Research Interests
Understanding the role urban green spaces and exposure to vegetation on human health is important for making evidence-based urban planning decisions. My research centers around how we can use remote sensing based methods to better quantify human exposure to the natural world and develop datasets to assess the role different types of vegetation play on human health outcomes.
Geospatial anaylses and remote sensing derived data are powerful tools that can be used to extend our understanding of the natural world. I work with GIS products to create datasets and indices to measure human exposures to the natural environment.
The ability for species to colonize and thrive in cities is important for maintaining healthy urban ecosystems. I am interested in how park design influences urban biodiversity and in turn, how different levels of biodiversity can influence health and well-being.
Publications
[4] Jarvis, I., Davis, Z., Sbihi, H., Brauer, M., Czekajlo, A., Davies, H. W., Gergel, S. E., Guhn, M., Koehoorn, M., Oberlander, T., & van den Bosch, M. (2021). The Association Between Cumulative Lifetime Exposure to Greenspace and Early Childhood Development – Is the Relation Mediated by Reduction in Air Pollution and Noise? Lancet Planetary Health, 5, e709-717. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2542-5196(21)00235-7
[3] Davis, Z., Guhn, M., Jarvis, I., Jerrett, M., Nesbitt, L., Oberlander, T., Sbihi, H., Su, J., & van den Bosch, M. (2021). The association between natural environments and childhood mental health and development: A systematic review and assessment of different exposure measurements. International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health, 235, 113767. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijheh.2021.113767
[2] Davis, Z. (2020) Leaf the kids outdoors: approaches and enquiries in quantifying natural environments for health. [Master’s thesis, University of British Columbia] cIRcle. http://hdl.handle.net/2429/74654
[1] van den Bosch, M., Brauer, M., Burnett, R., Davies, H. W., Davis, Z., Guhn, M., Jarvis, I., Nesbitt, L., Oberlander, T., Rugel, E., Sbihi, H., Su, J. G., & Jerrett, M. (2018). Born to be Wise: A population registry data linkage protocol to assess the impact of modifiable early-life environmental exposures on the health and development of children. BMJ Open, 8(12), e026954. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2018-026954