Greenspaces and Human Well-Being: Perspectives from a Rapidly Urbanising Low-Income Country

Compelling evidence demonstrates links between greenspaces and human well-being. However, the existing evidence has a strong bias towards high-income countries. Rapidly urbanising cities in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) remain largely unexplored. The rising prevalence of mental disorders in LMICs highlights the need to better understand the role greenspaces can play in mitigating mental ill-health. We carried out a cross-sectional household survey to investigate links between measures of greenspace exposure and human well-being, and tested pathways that could underpin any such interactions in Kathmandu, a rapidly urbanising low-income city in Nepal. While we found no consistent relationship between measures of greenspace exposure and human well-being outcomes, we provide evidence that greenspaces in a rapidly urbanising low-income setting could be important for encouraging physical activity and fostering social cohesion. Further, we revealed that a medium perceived variety of biodiversity attributes of greenspaces was associated with the highest levels of physical activity and social cohesion. Our findings support the view that greenspaces in LMICs may be less likely to provide well-being benefits. Moreover, medium levels of biodiversity may best promote well-being in LMICs. More research is needed to understand how greenspaces can support human well-being in LMICs.