Tassia Kate Oswald

Tassia Oswald holds an Honors Degree in Psychology with a double-major in Epidemiology, and is currently a PhD Candidate in the School of Public Health at the University of Adelaide, South Australia. Her current research is focusing on the psychological benefits associated with spending time in natural environments during childhood and adolescence. She is particularly interested in investigating how increasing adolescents' "green time" (or time in nature) can help to ameliorate the potential psychological consequences of excessive "screen time" in a high-tech era. Cassia hopes that her research will provide support for new and continued investment in adolescent mental health promotion initiatives such as the development and maintenance of high-quality urban green infrastructure, national parks, and green educational contexts.

Growing up in Australia, a country with a unique natural environment and extreme weather conditions which have implications for public health, made the importance of environmental issues particularly salient to Tassia. She volunteers as a Treasurer with the Public Health Association of Australia and has contributed to submissions pertaining to environment, ecology, and health. She is also currently involved in the development of new clinical products for Australians experiencing psychological distress as a result of bushfires.

Tassia is passionate about both public mental health and environmental protection and hopes that her research highlighting the dual mental health benefits of protecting natural environments will contribute to the basis for a socio-ecological approach to population mental health, integrating environmental sustainability. She is excited to continue this work alongside other like-minded Planetary Health Campus Ambassadors across the globe. In her spare time, Tassia enjoys travel, hiking, crafts, and trying out new food places!

Publications:
- Read Tassia's mid-year blog here