The Role of Forests for Wellbeing Improvement: Ecosystem Services, Health, and Economic Revitalization of Inner Areas

The contribution of forests and other natural and semi-natural ecosystems to improving human health and mental wellbeing is increasingly recognized in literature. Contact with forests may improve well-being mainly by reducing exposure to noise and air pollution, reducing stress, promoting mental and physiological recovery, strengthening the immune system, increasing physical activity and reducing obesity rates, and improving social contacts and relationships. In recent years, concepts such as “forest bathing” and “forest therapy” have emerged, referring to the positive effects of interaction with the forest environment on human mental and physical health. These activities are now being considered for their potential to contribute to a wider economic and social revitalization of areas “left behind” by development processes, promoting tourism and economic regeneration in areas that have long been disadvantaged by demographic decline and economic shrinkage.

In Italy, about 95% of forests are located in mountainous regions, which overlap significantly with the geography of the so-called “inner areas” (according to the classification produced by the National Strategy for Inner Areas), municipalities that are distant from essential services of mobility, health, and education, experiencing processes of depopulation, population ageing, and environmental fragility. New place-based development processes, based on the enhancement of local experiences, resources, and preferences, require a renewed attention to the complex web of vulnerabilities present in these territories.

Based on the first results of the PRIN project “The role of forests for wellbeing improvement: advances from psycho-physiological analysis and technologies”, our contribute explores the relationship between forest ecosystem services, health, and the prospects for economic and social regeneration in Italy’s most marginalized and fragile regions.