Hildy Steinacker

How do users experience urban green spaces, and in particular small urban green spaces? What can be done to make them relaxing and appreciated environments?

In a context where cities are densifying and increased emphasis is put on healthy development we need to be able to inform guidelines that are of use to practitioners as well as academics.

I am interested in testing how methods inspired by social science can help overcome some of the limitations of current research and help us find which precise elements and features in the design of green spaces can make the public use them, like them and derive health benefits from them in the form of stress relief and relaxation.

Hildy has previous experience working at the TCPA for projects such as the Green Infrastructure Partnership and has collaborated to a number of research papers on health and planning.

She has a Master’s degree from Reading University in Public Policy and Sustainable Environments and a degree in Sociology from the University of Geneva, where she has collaborated on a number of projects, notably on the perception of renewable vs conventional energy.

Hildy likes urban nature, green roofs, guerrilla gardening and community farms. She has a special interest in how people interact with the built – especially the built green – environment and how integrative green solutions can be implemented to respond both to environmental and social challenges by working with nature instead of against it.