Can Building More Parks Reduce Crime
The learned have been debating on the relationship between building parks in cities and its effect on local crime rate for quite some time now. Lots of scholars argue that an increased level of greenery is necessary to calm down the human mind and cause it to think less of crime-spurring activities and thoughts.
A recent study in the public housing industry showed that hate crime rate at buildings or homes located closer to vegetation have been noted to be 52% much lower, compared to other, more urbanized locations. In big cities like New York, even, there were an average of 213 lesser felonies reported by neighbourhoods that had invested in creating more greenery and green spaces for their community.
More Greenery Means Less Crime
The reason behind these numbers are that greenery is a natural control for humans that allows them to relieve stress and be more calm in daily life. Further research between the relationship of green plants and human behavior have also found that activities like ‘forest bathing’ and ‘green retreats’ have been shown to have extremely positive results on the human mind and body, in that, it causes a decrease in blood pressure levels, lowers stress levels and slows down brain activity to secrete more calming hormones, thus reducing the chances of you getting involved in crime of any sort.
But, seeing as the city and urban lifestyle is not kindly enough to even allow for a walk in the park at times, it may be a good thing for city-dwellers to go ahead and move in with the green. Lots of people have been keeping plants indoors. While they do have extra benefits such as providing more oxygen for your brain and removing harmful toxins at home, having some greenery with you can give you a feeling of change and that makes a huge difference when we factor in crime rate and events of violence that occur in urban settings.
How Parks Play A Role In Reducing Crime Rate
Parks are built to emulate actual forests for the same reason you may fancy a trek or a hiking trip somewhere deep in the Amazon. The human body was built and wired to be as close to nature as possible and it’s only natural that we seek what is in our original programming as humans. Although many may argue that some parks do cause more harm than good, such outlier cases are usually due the park facilities, layout and also traffic. For example, Bryant Park, in the heart of Manhattan, had a reported crime rate 58% higher than similar urban parks. However, after a massive overhaul of facilities such as lighting, park benches, trails and such, the park began to receive more footfalls and that naturally reduced the crime rate to a whopping 92% lower than it was before the renovation works.
Aside from the actual greenery and park facilities that allow you to relax, you also get a chance to meet and interact with more people. Those who interact more with people from their neighborhood or do well in social settings rarely get involved in crime. And the more people we have that come out of their homes and have healthy interaction with other members of the community, the lower the crime rates in communities have been projected to be.
So, go out there and grab a breath of fresh air in your nearest community parks or national parks. Be sure to bring along the people you know, neighbors, friends and family and enjoy the greenery together. Have a new neighbour that does not seem like they are into long walks at parks, and have super shady behavior, our simple people search can help give you some background on your new neighbour.
Disclaimer:
The above is intended for informational purposes only and does not constitute a legal advice or specific recommendations in any way.
