Searching for a Sustainable Holistic Balance: Optimal Wellbeing Environments

Dear Colleagues,

In line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), sustainability implies constant and preferably growing well-being and a global balance between human beings and the ecosystem. Sustainability and sustainable development are linked to a new idea of well-being that considers the health and quality of people’s lives and revolves around three components: environmental, economic, and social. Indeed, a sustainable environment has an active role both in healing processes and in well-being promotion. This is especially in line with SDG 3 (Good health and well-being) and SDG 11 (Sustainable cities and communities).

Every environmental element has some direct or indirect effect on our body and mind, and this notion is well-rooted in human culture. People respond to their surrounding environment in a global way: this implies that single environmental stimuli can directly influence people, but also the way other stimuli are perceived, eventually resulting in a holistic perception of the natural and built environments. To be able to predict how environmental stimuli can reinforce or weaken one another, knowledge of the effects of single environmental stimuli is necessary. To reach this aim, a framework, known as the Optimal Healing Environment (OHE, Samueli Institute, 2004), can be adapted. This framework includes a vast range of environmental characteristics, which altogether compose a healing environment. This conceptualization considers all the main components (social, psychological, physical, and behavioral) able to support achieving a state of well-being and balance in interaction with artificial and natural environments. An environment is usually not conceived as something that can play an active role in achieving well-being; however, a sustainable one can promote a bio-psycho-social balance and well-being. Different environments can support or hinder health processes, but these are ultimately very personal and, thus, heavily influenced by individual characteristics and social relationships. The purpose of this Special Issue is to identify which individual and collective factors, but also specific groups or cultural elements, should be investigated to ease the creation of Sustainable Environments and the promotion of positive people–place relationships.

This Special Issue aims to present scientific contributions addressing recent empirical and theoretical analyses of the role of sustainable environmental aspects in the achievement of a renewed conception of well-being.

Therefore, all types of papers are welcome: conceptual, narrative reviews, systematic reviews, intervention evaluations, qualitative, quantitative studies, and correlational and experimental research.

Dr. Fridanna Maricchiolo
Prof. Marina Mondo
Dr. Oriana Mosca
Dr. Silvia Ariccio
Guest Editors

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• well-being
• sustainability
• balance
• environments
• healing
• holistic