Public Nature and Health for Homeless Populations: Professionals’ Perceptions of Contingent Human Benefits and Harms

Abstract

Highlights

• Professionals observe benefits and harms of natural area use for homeless populations.
• Perceived harms include increased environmental exposures and social vulnerability.
• Perceived benefits include privacy, desired social conditions, and reduced stress.
• Relationships between nature and health were seen as variable and context dependent.

This article investigates relationships between public nature and health for unsheltered homeless populations. It examines perceptions of health benefits and harms for people living in public natural areas including local, state, and national forests and parks in the Seattle metropolitan area (USA). Interviews with environmental, social service, and law enforcement professionals who regularly interact with this vulnerable population were conducted and thematically analyzed to understand perceptions of physical and mental health outcomes. Results show professionals’ perspectives on the health benefits and detriments of time spent in natural environments and the contextual factors perceived to influence health. Interviewees’ observations about the variability of personal circumstances and biophysical, social, and weather conditions encourage the nuanced consideration of how contingent therapeutic landscapes provide deeply needed benefits, but for a population with a diminished capacity to adapt when conditions change. We conclude with insights for future research that directly assesses homeless populations’ exposures and health outcomes of living in public natural areas.