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Compared with other age groups, seniors are more physically vulnerable and more likely to experience feelings such as boredom, helplessness, and loneliness (Cooper Marcus & Sachs, 2014). Living in long-term care facilities such as assisted living and nursing homes may worsen the situation, leading to feelings of dehumanization, fear, discomfort, and under-stimulation (Dahlkvist et al., 2016; Verderber & Fine, 2000). Well-designed outdoor spaces that encourage interaction with nature benefit senior residents both psychologically and physically, promoting rehabilitation and making their lives more enjoyable. Currently, residents at the Villa Rosa Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Prince George’s County, Maryland, lack suitable environments for outdoor activities. In this thesis, the back courtyard and the front entrance are redesigned to maximize nature’s healing restorative effects for the residents, accommodating seniors’ particular needs and increasing the usability of both sites.

The benefits of trees and forests and the ecosystems services that they provide is well documented. Ecosystems services include carbon sequestration, stormwater retention, water pollution reduction, air pollution retention and others. In addition, tree planting efforts provide numerous social benefits including improvement of community cohesion, increase in social capital, and environmental stewardship and education. In order to provide a greater understanding of tree planting efforts and assessing tree benefits locally, two major project components were undertaken: 1) the research and documentation using case studies of individual tree planting efforts, and 2) assessment of benefits of recent and proposed trees for four selected parks in Prince George’s county.