53 for resources for greening initiatives, all of which can improve access to green spaces and make people healthier. Similarly, I believe that gathering evidence about the health benefits of our rivers and waterways will help us reclaim these spaces for people and the environment. A robust literature shows that nature exposure or even simply living near green spaces (e.g. parks, forests, gardens) is beneficial for human health in a myriad of ways, by improving physical, mental, immune, and social health (Frumkin et al., 2017; Hartig et al., 2014). Similar to urban green spaces, urban blue spaces- bodies of water which can include ponds, lakes, oceans, rivers, canals and manmade fixtures of water (Haefner et al, 2017)- have been shown to be associated with improved human wellbeing (White et al., 2021; Smith et al., 2022), mental health (Guan et al., 2025), and mitigation of urban heat island effects (Ampatzidis & Kershaw, River clean-up. Summer Sustainability Initiative, 2025. (RiverWise) Small City Natural Environment • Respondents
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