TrailWatch Users Survey: Country Parks Usage and Well-being
The relationship between time spent in nature and individual health has been well researched overseas and their positive correlation has been established and widely acknowledged. However, research in this area has been lacking in Hong Kong.
To fill this gap, the Trailblazer Project was launched in 2018 by the WYNG Foundation in collaboration with the School of Public Health of the University of Hong Kong. Phase 1 of the Trailblazer Project, from the end of 2018 to mid-2019, investigated the usage of country parks in Hong Kong and its associations with the physical, mental, and social well-being of Hong Kong residents.
The result showed that there was a 2.6 times increase in country park visitors when compared to a similar survey conducted in 1990 by the government, while the popularity of hiking increased by 3.5 times. The survey result also showed that country park users had better self-reported physical, social, and mental well-being than non-users.
Following the publication of the report of Phase 1 of the Trailblazer Project, TrailWatch launched a survey for its users adopting the questionnaire of the Trailblazer survey. The objectives of the user survey was to assess the usage of country parks among TrailWatch app users; to understand the association between country parks usage and physical, mental, and social well-being among the TrailWatch app users; and to compare the results of the user survey with that of the Trailblazer survey.
The user survey revealed that 99.4% of respondents visited the country parks in the past year, of which 23.4% were frequent users who visited the country parks more than 25 times in the past year; compared to 56.1% and 8.3%, respectively, for the general public in Hong Kong according to the Trailblazer research. 55% of TrailWatch users reported feeling healthier than others of a similar age. The analysis showed that the more frequent the visits to the country parks, the better the self-reported physical, mental, and social well-being, which is consistent with the results of the Trailblazer research.
Almost all (99.5%) of respondents considered country parks as important to their life with over 65.5% believing that they are very important or extremely important to their life, compared to 14.8% of the general public. When asked if country parks are important to Hong Kong, 100% of the respondents agreed that the parks are important to Hong Kong. The top reasons were that country parks are a place for Hong Kong people to destress and relax; they provide an important venue for a variety of activities; and they are considered important for ecological conservation. Free access to the country parks was also considered by many as important.
As this report is being published, COVID-19 is ravaging the world, including Hong Kong. During the outbreak of the coronavirus, it is observed that more people in Hong Kong are visiting the countryside including the country parks as a way to have fresh air and access to open space. The observation is supported by the increased usage of the TrailWatch app compared to the same period of time the previous year. An increase of 148 percent in new app downloads and 109 percent in activities tracked between February and May compared to the same period in 2019 was recorded.
The survey also revealed that the more time spent in the country parks, the more an individual perceived the parks as important to themselves and Hong Kong. This suggests that encouraging the use of country parks is potentially an effective way to raise awareness of the importance of the country parks to individuals and Hong Kong. TrailWatch has always promoted going outdoors for hikes and walks in Hong Kong's country parks, and we continue to encourage people to reap the well-being benefits of being in country parks.
https://www.trailwatch.hk/