control explained additional variation in harm after controlling for PGSI scores. Higher levels of positive play also moderated and reduced the relationship between the PGSI and gambling harm. Perceived benefits were, unexpectedly, found to be higher in problem gamblers and negatively related to positive play.ConclusionBehavioural measures of positive play appear to be useful moderating factors in understanding the relationship between problem gambling and harm. Higher-risk gamblers appear to experience both greater costs as well as benefits from gambling, which likely reflects a stronger personal need to engage in the activity.

Investing in Sustainable Built Environments: The Willingness to Pay for Green Roofs and Green Walls

Green infrastructure, such as green roofs/walls, plays a key role in addressing urban problems. Despite the well-established sustainable mentality, aspects such as aesthetics, recreation, and welfare are still the main drivers for undertaking such investments. Several studies have focused on proving the benefits of green infrastructure, namely, thermal insulation, air quality, and others. However, significant soft benefits have not yet been properly addressed. It is, therefore, important to understand how much citizens are willing to invest in those mitigating measures and list the aspects that influence that value. This study suggests a methodology based on stated preferences to evaluate the willingness-to-pay of owner/tenants for green roofs/walls in residential buildings and determine the influence of multiple factors. Results show that consumers reveal higher willingness-to-pay for accessible green roofs. Knowledge of benefits and the accessibility of green roofs have a great impact on the willingness-to-pay. Recreation benefit is at the forefront of individuals’ concerns; even more than aesthetics.

The social benefits of nature-based recreation for veterans: A scoping review

Veterans reintegrating into civilian life following military service often face a variety of social and psychological challenges that impact daily functioning and quality of life. Unfortunately, the social stigma associated with receiving supportive health services prevents many veterans from receiving assistance through traditional means. Others decline assistance out of a well-intentioned concern that using supportive resources will prevent other people with a greater need from receiving support. Also, researchers have found that the quality of a veteran’s social context, particularly regarding their perceptions of social support, are highly predictive of psychological wellbeing, including decreased vulnerability to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and decreased risk of suicide. Ultimately, the pervasive nature of psychological and social challenges among returning veterans, combined with the barriers to quality care and critical importance of social support reinforces the need for nontraditional ways of enhancing social support among the veteran community. Therefore, the purpose of this scoping review is to explore the potential social benefits of nature-based recreation (NBR) for veterans. Findings will be used to support the belief that recreation therapists have the potential to address the social needs of veterans by providing a variety of nature-based recreational therapy (RT) services.

The Benefits of Local Forest Recreation in Austria and Its Dependence on Naturalness and Quietude

The benefits of local recreation in the State-owned forests in Austria (i.e., about 15% of all Austrian forests) are ascertained in this paper. A representative survey of households dealt with their local recreation, perceptions of and disturbances in forests. Total annual benefits of local recreation activities in State-owned forests, such as walking, hiking, cycling and wildlife observation, amount to about EUR 500 per person. Based on the respondents’ valuation of the degree of naturalness and quietude, as well as the options of forest management, the current management increases recreation benefits by EUR 13 per person through increased naturalness, and EUR 1.30 per person and year through increased quietude. Emphasis was placed on the benefits of the current management regime of multifunctional forestry compared to the benefits of a baseline scenario that was drafted specifically for this study, assuming higher levels of lumbering up to the limits allowed by existing nature conservation and forestry laws. The results suggest that forest management has a higher impact on recreational benefits through the naturalness of forests than through reducing artificial noise. A more sustainable forest management could further increase the benefits people derive from both naturalness and lower levels of artificial noise.

Travel cost analysis of an urban protected area and parks in Singapore: a mobile phone data application

Big data have the potential to improve nonmarket valuation, but their application has been scarce. To test this potential, we apply mobile phone data to the zonal travel cost method and measure recreational ecosystem services from Bukit Timah (representing an urban protected area) and Jurong Lake Gardens (an urban recreational park) in Singapore. The study results show that the annual recreational benefits of the recreational park (S$54,698,761 to S$66,805,454) outweighed the benefits of the protected area (S$6,947,974 to S$9,068,027). The count data structure reduced the flexibility of the mobile phone data application. Compared to survey data, however, mobile phone data could prevent random errors and visitor memory biases; monitor impacts of site quality changes over time; count visitors from multiple entrances; and be cost-efficient. Overall, these results highlight the potential of mobile phone data application to improve travel cost analysis.

