Preface [Therapeutic Landscape Design Methods, Design Strategies and New Scientific Approaches]

The health status—as considered today—is not just an individual protection and promotion issue, but a collective condition, strongly influenced by the environmental context; the link between the morphological and functional features of urban contexts and places, and the Public Health outcomes, opening up to a new scientific and design scenario about Urban Health research topic. Referring to this research field, the introduction of Nature-Based Solutions and Therapeutic Landscape Design approaches into the healthcare contexts, facilities, and architectures has assumed a considerable importance over the years. The recent period that saw the healthcare facilities fighting against the COVID-19 pandemic, highlighted the need, especially in complex periods of lockdown, to use green spaces to recover health and well-being both in hospitals and in public or private places. The COVID-19 pandemic is an important demonstration of the dual effects of urbanization on the environment, that is, the intrinsic capacity of the contemporary city to be a place of economic and social opportunities and, at the same time, places where multiple risk factors for Public Health and Health Welfare could be developed and disseminated. Starting from the experience developed into the six editions of the Training Course in “Therapeutic Landscape Design”—which has been held since 2015 at the Department of Architecture, Built environment and Construction engineering (ABC) of Politecnico di Milano, where the multidisciplinary approach of the Lectures involved helps to provide scientific, technical, healthcare, social and design methodologies to over 120 attendees—the need to bring together, in a scientific monograph, the contribution of the Professors, Professions, and Practitioners, became crucial as much as relevant. A more conscious design of therapeutic green spaces—especially referred to the Healing Gardens—can give texture and consistency to several unique elements in the treatment of specific pathologies, to support social discomfort, to develop healing processes and practices, and to improve the evolution of healthy lifestyle and accessible built environment for fragile users and people with disabilities. This collection of insights and scientific experiences aims to provide the tools to plan and create therapeutic places and natural spaces aimed to support the care process, as well as giving an overview of national and international case studies, defining design approaches, analysis, and best practices.