FTHub has launched a new global map of certified therapeutic landscapes, showcasing natural spaces that have been assessed and certified as therapeutic. It is a growing international reference for forests, trails, gardens, and blue spaces designed to support human health and connection with nature.
Among the first landscapes featured on the map is Twilight Trail at Wang Gang Ping in Sichuan, China, marking a new addition to FTHub’s network of certified therapeutic spaces.
A Global Map of Certified Therapeutic Landscapes
The new map brings together natural spaces that have undergone FTHub’s assessment and certification process, creating a growing international picture of what therapeutic landscapes can look like in different environments.
The spaces currently featured span a wide range of settings. In Spain, the Bosque Terapéutico Reserva Biológica Campanarios de Azaba in Salamanca offers a therapeutic forest trail within a Mediterranean ecosystem and internationally recognized biodiversity hotspot. Also featured on the map are four routes managed by the Diputació de Barcelona that highlight the distinct landscapes and ecological diversity of the province. In the north, the Domus del Pi trail in the Espai Natural de les Guilleries-Savassona offers a 1.15 km walk through dramatic sandstone cliffs and the waters of the Sau Reservoir. Further south in the Parc del Montnegre i el Corredor, the 6.12 km Can Bosc route winds through dense holm oak and cork forests, known for their acoustic tranquility and inclusive cultural programming. Near the coast, the short 0.52 km Parc del Garraf sensory trail crosses a landscape shaped by limestone rock. And the Can Bladet trail in the Parc del Foix offers a 4.26 km path along Catalunya’s oldest reservoir, serving as a habitat for roughly 270 bird species alongside local wildlife against the backdrop of the historic Castellet castle.
The map also features a Sensory Garden at Universidad San Sebastián in Valdivia, Chile, where native plants, landscape elements, and participatory activities are brought together to stimulate the senses while supporting wellbeing, environmental education, and social inclusion.
In China, the Twilight Trail at Wang Gang Ping represents another expression of the approach: a forest trail in the mountains of western Sichuan, surrounded by coniferous woodland, moss-covered ground, and a naturally rich soundscape.
Together, the sites show the variety of landscapes that can be considered through FTHub’s framework, from forests and biodiversity reserves to designed sensory gardens and mountain trails. With more to follow.
How Therapeutic Landscape Certification Works
Rather than treating every natural environment as automatically therapeutic, the approach looks at how specific characteristics of a landscape can be understood, evaluated, and incorporated into its design and management.
FTHub’s therapeutic landscape certification process moves through four stages, from planning and design assessment to implementation oversight and final certification. The methodology considers factors including biodiversity, sensory richness, perceived safety, accessibility, and restorative potential, drawing on evidence and research backed by more than €15 million in public research funding.
China Joins the Map
One of the newest additions to the map is the Twilight Trail at Wang Gang Ping in Sichuan, China, bringing a newly certified therapeutic forest trail into FTHub’s growing international network.
Located in the mountains of Shimian County, where the Sichuan Basin meets the eastern edge of the Tibetan Plateau, the 1.5-kilometer trail passes through a relatively remote coniferous forest of fir, birch, and pine. Moss-covered ground, wildlife, and the sounds of birds and wind through the canopy all contribute to the character of the landscape.
The trail is the result of collaboration between FTHub and local partners, bringing together tourism, therapeutic-landscape expertise, and knowledge of the local environment. The trail’s certification and inclusion on the new map mark more than the opening of another forest trail. They place Wang Gang Ping within a wider international movement exploring how natural spaces can be intentionally assessed and developed to support wellbeing while strengthening people’s relationships with the landscapes around them.
For more on how the Wang Gang Ping project came together, the people behind it, and the ideas that shaped the trail, read our interview with Betty!
From Individual Trails to a Wider Movement
The map also points toward a broader question: if landscapes can be designed with human wellbeing and ecological qualities in mind, could this approach influence how natural spaces are created and cared for more widely?
That is where the FTHub Method becomes particularly important. Certification is more than a designation attached to a beautiful landscape. It gives a framework for looking systematically at the conditions that can make a space more accessible, restorative, and biodiverse, and more relevant to the people who experience it.
As the network expands, each certified landscape becomes part of a larger experiment in reconnecting people with the places around them. The hope is that these relationships create a ripple effect: people who develop a deeper connection with nature may begin to see the landscape differently and, in turn, see their relationship with other people and the wider living world differently too.
Ready to take the next step? The FTHub Therapeutic Landscapes Consultant accreditation trains professionals to evaluate existing natural spaces for their therapeutic potential, design new or improved landscapes that support nature-based health interventions, and certify therapeutic spaces on behalf of FTHub.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the FTHub global map of certified therapeutic landscapes?
The map is a growing international reference for natural spaces that FTHub has assessed and certified as therapeutic landscapes, including forests, trails, gardens and blue spaces designed to support human health and connection with nature. Featured sites include spaces in Spain, Chile and China.
How does therapeutic landscape certification work?
FTHub’s certification process moves through four stages: planning, design assessment, implementation oversight and final certification. The methodology considers biodiversity, sensory richness, perceived safety, accessibility and restorative potential. Rather than treating every natural environment as automatically therapeutic, it looks at how a landscape’s specific characteristics can be understood, evaluated and incorporated into its design and management.
Where is Twilight Trail at Wang Gang Ping in Sichuan?
Twilight Trail is a certified therapeutic forest trail at Wang Gang Ping, in the mountains of Shimian County in western Sichuan, China. The 1.5-kilometer trail passes through coniferous forest of fir, birch and pine, with moss-covered ground and the sounds of birds and wind. It is one of the newest additions to the map.
Who was involved in the Wang Gang Ping therapeutic trail?
FTHub and local partners collaborated on the trail, combining tourism, therapeutic-landscape expertise and knowledge of the local environment. Betty Fang served as the FTHub Accredited Therapeutic Landscapes Consultant for the project. The trail’s certification places Wang Gang Ping within a wider international movement exploring how natural spaces can be intentionally assessed and developed to support wellbeing.
