Healthier Parks Mean Healthier People
We believe parks have the power to transform public health—but all too often, wellness is determined by zip code. We’re working to change that. Support Our Work
Safe, quality green spaces improve communities’ physical, mental, and environmental health.
Access to nature and the outdoors is a powerful public health strategy that should be available to everyone. Help us bring parks, trails, schoolyards, and public lands to the communities that need them most.
One of our most powerful public health solutions is waiting right outside our doors. Research shows that when people have a quality green space close to home, they’re more physically active, which can prevent chronic conditions like obesity and high blood pressure and lead to longer lifespans.
Time spent in nature is proven to reduce stress, relieve symptoms of anxiety and depression, and boost cognition, attention, and sleep quality. Green spaces also give communities vital places to gather together, strengthening social ties and lessening isolation.
Twenty-eight million children in the U.S. don’t have a park within a 10-minute walk of home. That‘s why we work with education leaders, administrations, and the communities to transform asphalt schoolyards into green spaces where students, family, and neighbors can stay active, healthy, and socially connected.
As our climate continues to change, parks can help combat the negative effects on public health. Green spaces with trees not only lower temperatures of dangerous urban heat islands, but they can also mitigate flooding, drought, and air and noise pollution.
We’re on a mission to bring the health benefits of safe, accessible outdoor spaces to communities across the country. Here’s how.
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Data
We’ve created proprietary databases and modeling techniques that help us pinpoint the best locations for new parks, maximizing both health benefits and park access. And our ParkScore index is the national gold-standard comparison of park systems across the 100 most populated cities in the United States.
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Expertise
Working alongside local leaders and community members, we develop evidence that determines the healthiest design and use of outdoor public spaces to address health needs and reflect local culture and aspirations.
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Funding and Policy
To secure funding for schoolyard transformations, local parks and trails, community forests, and other green spaces, we help plan and carry ballots from start to finish.
Urge your representatives to make green spaces a priority. Add your name to one or all of our current petitions and help us take a stand.
Read inspiring stories of our work in communities across the country.
