There is an increasing interest in outdoor play, both in research and in policy. However, in (re)designing, planning and managing the public space, there is still limited attention for children’s actual playing behavior. A lot of urban planning decisions are based on adults’ perceptions of children’s playing behavior and focus on formal play spaces, rather than on their actual behavior and on other, more informal, play places children might also use. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to explore where children play outdoors, with whom and what kind of activities they are performing there. Between February 2022 and March 2023 1,127 – mainly primary school - children were systematically observed after school in three post-war residential districts in three cities in The Netherlands. The majority of the children were between 5-8 years old (50%). Above the age of 8 years, substantially more boys (70%) than girls (30%) were playing outdoors. Most of the children (79%) were playing with other children, 8% were playing alone. The playground was the most popular play space (36% of the observed children were playing there), followed by public sports fields (14%) and sidewalks (13%). With respect to the type of activities, relaxing (21%) was the most common activity, followed by ball sports (14%), climbing or hanging (11%), swinging (10%), and riding on wheels (9%). This study showed differences in play behavior by gender, age, district and play space and stress the need for a broader definition of play, and for focusing on formal as well as informal play spaces.
During the last twenty years, a remarkable new type of service has been developed in the world of sports, which can be described as the indoorisation of outdoor sports. Typical outdoor sports like climbing, skiing, surfing, rowing, and skydiving, which used to be exclusively practiced in a natural environment of mountains, oceans, rivers and the air, are now being offered for consumption in safe, predictable and controlled indoor centers. The present article emphasizes the rise of indoor lifestyle sports, such as rafting, snowboarding, skydiving and surfing. It discusses the conditions under and ways in which commercial entrepreneurs in the Netherlands have created this market, the meanings that they have ascribed to their centers and the dilemmas with which they have been confronted. It is argued that the rise of this economic market cannot be understood if it is solely interpreted as the result of economic, technological or natural developments. These economic activities were also embedded in and influenced by shared understandings and their representations in structured fields of outdoor sports, mainstream sports and leisure experience activities. A better understanding of the indoorisation of outdoor lifestyle sports can be achieved by recognizing how these structures and cultures pervaded the rise of this new market.
Can provision of outdoor fitness and engaging communities in decision making process , encourage residents to use the facilities and be more physical active?ongoing project This a practical project that is part of the BIOR program in Groningen. We are aiming to explore the impact of implementing the fitness equipment as well as community involvements in four different areas in Groningen on physical activity level of residents and/or park utilisation. The project is drawing on qualitative data based on observation using SOPARC, interview with stakeholders and survey and focus group discussion with residents.
De fysieke en sociale omgeving zijn, veelal onbewust, van invloed op het beweeggedrag van mensen. Een beweegvriendelijke openbare ruimte heeft een preventieve werking op de gezondheid van mensen en levert daarmee een belangrijke bijdrage aan Healthy Ageing. Een aantrekkelijk park nodigt uit tot wandelen of hardlopen. Een mooie fietsroute door de natuur nodigt uit tot fietsen.Ook de socialiserende werking van beweegvriendelijke ruimten heeft effect op de leefbaarheid van een wijk en buitengebied. Door mensen te laten bewegen en elkaar te ontmoeten kunnen zorgkosten dalen en sociaal-maatschappelijke problematiek worden teruggedrongen. Daarnaast is een dynamisch en beweegvriendelijk natuurgebied een aantrekkelijke toeristische bestemming waarbij het positieve effecten heeft op de economie van de regio.Het KennisLab ‘Beweegvriendelijke Inrichting Openbare Ruimte’ is een vervolg op de InnovatieWerkPlaats BIOR die is gestart vanuit een aanvraag bij het Centre of Expertise Healthy Ageing. Het richt zich op optimale benutting van de openbare ruimte om een actieve leefstijl te stimuleren en daarbij ook de economische en sociale impact op de omgeving van deze ruimte. In het lab werken kennisinstellingen, zorg- en welzijnsinstellingen, overheden (gemeente, provincie) en woningcorporaties samen met diverse partners uit de sport, horeca en recreatie.
it is on going project.That is an exploratory research project to identify the demographics of inactive people in three different disadvantaged areas in city of Groningen, as well as understanding the reasons of being inactive or having insufficient physical activity. The main question to answer isWhat intervention design can help those inactive people to embed physical activity into their daily life? That's important because provision of outdoor fitness in their neighbourhood was not enough to encourage them to be active. A third year student is helping in this project as his internship, collected the data, will develop the intervention, implement it and evaluate it.
