---
_id: '13310'
abstract:
- lang: eng
  text: 'The mental health crisis among university students is gradually increasing,
    from psychological fatigue, burnout, and anxiety to suicide, forcing universities
    to integrate a mental health focus in sustainable campus planning. Mental health
    can be influenced, either alleviated or exacerbated, by the academic environment.
    Campus Sustainability Assessment Tools (CSATs) provided various indicators, but
    few include spatial indicators related to mental health. To bridge this gap, it
    is essential to understand the influence of spatial aspects on students’ psychological
    well - being. Identifying environmental stressors and spatial qualities and translating
    them into indicators that can be consistently defined and evaluated is relevant.
    This study aims to address the gap in CSATs regarding students'' mental health
    and to develop spatial indicators for universities to embed mental health. The
    goal is to propose spatial indicators that allow universities to evaluate and
    measure the relationship between the built campus environment and mental health.
    A comparative analysis was conducted on ten CSAT frameworks and two related frameworks,
    including the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) and the Circular Economy (CE),
    with a focus on identifying and evaluating existing assessments. In parallel,
    a review was conducted to analyze key psychological stressors and interventions
    in the academic environment for university students'' mental health. This included
    formulating spatial indicators that describe, quantify, and assess the relationship
    to psychological outcomes. Findings show that existing CSATs prioritize curriculum
    and teaching approaches, and research includes scholarship, social network, and
    operational aspects. However, only the Sustainability Tool for Auditing Universities''
    Curricula in Higher Education (STAUNCH) and Sustainability Tracking, Assessment
    & Rating System (STARS) explicitly reference mental health. Apart from STAUNCH
    and UI GreenMetric, which include indicators of biodiversity and green space ratio,
    respectively, nearly all frameworks focus on non - physical, conceptual metrics.
    The identification of spatial indicators is linked to specific design attributes
    — such as natural light, spatial openness, and access to nature — that promise
    reduced stress and enhanced emotional well - being. Key findings related to the
    study’s spatial indicators propose a three - part indicator set: 1. Psycho - spatial
    indicators (e.g., light, acoustic, and visual comfort, finishing material, accessibility,
    air quality, layout) . 2. Socio - spatial indicators (e.g., communal area, visibility,
    accessibility, safety, interconnection) . 3. Restorative spatial indicators (e.g.,
    naturalness, spatiality, safety and security, privacy - public balance) . Universities
    must focus on preserving students’ mental health by improving their physical environments,
    especially because supporting and fostering mental health is no longer optional.
    Understanding the tangible ways in which space impacts mental health enables universities
    to define clear, measurable criteria for improvement. These findings offer a practical
    foundation for evaluating existing environments and guiding future design interventions.
    A three - part indicator set will be developed and applied through a mixed - method
    case study approach, implemented in two existing campuses, and it will be examined
    in depth via on - site observations, structured interviews, and student surveys
    to capture both measurable data and lived experiences. The framework aims to articulate
    the connection between spatial design and mental health and to establish a methodology
    for identifying, defining, and assessing these indicators across different university
    settings.'
author:
- first_name: Nathania
  full_name: Nadia, Nathania
  id: '80588'
  last_name: Nadia
- first_name: Uta
  full_name: Pottgiesser, Uta
  id: '27166'
  last_name: Pottgiesser
  orcid: 0000-0002-8594-3168
citation:
  ama: 'Nadia N, Pottgiesser U. Sustainable Design for Mental Health: A Framework
    of Spatial Indicators for University Campuses. <i>Inżynieria Mineralna</i>. 2025;2(2).
    doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.29227/im-2025-02-02-098">10.29227/im-2025-02-02-098</a>'
  apa: 'Nadia, N., &#38; Pottgiesser, U. (2025). Sustainable Design for Mental Health:
    A Framework of Spatial Indicators for University Campuses. <i>Inżynieria Mineralna</i>,
    <i>2</i>(2). <a href="https://doi.org/10.29227/im-2025-02-02-098">https://doi.org/10.29227/im-2025-02-02-098</a>'
  bjps: '<b>Nadia N and Pottgiesser U</b> (2025) Sustainable Design for Mental Health:
    A Framework of Spatial Indicators for University Campuses. <i>Inżynieria Mineralna</i>
    <b>2</b>.'
  chicago: 'Nadia, Nathania, and Uta Pottgiesser. “Sustainable Design for Mental Health:
    A Framework of Spatial Indicators for University Campuses.” <i>Inżynieria Mineralna</i>
    2, no. 2 (2025). <a href="https://doi.org/10.29227/im-2025-02-02-098">https://doi.org/10.29227/im-2025-02-02-098</a>.'
  chicago-de: 'Nadia, Nathania und Uta Pottgiesser. 2025. Sustainable Design for Mental
    Health: A Framework of Spatial Indicators for University Campuses. <i>Inżynieria
    Mineralna</i> 2, Nr. 2. doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.29227/im-2025-02-02-098">10.29227/im-2025-02-02-098</a>,
    .'
  din1505-2-1: '<span style="font-variant:small-caps;">Nadia, Nathania</span> ; <span
    style="font-variant:small-caps;">Pottgiesser, Uta</span>: Sustainable Design for
    Mental Health: A Framework of Spatial Indicators for University Campuses. In:
    <i>Inżynieria Mineralna</i> Bd. 2. Kraków, Polskie Towarzystwo Przeróbki Kopalin
    (2025), Nr. 2'
  havard: 'N. Nadia, U. Pottgiesser, Sustainable Design for Mental Health: A Framework
    of Spatial Indicators for University Campuses, Inżynieria Mineralna. 2 (2025).'
  ieee: 'N. Nadia and U. Pottgiesser, “Sustainable Design for Mental Health: A Framework
    of Spatial Indicators for University Campuses,” <i>Inżynieria Mineralna</i>, vol.
    2, no. 2, 2025, doi: <a href="https://doi.org/10.29227/im-2025-02-02-098">10.29227/im-2025-02-02-098</a>.'
  mla: 'Nadia, Nathania, and Uta Pottgiesser. “Sustainable Design for Mental Health:
    A Framework of Spatial Indicators for University Campuses.” <i>Inżynieria Mineralna</i>,
    vol. 2, no. 2, 2025, <a href="https://doi.org/10.29227/im-2025-02-02-098">https://doi.org/10.29227/im-2025-02-02-098</a>.'
  short: N. Nadia, U. Pottgiesser, Inżynieria Mineralna 2 (2025).
  ufg: '<b>Nadia, Nathania/Pottgiesser, Uta</b>: Sustainable Design for Mental Health:
    A Framework of Spatial Indicators for University Campuses, in: <i>Inżynieria Mineralna</i>
    2 (2025), H. 2.'
  van: 'Nadia N, Pottgiesser U. Sustainable Design for Mental Health: A Framework
    of Spatial Indicators for University Campuses. Inżynieria Mineralna. 2025;2(2).'
date_created: 2025-11-26T19:27:00Z
date_updated: 2025-12-01T10:35:56Z
department:
- _id: DEP1600
- _id: DEP1055
doi: 10.29227/im-2025-02-02-098
intvolume: '         2'
issue: '2'
keyword:
- campus sustainability
- mental health design
- spatial indicators
language:
- iso: eng
place: Kraków
publication: Inżynieria Mineralna
publication_identifier:
  issn:
  - 1640-4920
publication_status: published
publisher: Polskie Towarzystwo Przeróbki Kopalin
status: public
title: 'Sustainable Design for Mental Health: A Framework of Spatial Indicators for
  University Campuses'
type: scientific_journal_article
user_id: '83781'
volume: 2
year: '2025'
...