In this extraordinary time, parks have once again proven themselves to be critical public infrastructure, strengthening neighborhoods and building bonds among people from all walks of life. The COVID-19 pandemic has placed a premium on access to nature and physical activity with appropriate social distancing, making urban parks more vital to the health of our cities than ever before.
Who knew that time at your favorite outdoor green space was more than just a walk in the park? A University of Vermont tweet analysis called the “Hedonometer” concluded that tweets referring to park visits contained fewer negative words, and the tone of tweets about park visits was overwhelmingly positive. Furthermore, visits to parks actually corresponded with spikes in personal happiness, followed by an “afterglow lasting up to four hours.” What better way to guarantee gladness than by visiting a local park?! And during this current pandemic, research has confirmed that transmission rates for Covid-19 are much lower outdoors than indoors. So, bite the blues and help protect yourself from Covid-19 with an outing to your favorite park!
