One Simple, Science-Backed Tool For Reducing Crime! 📉👮🏼🌲

Question! What reason would a city-raised Black person have to start SLEEPING in the FOREST? Turns out trees are low-key kinda magic for people, and all this magic is now being thoroughly backed up by science!

A few years ago I heard some really incredible data (I am a nerd after all!) about the positive impact of hanging out in the forest. Turns out trees have a measurable, positive impact on the nervous system, mental well-being, and physical health! My anecdotal experience can be used as a data point because yes? Ummm, hell yeah?

Japanese people refer to the activity of spending time in nature forest bathing which I love. Cities across Japan, the US, and UK have started calling for more access to trees, parks, gardens, and greenspace explicitly because of its positive effects on people's well-being, sense of belonging, and community connectedness. It is literally the reason I started camping - not an activity I was particularly interested in before! - which sends my resting heart rate plummeting and helps my nervous system regulate without me actually having to do anything except be. (And keep the mice from eating my trail mix, but I digress.)

Trees have become my all-time favorite subject. And just like, greenspace, in general. Gardening, camping, hiking, hanging at the park, all of the green stuff. And here’s why I say trees are low key magic: trees, community gardens, and green space have been shown to reduce violent crime, gun crime, and increase prosocial behavior.

I live in an historically Black neighborhood in Portland that has experienced a lot of gentrification but despite the negative community and financial impacts of gentrification there are, of course, still Black Portlanders who live, work, attend churches and mosques here. Because Portland has historically been a very temperate city with cool summers and mild winters, most homes were not built with air conditioning even as A/C became the norm in other places.. As the city - along with the rest of the planet - has been warming up, so many hot summer evenings see a lot of Black folks, especially elders, gathering in the park to chat, play chess or cards, and spend time with one another. It brings me so much joy to see the park still full of smiling Black faces, people who clearly feel invested in their community despite the city government doing precious little to earn that investment.

Trees, parks, and gardens are especially good for neglected neighborhoods because they provide shade and reduce the heat island effect. A heat island is the phenomenon where paved over city blocks, concrete highways, and huge buildings retain more heat for longer periods of time than neighborhoods with more tree canopy, more green buildings, and, let’s not beat around the bush here, more wealth.

Higher temperatures are hypothesized to lead to increased interpersonal conflict. This is because heat makes people cranky and neglected neighborhoods have less investment, meaning people are poorer, meaning fewer people have A/C, resulting in more cranky people outside sharing space.

Yes, this correlation is scientifically documented but even cops refer to summer as “killing season” because as you have probably experienced, being too hot makes you, well, hot. (Be sure to check out the episode of Code Switch, The House On The Corner, linked below for a really acute example of this phenomenon.)

Keeping the temperature lower and increasing the amount of shade make people feel more comfortable and less stressed. Greening spaces also provides a sense of beauty and helps to reduce noise and air pollution. Community gardens provide a place for people to connect and they can improve food security. Greenspace gives folks a place to exercise, decompress, and regulate their nervous system. All of these things are desperately needed in poor, intentionally underfunded neighborhoods that cities have been choosing to ignore for decades or even a century.

A study by the University of Chicago found that there is a 12% decrease in violent crime for every 10% increase in tree canopy cover. Another study found that there is a 10% decrease in gun violence for every 10% increase in green space. In New Haven, Connecticut, a 10% increase in tree canopy was associated with a 14% decrease in property crimes and a 15% decrease in violent crime. Studies in Baltimore, Maryland showed similar levels of inverse correlation between tree cover and violence crime, including gun violence. Thousands of studies from the US, the UK, and Japan have found a positive correlation between access to greenspace (meaning parks, gardens, and forests) have a demonstrably positive impact on mental and physical health. So much so that the Royal College of Physicians in the UK started urging doctors to prescribe (well, strongly encourage) gardening and greenspace to patients as a way to mitigate the overwhelming caseload.

Greenspace can also help to increase feelings of community connection and belonging. A study by the University of Washington found that people who live in neighborhoods with more green space are more likely to know their neighbors and to feel a sense of community and people who live in public housing with greenery experience less violent crime.

Trees, community gardens, and green space are, I would argue, absolutely integral to a healthy community. They help to reduce crime, improve air quality, and increase feelings of community connection and pride.

To wrap up, I feel it is only ethical that I point out that not all greenspace is created equal. Overgrown greenery, parks that are not maintained by the city or county, and general abandonment vibes are not likely to have a positive impact on community connection. Researchers have found that unmaintained and overgrown greenery can actually provide visual cover which, as you might be able to guess, can reduce awareness of others and lead to negative or antisocial behavior.

This is important to point out for many reasons, not the least of which is the fact that cities continue to actively neglect poor, Black, brown, and working class neighborhoods by CHOICE. This neglect is racist, sexist, ageist (in both directions!), I would argue it’s completely unconstitutional, and just plain shouldn’t be tolerated.

If you are interested in learning more about the positive impacts of trees, community gardens, and green space, I’ve collected A TON of lovely, green resources for you. 🌲