Monitoring the ecosystem services provided by a woodland area in North-Eastern Italy for the population’s well-being

In countries such as Italy, there is a notable skewing of the population pyramid toward older age groups and individuals with chronic health conditions. This demographic shift is anticipated to result in increased social costs. It would be advantageous to enhance the physiological conditions and socialization opportunities for the elderly, as this may lead to improved overall well-being and reduced healthcare expenditures. It can be reasonably argued that there is a substantial potential for the ecosystem services provided by forest and woodland ecosystems to benefit this particularly vulnerable population. Due to its distinctive territorial configuration, Italy presents many opportunities for implementing restoration policies. A crucial step is to evaluate the actual welfare benefits that natural areas can offer. To this end, an experimental campaign was conducted in the Parma area of northern Italy, which aimed to assess the positive impact of ecosystem services compared to urban environments. This study's results support the notion that policies encouraging the temporary residency of the elderly in forested and wooded areas may facilitate physiological recovery.

This study was conducted and funded by the Project "OptForEU" Grant Agreement number 101060554 European Research Executive Agency (https://optforeu.eu/