You may wonder if there truly is a place in the world where stress could not find you. Well, there is, according to Zipjet, a tech development firm that aims to reduce stress in people’s lives. Stuttgart, Germany. The manufacturing hub is accented by green spaces and scenic parks such as the Rosensteinpark and it is home to one of the largest botanical gardens and zoos in Europe.
From an initial 500 locations studied with regard to their pollution, finance and the citizens, 150 cities where ranked focusing on the mental wellbeing of residents. The rankings rely on macro-data, while taking into account stress-inducing factors, such as the city’s unemployment rate, debt per capita, traffic, public transport, security, pollution and density.
Each destination’s green spaces were analysed via the Google Maps API. Zipjet also looked at the lack of sunshine hours, which are said to affect mental wellbeing.
Regarding mental health, Zipjet says it “weighted average of suicide rates, awareness and coverage, including the rate of psychologists working in the mental health sector per capita”.
“Mental health problems are on the rise worldwide, with stress being a trigger and contributing factor towards this increase. We hope that by pinpointing how the least stressful cities are managing this issue, those cities struggling with a stressed out population can overcome it,” stated MD Florian Färber. “We’re happy to be a part of the wave of digitalisation working to reduce stress all around the world.”
The world’s 10 least-stressful cities
- Stuttgart, Germany
- Luxembourg, Luxembourg
- Hanover, Germany
- Bern, Switzerland
- Munich, Germany
- Bordeaux, France
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom
- Sydney, Australia
- Graz, Austria
- Hamburg, Germany