Purpose: The point of departure for this viewpoint paper is the current development in which landscape architects are working towards achieving the United Nations sustainable development goals and the associated cross-cutting pledge “Leave No One Behind”. The sustainable development goals 3 and 11 can be achieved through landscape projects that are inclusive and health promoting, and the authors argue that an evidence-based design process is needed to ensure that project designs deliver what they promise. However, most landscape architects are not trained in evidence-based design and are therefore unsure of what can be used as evidence. A further challenge is the lack of relevant and applicable research evidence for design processes.Design/methodology/approach: The authors present a process model for evidence-based health design in landscape architecture as an overall framework on which the authors base their arguments. The model includes four topics of evidence: target group, human health, environment and use of nature. For each topic, the authors present their view on what may be considered as evidence and where it can be found or generated. The study view is supported by a detailed presentation of where and how evidence was found and generated in a design project for an accessible and health-promoting forest trail for people with mobility disabilities.Findings: The authors suggest a broad definition of evidence, and that the design process should draw on evidence from relevant research and practice disciplines. Evidence can be found in multiple sources, for example, scientific articles, theoretical works and design guidelines. It can also be generated by landscape architects themselves, for example, through landscape analyses and stakeholder workshops. The evidence should guide and support the landscape architect and not dictate the design process.Practical implications: The authors hope that the knowledge provided on the evidence-based health design process and on where to collect or how to generate evidence may inspire landscape architects in their future health design projects.Originality/value: People with mobility disabilities face many health challenges and should potentially be able to benefit from visiting green spaces. The authors hope that the knowledge provided on the evidence-based health design process and on where to collect or how to generate evidence may inspire landscape architects in their future health design projects.

Background: Examining the restorative effects of indoor nature exposure that can be controlled through management and design in work settings is crucial for public health. However, concerns about the external validity of existing findings persist due to insufficiency of studies with ecologically sound experimental designs. Objective: Through an experiment that prioritized higher ecological validity, this study aimed to explore the effects of working in an office room vegetated with green plants on employees’ physiological and psychological well-being, and their attentional performance. Methods: This controlled experimental study employed a crossover design in real-life work environments, involving 40 working individuals. It assessed changes in perceived fatigue, psychological and physiological stress, and attentional performance after individual work in either a vegetated or plant-free office room, with other environmental factors kept constant. Results: After an hour of individual work in a vegetated room, participants reported decreased perceived stress and fatigue, supported by changes in measures of systolic blood pressure and heart rates when compared to a plant-free room. Gender differences emerged, with females experiencing greater relief in perceived stress and males showing more noticeable reductions in stress-related physiological indicators. Enhanced attentional reactions were noted solely among males. Conclusions: This study accentuated the immediate emotional well-being benefits of indoor plants at work, highlighting the importance of considering diverse user groups in indoor workspace design. It also proposes potential explanations for how indoor plants induce restorative effects on working individuals, suggesting further research.

In a forest kindergarten context, young children can get boost on their level of physical activity, motor skills, social skills, pro-environmental behaviors, etc. through structured and/or unstructured nature-based educational programs. Most studies mentioned teachers, parents, and researchers as facilitators in the early childhood outdoor learning programs, while landscape architects were rarely considered. However, beyond just being involved in the design and construction of the physical environment, landscape architects can play a more profound role in the long run. This study aims to show that involving landscape architects as facilitators in the nature-based educational programs can benefit the programs in many ways and the effect can be long-lasting. The study is based on the 16 years of collaboration between Miyano-oka, a forest kindergarten, and a team of landscape architects from Takano Landscape Planning in Japan to conduct nature-based educational programs to preschoolers. It presents examples of programs in Miyano-oka and the strategies applied to develop them. In this project, landscape architects employed various design strategies to improve the existing programs and help develop new programs. Among those strategies, participatory design is the primary one. During both the renovation (from 2006 to 2008) and follow-up (from 2009 to now) phases, active participation and collaboration between designers and the educators help achieve the sustainable development of both the outdoor natural environment and educational programs.