CONSENT FORM

LOCAL GREENSPACES AND WELLBEING

This research study is being undertaken by Dr. Richard leBrasseur and undergraduate students
in the Landscape Architecture Program in the Department of Plant, Food, and Environmental
Sciences at Dalhousie University. Participation is not required.

Research Policy and Procedures

This survey has been approved by the Research Ethics Office of Research Services at Dalhousie
University.

Research Purpose
The purpose of this research is to increase the understanding of greenspaces and their effects
upon human quality of life benefits such as wellbeing, reduced stress, sociability, sense of
community, safety, and happiness. This research uses an on-line survey to collect information
about which green spaces you visit and how you use them. This survey is available to anyone
over the age of 18 who lives in or nearby the towns of Preston, East Preston, North Preston,
and Cherry Brook, Nova Scotia.

This study is funded by the Green Infrastructure Performance Lab at Dalhousie University
(www.gipl.land) and Canada’s Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council. Your
participation will help policy makers and Councils make decisions which support human
wellbeing and the design and management of the many greenspaces within your neighborhood
and community.

Green spaces are an important part of our everyday life. Whether parks or natural areas,
gardens or playgrounds, forests or paths, people use green spaces differently for many benefits.
There are many definitions of both quality of life and wellbeing. Human wellbeing is connected
to one’s quality of life. Well-being is understood as a state of health, happiness and prosperity.
As noted by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC): “Wellbeing is a state of being
with others, where human needs are met, where one can act meaningfully to pursue one's
goals, and where one enjoys a satisfactory quality of life”.

Your participation in this research is entirely your choice. You are welcome to stop the survey at
any time if you no longer want to participate. All you need to do is close your browser. This
research will not include any incomplete surveys in analyses. However, as an anonymous
survey, there is no way to remove your responses once completed.
This survey takes about 10 minutes to complete. As a participant in this research, you will be
asked a series of questions on an internet-based survey using Maptionnaire from Mapita, Inc.
This is a map-based questionnaire where you will locate on a visual map which greenspaces you
visit then are asked to answer a few questions about why you go to this particular greenspace
and what you do there. All responses will be saved on a secure Dalhousie server and processed
using SPSS Statistical software. The survey is completely anonymous and does not ask for your
name or any contact information.

The information that you provide will be collected anonymously, which means that there will
be no questions asked in the survey that asks for identifying details such as your name or email
address. However, you will be asked to drop a geo-marker or a small colored dot on the map
during the survey of your home location. You do not have to be exact – you can place it on the
road near your home or nearest intersection if you are concerned for privacy. This information
is important to the study because we will research how accessible greenspace is to your home
location and if you do visit the green spaces nearby to you. The survey is anonymous, so we do
not know who lives at which marker. If you do not feel comfortable providing this information,
please do not participate and we thank you for your enthusiasm.

By participating in this survey, you will be eligible to receive 1 of 3 $50 VISA Gift Cards to be
selected at random from all participants. You will be required to provide your name and contact
information (either email or telephone number) in order to be eligible for this award. This
drawing is separate from the survey and there is no way to know any of your answers if you
provide your contact information.

By proceeding to complete the survey, you are giving consent to have the data provided for use
in academic research. Only I will have access to the survey results. I will describe and share
general findings in presentations and scientific journals. I will keep anonymous survey
information so that I can learn more from it as I continue with my research. All electronic data
and survey information will be kept on Dalhousie University secure servers.

If you would like to see how your information is used, please feel free to visit the Facebook
Page [https://www.facebook.com/Greenspace-and-Wellbeing-
979159992474085/?modal=admin_todo_tour] after October 1, 2019 and I will have placed a
description of the survey results on it.

Please ask as many questions as you like. If you have questions later, please feel free to contact
me. My contact information is:

Richard leBrasseur, PhD

Dalhousie University
Email: r.lebrasseur@dal.ca

If you have any ethical concerns about your participation in this research, you may contact
Research Ethics, Dalhousie University at (902) 494-1462, or email ethics@dal.ca (and reference
REB file # 2019-4775).”

If you agree to complete the survey, please follow the link here:

https://app.maptionnaire.com/en/5338/