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Nature and greenspaces have been enjoyed throughout history and used for relaxation purposes. Several theories, such as biophilia and stress recovery theory, suggest nature’s ability to improve stress recovery. Even though stress helps detect danger and enhances alertness, it causes fatigue and distortive cognitive functions if prolonged. Nature-based intervention such as Shinrin-yoku or forest bathing, which refers to relaxing walks in forest environments, has been recently researched and used to reduce stress in individuals. The current study is an experimental study aimed at whether attendance in nature is beneficial for stress recovery. Ten subjects were divided into an experimental group (walks in nature) and a control group (walks in a city environment). They were tested for stress levels using heart rate variability (HRV) and the Karolinska exhaustion disorder scale (KEDS) before and after the walks. The result demonstrated no significant differences in stress recovery for both measurements before and after walks in nature compared to walks in a city environment. Despite that, it did not reject nature’s positive impact on stress recovery. Therefore more research on nature-based intervention and stress recovery is required.

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Chasing Butterflies is a city planning/landscape proposal for Bromma Airport that strives to: • Imagine a future eco-city through a biophilic lens. • Apply biophilic ideas relating to plants.   • Move towards meeting the criteria set-up by Stockholm´s municipality. • React to the proposal “Bromma Parkstad” by the Swedish Environmentalist party. The method consisted of:  • Support design decisions by referring to scientific data and theories from the course Trädgårdens Biologi, orienteringskurs (Introduction to Garden Biology) at Stockholm University and other scientific articles relating to the subject such as phytoremediation (decontamination through vegetation), pollination and the history of Bromma Airport. • Literature research on the following topics: the history of the Swedish allotment movement, the biophilic ideology, greenhouse living, environmental psychology, landscape theories regarding non-human migration patterns and ecological theories concerning pollination.  • Searching through digital archives of governmental/municipality reports.  Thesis question: How can architecture help generate biodiversity and how can non-human actors be integrated into a new eco-city at Bromma Airport?    Different types of cultivated land (allotments, private gardens, community gardens, parks, urban farming, and greenhouses) have been studied to investigate how architecture can help generate biodiversity on multiple scales.  Furthermore, there are several so called "forever chemicals" present at the site. For Bromma Airport to become inhabitable, the soil would have to go through a thorough cleans, where the use of plants is the most efficient alternative.  The strategy is to: • Keep all material on-site, since relocating to a different site would only move the problem.  • Use plants for cleansing and letting the land heal in its own time. • Maximize different types of cultivated land in an urban environment.

This thesis thrives to promote community health and wellbeing through smart design, celebrating culture(s), and offering efficacious and real-world solutions to mitigate certain challenges arising from the imminent threat of climate change and the gradual depletion of our planet's natural resources. The projected building harnesses naturel forces, minimizes energy consumption, and uses natural/passive strategies like thermal mass and natural ventilation. Interior spaces enjoy an abundance of Natural lighting, biophilic attributes, and thera-serlized or uninterrupted views. It generates electrical energy due to adequate solar power and clear skies, especially in hot and arid climates like the proposed location of the project in Tuba City, AZ. In my proposal of a sustainable, community-focused, wellness center, this project will attempt to embrace diversity, celebrate the Navajos heritage through incorporating their belief system and culture into the genius Loci of the place, which will have a long-term healing effect on patients during their journey of recovery. The Navajo nation is a native American reservation and a self-governing community located in the southwest of the US between four states (UT, AZ, NM, CO). Since it's an Underserved, marginalized, and medically under-resourced community, the Navajo Nation was prone to COVID-19 onslaught in 2020, which resulted in substantial number of cases compared to other US states. / Master of Architecture / In Dec 2020, the World witnessed the first case of Coronavirus disease or COVID-19 in Wuhan, China. The disease has since spread rapidly worldwide, leading to an ongoing pandemic. Like many countries across the globe, the health system in the United States of America has to grabble with this deadly virus by inducing measures such as mask mandates and lockdowns in many US states. Unfortunately, and due to economic and social disparities, COVID-19 pandemic has brought injustice and inequity to the forefront of public health. Some communities were hit hard due to lack of emergency response, the availability of health professionals, and healthcare infrastructure. Tuba city, which is the Diné or the Navajo nation second-largest community in Coconino County, AZ, was majorly hit with COVID-19 resulting in a significant number of cases compared to other US cities. This project is a critical component of an emergency preparedness matrix that can firstly; help absorb the shock of such outbreaks by providing primary and outpatient services. Secondly; it offers community-focused and wellness service that can empower underserved, under-resourced and valuable communities like the Navajo Nation. This project is unique due to its inherited and embedded characteristics of bringing the Navajo tradition into the spirit of the building, by celebrating their culture making it a key component in a patent's healing process.

