Here are more updates from Natural England Harmony and connection: human connectedness through social design E Pak – 2016 From a design perspective, this research will show that it is possible to re-create connection through social design, by influencing perception through nature, as an alternative to a state of social disconnection. Nature Teaches Us to Grieve: The place of parks and nature at end of life SL Jakubec, DC Den Hoed, A Krishnamurthy, H Ray. Mount Royal University The narrative process uncovered three dominant themes: 1. Death brings people to parks and nature, 2. Nature teaches people to grieve, and 3. Parks and nature reveal death and life. Animal companions, observing the cycles of natural decay and renewal, and observations of nature as something bigger than death were emphasized. Evaluating the Effect of a Summer Camp Program on Nature Connectedness B Janson – Thesis One of the strongest predictors of environmentally responsible behaviours is a person’s emotional connection to nature, also known as nature connectedness. The results show that the camp had little impact on the students’ emotional connection to nature. Unpacking the Black Box of Wilderness Therapy A Realist Synthesis CR Fernee, LE Gabrielsen, AJW Andersen, T Mesel – Qualitative Health Research Researchers are still unable to precisely answer why, how, and for whom this treatment modality works. In this realist synthesis, we attempt to unpack this “black box” of wilderness therapy more specifically, defined as a specialized approach to mental health treatment for adolescents. The synthesis results in a proposed wilderness therapy clinical model. Variation in experiences of nature across gradients of tree cover in compact and sprawling cities
DF Shanahan, et al – Landscape and Urban Planning There is a lack of information on whether or how the experience of nature changes as green space becomes less available. The paper explore this question for residents of two case study cities and examine how people’s feelings of connection to nature vary across this same gradient of nature availability. Lower levels of neighbourhood tree cover were associated with a reduced frequency of visits to private and public green spaces. Ecotherapy: Theory, Research and Practice Martin Jordan, Joe Hinds – Book A comprehensive exploration of this emerging area of practice Ecological wisdom as benchmark in planning and design X Fu, X Wang, C Schock, T Stuckert – Landscape and Urban Planning, 2016 This paper sets ecological wisdom as benchmark in landscape and urban planning to develop socio-ecologically just plans. Environmental Education as a Lived‐Body Practice? A Contemplative Pedagogy Perspective J Pulkki, B Dahlin, V VÄRRI – Journal of Philosophy of Education, 2016 An argument is made for the need of a biophilia revolution, in which refined experience of the body and enhanced capabilities for sensing are seen as important ways of complementing the more common, knowledge-based environmental education. An integrated leadership model for leading education for sustainability in higher education and the vital role of students as change agents P Warwick – Management in Education, 2016 This paper explores the leadership of education for sustainability (EfS) in higher education, focusing specifically on the key role students can play as internal catalysts for change