Since our current food system gives us the freedom to go to the grocery store and buy any type of food packaged up on a shelf, the connection between the consumer and where food comes from is often lost and taken for granted. But all of our nourishment comes from the earth and that connection needs to be rekindled. We need to connect ourselves to our food to appreciate how important the Earth is to human existence, just like all other life, and to remember that we are a part of nature. Growing food in our own backyards is one way to foster this connection. People have been gardening for thousands of years, so through growing our own food from the land, we can learn skills that our ancestors have passed down to our generations and connect with history as well.

Cherry tomatoes from my best friend’s garden // Source: Siobhan Mullally

Growing our own food has so many benefits. The health benefits alone are plenty: gardening provides fresh produce, an opportunity to get fresh air and physical activity, and for many individuals, a way to de-stress. Many people have expressed their stress relief through gardening since the act of growing something in the soil takes you to the present moment where you can focus on your own hands planting seeds, weeding, and watering. In our current world, we can get so caught up in our work, our to-do lists, our future worries. With long hours on our computers and our phones always by our sides, it feels like there is no rest from the notifications and all the thoughts that come associated with them. I just finished my undergraduate degree and on my first day of “freedom”, I sat in my room and didn’t know what to do. I had to make a list of “things to do when you don’t know what to do” because my brain was so untrained to accept rest and free time. This is a product of the fast-paced, capitalist world we live in. But last summer, I visited my best friend’s house and helped her garden. When we were digging in the soil, spreading mulch, and watering flowers, there was no space to worry about other things. It was just me and the earth and the present moment. I think gardening can help us reduce our eco-anxiety and whatever other anxieties we feel by giving us this sense of peace.

In addition to growing food, planting native wildflowers is another way to garden that can improve native biodiversity, support pollinator and wildlife communities, and create beautiful, low-maintenance spaces of your yard to enjoy. Planting native vegetation is key to helping create and restore ecosystems for native wildlife.

“By planting vegetables or flowers, we can take those small steps towards sustainability in our own little corner of the world.”

Throughout history, people have planted non-native plants from different areas of the world usually for aesthetic reasons. Many of those non-native plants have since spread, dominated ecosystems, outcompeted important native species, and changed natural areas for the worse. Native plants are so important to support biodiversity and restore natural habitats for other wildlife. In the first article I wrote for A\J, I talked about ecological restoration and how individuals can help restore nature in their own backyard spaces. We all have an impact and we can all make those impacts positive. By planting vegetables or flowers, we can take those small steps towards sustainability in our own little corner of the world.

A mulberry from my mom’s backyard // Source: Siobhan Mullally

Gardening is such a wonderful way to connect to the earth, but it becomes a problem for those of us who do not have any space to do so. If you’re like me and you don’t have your own land to create a garden, there are other ways to plant and create mobile gardens. You can plant vegetables, herbs, or flowers in small pots in your house or apartment, on a balcony or porch, or in window boxes. You can also seek out local community gardens in your neighbourhood and look into renting or sharing a garden space there. There are options to be sustainable for nearly everyone and there continue to be more inclusive options as our communities move in the right direction.

If gardening just isn’t your thing or you can’t make it work for you, that’s okay. We’re all connected to nature and you can feel that just by going outside and appreciating what is around you. It starts with mindfulness. If you go outside, whether you are in your backyard, on a city street, or in a park, you can be intentional about what you focus on. Mindfulness teaches us to be present and aware of our surroundings. Being mindful in nature is paying attention to all the little details of nature around us. A mosaic of pinecones and leaves on your lawn, a fuzzy caterpillar crossing the sidewalk, birds singing to each other, the soft sound of wind blowing through trees, the feel of grass beneath your shoe soles. These details can ground you in nature and allow you to zoom in closer and feel like you are a part of it, not separate from it. It really comes down to establishing and fostering a relationship with nature whether you are planting a wildflower garden, growing tomatoes on your balcony, or taking a walk around your block and paying attention to the world around you.

