Beyond Scenery: UNESCO Natural Heritage as a Therapeutic Landscape for Public Health

Abstract

Background: While nature’s health benefits are well-known, the public health impacts of protected UNESCO Natural Heritage sites remain underexplored. This study explores the diverse values of a UNESCO site as a therapeutic landscape promoting psychological well-being.

Methods: A qualitative study was conducted at Geomunoreum, a UNESCO World Natural Heritage site in Jeju, South Korea. On-site, working interviews with 30 visitors were analyzed using thematic analysis.

Results: Four themes emerged: 1) Geological awe: Experiencing nature’s grand scale shifted visitors from human-centric views to profound awe. 2) Educational value: The site served as a living textbook intersecting natural and human history. 3) Therapeutic well-being: Multisensory embodiment (wind, scent, physical exertion) allowed visitors to disconnect from daily burnout, providing deep psychological restoration. 4) Ecological ethics: Visitors supported efforts to restore native ecosystems.

Conclusions: Visitors do not merely consume the site for scenic beauty. It functions as a therapeutic landscape fostering psychological healing and ecological modesty. Managed heritage sites offer a sustainable model for nature-based health interventions.

Key messages: • Strictly protected natural heritage sites act as powerful therapeutic landscapes, offering profound psychological restoration and relief from burnout through multisensory embodiment.

• Environmental conservation policies can synergistically enhance both ecological integrity and public mental health.

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BibTeX RIS

BibTeX

@article{ji2026beyond,
  title = {{Beyond Scenery: UNESCO Natural Heritage as a Therapeutic Landscape for Public Health}},
  author = {MI Ji and JH Park and SH Joo and IH Hong and JE Kim},
  journal = {The European Journal of Public Health},
  year = {2026},
  month = oct,
  doi = {10.1093/eurpub/ckag169.1289},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.1093/eurpub/ckag169.1289},
  note = {CC BY-NC 4.0},
}

RIS

TY  - JOUR
TI  - Beyond Scenery: UNESCO Natural Heritage as a Therapeutic Landscape for Public Health
AU  - MI Ji
AU  - JH Park
AU  - SH Joo
AU  - IH Hong
AU  - JE Kim
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/01
JO  - The European Journal of Public Health
DO  - 10.1093/eurpub/ckag169.1289
UR  - https://doi.org/10.1093/eurpub/ckag169.1289
AB  - Background: While nature’s health benefits are well-known, the public health impacts of protected UNESCO Natural Heritage sites remain underexplored. This study explores the diverse values of a UNESCO site as a therapeutic landscape promoting psychological well-being.  Methods: A qualitative study was conducted at Geomunoreum, a UNESCO World Natural Heritage site in Jeju, South Korea. On-site, working interviews with 30 visitors were analyzed using thematic analysis.  Results: Four themes emerged: 1) Geological awe: Experiencing nature’s grand scale shifted visitors from human-centric views to profound awe. 2) Educational value: The site served as a living textbook intersecting natural and human history. 3) Therapeutic well-being: Multisensory embodiment (wind, scent, physical exertion) allowed visitors to disconnect from daily burnout, providing deep psychological restoration. 4) Ecological ethics: Visitors supported efforts to restore native ecosystems.  Conclusions: Visitors do not merely consume the site for scenic beauty. It functions as a therapeutic landscape fostering psychological healing and ecological modesty. Managed heritage sites offer a sustainable model for nature-based health interventions.  Key messages: • Strictly protected natural heritage sites act as powerful therapeutic landscapes, offering profound psychological restoration and relief from burnout through multisensory embodiment.  • Environmental conservation policies can synergistically enhance both ecological integrity and public mental health.
SN  - 1101-1262
SN  - 1464-360X
ER  -

Abstract

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