As senior communities across the globe look for ways to better integrate residents within their local neighborhoods, a park in Beijing is transforming greenspace into a place that fosters engagement and active aging with features tailored to nurture seniors’ physical, mental, and social well-being.

The nearly 10-acre park renovation is part of the government’s effort to fund projects to promote healthy lifestyles for the country’s growing senior population and is nearly completed.

Wanshou Park (“Wanshou” is the Chinese word for “longevity”) is located in downtown Beijing near a district with one of the oldest demographic profiles in the city. Design firm Silk Tree International (Shanghai) utilized the Active Aging guidelines outlined by the World Health Organization and feedback gathered from users to develop seven major design drivers for the project: rehabilitation, exercise, connections, leisure, amenities, initiatives, and music.

The renovation organizes the park into zones designed to focus on different senses, including a rehabilitation area with garden equipment to help with strength, balance, and resistance and formalized play areas, such as croquet and badminton courts, as well as large grass areas for tai chi and kite flying.

Mazes built at ground-level are designed to help with cognitive functions without making users feel trapped and fruit trees and vegetable gardens are included to invoke memory through taste, sight, and smell, says Grant Donald, partner and creative director at Silk Tree International.

Looking at the broader context, the design team worked with government agencies to relocate bus stops near two of the entrances and recommended transit between a nearby metro station and the greenspace be provided.

“Being active gives seniors the opportunity to be part of society and a community, and to age the way we would all want to,” Donald says.

Anne DiNardo is senior editor of Environments for Aging. She can be reached at anne.dinardo@emeraldexpo.com.