Os idosos e o parque urbano

Abstract

The urban parks provide moments of rest, conversation, meditation, tanning, planting, eating physical activities, recreation, cultural and social gatherings. When walking in a park you can see the wide variety of age groups, from babies to the elderly. This research focuses on the third age, since this population has a growing and continuous aging profile in the country. But how does the relation of this space with the older population in its neighborhood occur? This research aims to discuss the configuration of the parks and their relationship with the immediate environment: if it favors access to them, enabling the social inclusion of the elderly, and if it creates the appropriate conditions for socializing amongst themselves and with the others age groups. The object of study is the Parque Urbano Bosque Sudoeste, located in Brasília - Distrito Federal. Space Syntax Theory was used to study the relations between the configuration of the place and its appropriation by the people. Secondly, by onsite observation and interviews with the elderly, other types of park performance were analyzed: if it responds well to the practical needs of the activities, if it is comfortable climatically, if the maintenance cost is desirable, if it facilitates the spatial orientation of its users, if it creates an emotional memory in the users, if it has elements that potentially symbolize it and if it is beautiful.