The prevailing approach to sustainable design focuses on low environmental impact objectives rather than the enhancement of the connection between people and the natural environment. According to Edward O. Wilson, biophilic design attempts to place an emphasis on the human to nature relationship in the built environment under the ideology that we have an innate affinity for the natural world because of our evolutionary development. In order to properly apply biophilic design, it is necessary to study and understand what it is about specific elements in nature that creates a sense of pleasure and well being. Nature is rich with sensual features, and the expression of these biophilic traits in architectural design is really what â sustainable designâ is all about. The purpose of this thesis is to explore Wilsonâ s theories of biophilic design through the development of an office skyscraper. The driving force behind the project is the design of the sensory oases, which are vertical extensions of the ground plane that contain features intended to stimulate the senses. / Master of Architecture

Access to nature has been shown to positively impact human health and well-being, reducing stress, anxiety, and depression while increasing relaxation. The Biophilia hypothesis suggests that even brief interactions with natural settings can have beneficial effects, emphasizing the evolutionary importance of our connection with nature and its potential as a tool for health promotion. The aim of this systematic review is to investigate the brain activity during indirect and direct exposure to nature and urban environments. The search was done in Web of Science and MEDLINE EBSCO and 8 articles were identified to fulfill the inclusion criteria, based on,among others, the neuroimaging technique and mode of exposure to nature stimuli. Exposure to nature increases alpha power in the brain, with studies showing increased activity in variousregions such as the left and right prefrontal cortex. Additionally, specific brain regions, like the right orbitofrontal cortex and the right prefrontal cortex, exhibit lower oxy-Hb concentrations when viewing nature compared to urban environments. In sum, exposure to nature elicits changes in brain activity, particularly in alpha wave patterns and oxy-Hb concentrations. The findings support the integration of nature into urban design, highlighting its potential tobenefit public health and well-being, though further research is needed to explore long-term effects and potential applications in healthcare.

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Ojämlikhet i hälsa kan bero på flertalet orsaker, exempelvis graden av delaktighet och inflytande i samhället. En grupp som vanligen isoleras från samhället är flyktingar, vars anpassning till det nya landet kan vara påfrestande samtidigt som de drabbas av psykiska, fysiska och sociala svårigheter. Av den anledningen krävs interventioner i syfte att underlätta integrationsprocessen samt skapa förutsättningar för en tillfredsställande och hälsosam tillvaro i det nya samhället. Studiens syfte var att undersöka genomförarnas uppfattningar av arbetet med integrationssatsningen för flyktingpojkar på Salaortens Ryttarförening. En kvalitativ metod användes för att besvara syftet och data samlades in genom semistrukturerade intervjuer där sex personer som arbetat med integrationssatsningen deltog. Insamlad data analyserades genom en manifest kvalitativ innehållsanalys. Resultatet visade att integrationssatsningen genererat flertalet positiva effekter gällande flyktingarnas mående. Det upplevdes finnas goda möjligheter kopplade till integration av flyktingar genom hästar och stallmiljö. Dessa möjligheter berörde inte enbart ökade förutsättningar för hälsa hos flyktingar, utan kunde även kopplas till en utveckling hos andra ungdomar och medlemmar i föreningen. Studien tyder på att hästar och stallmiljö torde kunna stödja integrationsprocessen hos flyktingar på liknande sätt som lagsporter, samtidigt som stallets unika miljö bringar ytterligare fördelar i form av exempelvis trygghet och vänskapligt stöd från hästen. / Inequalities in health can be due to several reasons, including the degree of involvement and influence in the society. One group of people commonly isolated from society is refugees, whose adaption to the new country can be stressful. Meanwhile, they often suffer from psychological, physical and social difficulties. Therefore, interventions to facilitate the integration process and creating conditions to a satisfying and healthy life in the new society are required. The purpose of this study was to investigate the implementers perceptions of working with the refugee integration projects implemented by Salaortens Ryttarförening. A qualitative method was used to answer the purpose, and data was collected by the use of six semi structured interviews. The collected data was analyzed with a manifest qualitative content analysis. Results showed that the refugee integration project had generated several positive effects related to the wellbeing of the refugees. It was perceived that good possibilities related to integration could be achieved through interaction with horses and being in a stable. These possibilities did not only affect the refugees through improved health conditions, but also affected the adolescents, and other members of Salaortens Ryttarförening. The study indicates that involvement with horses and the the environment regarding stables should support the integration process regarding refugees, similar to team sports. Meanwhile the unique environment of the stable can bring further benefits like a sense of security and friendly support from the horse.