Dwan Vilcins

Green space, nature contact and children's health.

Urban green space is perhaps the best example of an environmental factor that may act as a public health good. Research has identified health benefits associated with green space, such as improvement in mental wellbeing, reduction in cortisol, an increase in physical activity, improved neighbourhood cohesion, and exposure to beneficial microbiota. Green space may play a role in ameliorating hazardous environmental exposures, such as air pollution and temperature extremes. Much of the work on green space is in its infancy, and more knowledge is needed on potential mechanisms and specific effects in children.

This PhD project will use data from a longitudinal cohort of Australian children and explore the association between green space near the residence and nature contact activities with a range of child health outcomes such as physical health, neurodevelopment, and mental wellbeing. Causal mediation analysis will be performed to better test and understand the potential underlying mechanisms that could influence health after nature exposure.

This project would suit a PhD student with skills in statistics, epidemiology and/or public health. Experience with data analysis is desired.