From neighborhood parks to swathes of forests, green spaces coat cities in color. According to the Shoal Creek Conservancy (SCC), they play a key role in a city’s environmental and social health, even more so in urban areas like Austin. People are able to utilize green spaces in a variety of ways: whether it be to run a marathon on Mount Bonnell or have a picnic in Zilker, these pockets of nature are breaths of fresh air some would say are vital to city populations.
Austin stands out for its efforts in preserving green spaces, ranking among the most ecological cities in the U.S., with the SCC stating that around 15% of the city’s land is dedicated to green spaces. Scenic America, a nonprofit that aims to protect America’s scenic views, in cities such as Austin, reports that these areas provide escape from urban life. On top of this, they have a wide range of environmental benefits like improving ecological conditions. Texas as a state is also continually growing its park spaces. According to Texas Monthly, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department recently bought land surrounding the state’s popular park, Enchanted Rock, almost doubling the park’s size.
David Walker, a Planet Earth teacher at LASA, is an avid outdoorsman and uses his class to teach his students about the environment. Walker uses Austin’s various parks to teach his students about nature and its benefits.
“Green spaces can provide hands-on learning experiences for students on a wide variety of topics,” Walker said. “Some examples being ecosystem ecology, biodiversity, field geology, sustainability, conservation, and water quality.”
The Austin-American Statesman reported that roughly 295,000 visitors attend Enchanted Rock park in 2023, making it the seventh-most visited state park. A study published by the National Institute of Aging shows that parks have been proven to boost cognitive health and have calming effects on people that reduce stress levels and improve concentration. According to Walker, people have utilized green spaces as a way to cope with the pandemic, a claim corroborated in a study by the Norwegian Institute for Nature Studies that showed that outdoor activity went up 300% during the pandemic.
“Austin’s green spaces played an important role during the pandemic,” Walker said. “Research shows that people living closer to green spaces had lower levels of depression and anxiety during the first six months.”
Project EverGreen, an environmental nonprofit, reported that green spaces can also improve air quality, water quality, and reduce noise pollution. They also enhance ecosystems by cooling down cities through lowering surface temperatures and providing shade. These spaces allow for a better recreational living experience for Nico Sims, a freshman at LASA who frequently hikes around Austin.
“There are so many different ways that green spaces help,” Sims said. “They bring a lot of life to the city. I feel a lot better whenever I’m in a green space or outside in general.”
The Austin Parks & Recreation Department FY21 Annual Report reported that the city of Austin has nearly 20,000 acres of green space across 330 parks, and added 33 new parks over the course of 2021. Freshman Amelie Senning enjoys visiting natural reserves and explained that she feels calm in the vast Austin outdoors, and believes it to be a beneficial asset to her mental health.
“I think green spaces are crucial, especially in a city like Austin, where people are always on the go,” Senning said. “It’s nice to have a place where you can stop and just enjoy the environment, not worry about anything else.”
For Senning, while green spaces provide various benefits, maintaining and expanding them can be challenging in dense urban areas. Sennings emphasized that as cities grow, finding space for parks becomes more difficult.
“I think space is the biggest challenge,” Senning said. “People want to build more, but green spaces are really important for the health of the city and the people.”
Austin aims to expand its number of parks, with its goal being around 10 acres per 1,000 people, per the SCC. However, Austin is also trying to protect and preserve the natural areas that have already been created.
“There’s a balance we have to find,” Senning said. “We need to create more green spaces, but we also need to protect the ones we already have.”
There have been many conflicts recently about what these parks should be used for. Some people argue that they should be recreational while others believe that they should be used for wildlife conservation, according to the National Park Foundation. Walker mentioned that this balance is a struggle for cities to discern and execute.
“[A challenge] would be balancing land use for recreation and wildlife, addressing maintenance costs, managing invasive species, and protecting native habitats while ensuring accessibility for urban communities,” Walker said. “Ecological health has always been prioritized over recreational use.”
According to the National Recreation and Park Association, through their significant contributions to ecological health and biodiversity, as well as the quality of life in urban areas such as Austin, parks provide a landscape of change in an area. As Austin continues to make an effort to grow and protect the land it has, green spaces prove to be a significant asset to cities by not only providing a peaceful place for individuals to decompress but also helping support a healthier, more sustainable environment.