Industrial development as a key factor explaining variances in soil and grass phyllosphere microbiomes in urban green spaces

Microbiota in urban green spaces underpin ecosystem services that are essential to environmental health and human wellbeing. However, the factors shaping the microbial communities in urban green spaces, especially those associated with turf grass phyllosphere, remain poorly understood. The lack of this knowledge greatly limits our ability to assess ecological, social and recreational benefits of urban green spaces in the context of global urbanization. In this study, we used amplicon sequencing to characterize soil and grass phyllosphere bacterial communities in 40 urban green spaces and three minimally disturbed national parks in Victoria, Australia. The results indicated that urbanization might have shown different impacts on soil and grass phyllosphere microbial communities. The bacterial diversity in soil but not in grass phyllosphere was significantly higher in urban green spaces than in national parks. Principal coordinate analysis revealed significant differences in the overall patterns of bacterial community composition between urban green spaces and national parks for both soil and grass phyllosphere. Industrial development, as represented by the number of industries in the region, was identified as a key driver shaping the bacterial community profiles in urban green spaces. Variation partitioning analysis suggested that industrial factors together with their interaction with other factors explained 20% and 28% of the variances in soil and grass phyllosphere bacterial communities, respectively. The findings highlight the importance of industrial development in driving the spatial patterns of urban microbiomes, and have important implication for the management of microbiomes in urban green spaces.

U-Pick Farms: Harvesting More than Pumpkins

Recreational experiences offer many benefits to individuals and society, including improved mental and physical health. Yet, limited evidence is available on the potential benefits of recreation as a path to stimulate desired behavioral outcomes. The purpose of this work is to discuss preliminary findings of whether participating in agritourism influences intended local foods purchasing behavior. To achieve this purpose, we surveyed 173 recreationists before and after visiting a farm offering recreational activities (agritourism) in 2018. Results of repeated measures multivariate analysis of variance indicate that agritourism influenced participants’ attitudes and intended behavior toward local foods although subjective norms and perceived behavioral control remained unchanged. However, the regression analysis indicated that changes in subjective norms and perceived behavioral control predicted changes in intended behavior. We conclude that agritourism can encourage consumers’ purchasing intentions of local foods, supporting an underexplored additional benefit of recreational experiences as a path to promote desirable behaviors. Further, agritourism experiences may be most effective at encouraging local foods purchasing when they show that buying local foods is socially supported and relatively easy. Subscribe to JPRA

Development of a conceptual framework for the management of biodiversity and ecosystem services in the Mexican Caribbean

Abstract: Coral reefs and mangroves support rich biodiversity and provide ecosystem services that range from food, recreational benefits and coastal protection services, among others. They are one of the most threatened ecosystems by urbanization processes. In this context, we developed a conceptual framework for the management of biodiversity and ecosystem services for these coastal environments. We based our workflow on two sections: “Information base” and “Governance” and use the Puerto Morelos Coastal region as a case study for coastal protection. Puerto Morelos is between two of the most touristic destinations of Mexico (Playa del Carmen and Cancun) that has experienced an increase of population in the past four decades resulting in an intensification of multiple threats to its ecosystems. We characterized the two ecosystems with a “Management Units” strategy. An expert-based ecosystem services matrix was also described in order to connect mangroves and coral reef ecosystems with the multiple beneficiaries. Then an ecosystem model (conceptual model and Global Biodiversity model) was developed. The conceptual model was useful in understanding the interplay processes between systems regarding the ecosystem service of “Coastal Protection”. The Global Biodiversity model evidenced the human-induced shifts in the biodiversity for mangrove and coral reefs ecosystems. Also, a projection for 2035 of “best” and “worst” scenarios was applied using GLOBIO3. A DPSIR conceptual framework was used to analyze environmental problems regarding ecosystem services maintenance. Finally, we evaluated a set of policies associated with these ecosystems that favor coastal protection integrity. This framework facilitates the identification of the most relevant processes and controls about the provision of coastal protection service. It can also be useful to better target management actions and as a tool to identify future management needs to tackle the challenges preventing more effective conservation of coastal environments.

Linking visitors’ spatial preferences to sustainable visitor management in a Norwegian national park

The increasing numbers of tourists visiting national parks contribute to new opportunities as well as challenges. Alpine and Arctic national parks in Northern Europe are key habitats for vulnerable species such as wild reindeer (Rangifer tarandus tarandus), and there is a significant need for management tools that can reduce the negative impacts of tourism. To gain knowledge about visitors’ motivations and spatial preferences, we carried out a survey of people (n = 498) on paths in part of Rondane National Park, Norway. The results indicate that a large share of the visitors in the central, vulnerable part of the National Park may find their desired recreational benefits in the less vulnerable fringe entrance areas. We discuss theoretical and practical implications of the results and how to increase knowledge about visitors’ spatial preferences in order better to regulate their behaviour with the aim of reducing impacts on vulnerable fauna.