Rapid (0) URBANISATION (URBAN) has transformed the landscape of the modern world, with more than half of the global population now living in cities. For many urban 1RESIDE, however, daily life is spent in almost permanent view of concrete and traffic. A growing body of research suggests that this has measurable 2PSYCHOLOGY effects, including higher rates of anxiety and depression. Access to parks and gardens appears to be genuinely 3BENEFIT, lowering stress levels and encouraging the kind of 4HEAL lifestyles that sedentary city life too often discourages. Trees and greenery also play a role in reducing air 5POLLUTE, absorbing particulates and providing welcome shade during increasingly hot summers. Quiet green spaces offer valuable opportunities for 6RELAX, and community gardens have been shown to strengthen the social ties that strained urban neighbourhoods so often lack. Despite all this, property 7DEVELOP continue to treat green space as a luxury rather than a necessity, and planners are frequently obliged to defend parks against proposals that would eat away at them. A more 8ENVIRONMENT enlightened approach to city design is now long overdue.