Green Care Practices for Active Aging: A Scoping Review

Green care (GC) is widely recognized as an umbrella concept encompassing nature-based and nature-assisted interventions that promote health, well-being, and social inclusion through engagement with natural environments, plants, animals, and farming contexts. In the context of population aging, GC is increasingly considered a complementary approach to support active and healthy aging, although the evidence base remains heterogeneous in terms of definitions, intervention models, and outcome measures. This scoping review maps and synthesizes recent international literature on GC and related interventions targeting older adults, with particular attention to reported physical, psychological, and social well-being outcomes. Following a PRISMA-informed methodology, Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar were searched for peer-reviewed studies published between 2019 and 2024. Thirty-three studies met the inclusion criteria. Findings show substantial variability in intervention types (e.g., horticultural therapy, care farming, animalassisted activities, green exercise), settings, and research designs. Most studies report positive effects on psychological well-being, social connectedness, and physical functioning. However, methodological heterogeneity and limited use of standardized protocols restrict comparability. Greater conceptual clarity, harmonized evaluation frameworks, and more rigorous research designs are needed to support policy integration and the scaling up of GC interventions within active aging strategies.