Observing pollinators on my walk home from school // Source: Siobhan Mullally

“By stepping outside, not only are you getting a good dose of fresh oxygen, serotonin, vitamin D, and maybe a pretty sunset out of it – you’re reconnecting with the earth. The ground you’re walking on. The plants and animals that you coexist with. The little delights that live and thrive and breathe and walk and live all around you. And if we keep connecting with these things, I hope we will feel a little bit more grounded in our own backyards, realizing that we’re part of nature and we can take care of it in the footsteps of people who have done so for many generations. We can get to know the names of the species around us, the bird calls, the texture of the grass outside, the smell of the soil in our gardens. These details are important – they are vital to upholding the connection we have to the Earth. And we will be able to fight for this planet and remedy our eco-anxiety if we keep tending to the relationship we have with nature.” -Siobhan Mullally, “A Being in Nature: How the Mourning Dove’s Call of Inspiration Quieted My Busy Mind”

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Growing up, like most kids, I liked fantasy/adventure series – like Narnia, Harry Potter, and The Lord of the Rings – and I read some of those books back then. But as I grew up, I became less interested in this genre and preferred to read more realistic stories. However, lately, I’ve been craving adventure and I’ve felt drawn to reading about these magical worlds again more than ever.

The pandemic has had me cooped up in my home for quite some time now. I don’t have my own car (not like there is anywhere I am allowed to go if I did), so the majority of the time when I want to get outside, I am restricted to a distance equal to as far as my legs can take me. As a result, I’ve been walking around my neighbourhood… a lot. Trust me, I’ve become so acquainted with the surrounding streets that I could walk them blindfolded. Although I appreciate all the moments I can spend outside, and being within walking distance to parks and green spaces is a privilege, I long for the excitement of travelling to new places, exploring natural areas, and having adventures. Since I can’t do that these days, I have started journeying to fictional places in my mind as much as I can through reading.

Source: Masterclass 

My fantasy novel reading kick started this year in 2021 because, after one year of the pandemic, I was feeling more antsy than ever. Like I said, I grew up liking adventure series, but they have a whole new effect on me these days. They provide a window into a new world, full of gripping adventures, in a time where we physically can’t do any of that in our own reality. 

More and more I’ve been feeling like Bilbo Baggins in The Hobbit – comfortable in my house and neighbourhood but feeling like there is a part of me aching for something more, for adventure. And sadly, a wizard is not going to come to my house and send me off on a journey, so it’s up to me to push myself out the door (metaphorically) and enter the fictional worlds that exist on my bookshelf. 

I typically read contemporary fiction and literature because I like realistic stories that can offer me insights into my own life and the real world. I always viewed fantasy as more of an escape from reality – just something fun to read to forget about real life and be immersed in a new, magical world. But the more I read fantasy novels, the more I realize that these stories might actually be helping me cope with my own changing, unpredictable world rather than distracting me from it. Sure, they sometimes provide oversimplified, utopian-esque reflections of life, but I genuinely think this literary genre can provide tools and insights that can aid us in the environmental movement. 

Inspiration for Fighting Our Battles

The courage that these fictional characters display can inspire us in our own stories.

First of all, the characters in these novels overcome great feats – and also small feats, too. They fight in battles, learn skills from their mentors, travel on long journeys, face harsh climates, and do all sorts of other “adventure trope” things, generally to save their world from evil. But their feats are not entirely unlike the ones we face in our world. The courage that these fictional characters display can inspire us in our own stories. Besides the fact that our world does not have fire-breathing dragons, centaurs, elves, and other magical beings, our world is not so different from many of the fictional worlds we can read about. Sometimes it just takes a closer look to see the similarities.

Source: The Almighty Guru

I put a Lord of the Rings quote in one of my other articles to emphasize the courage that we, as environmentalists, will need on the long road to fighting for a better world, and I’m putting another one in this article. Maybe it’s LOTR overkill, but the story of Frodo and the ring has so many relevant quotes that can give inspiration to environmental and social justice activists, and particularly youth, who feel the weight of the world on their shoulders. It’s not easy to face these issues every day, but we continue to fight every day nonetheless. Looking to fantasy stories for inspiration and courage would likely benefit all of us who find ourselves feeling the ever-present weight and discouragement of the state of the world.

“I wish it need not have happened in my time,” said Frodo.

“So do I,” said Gandalf, “and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”

Connecting with the Natural World

A lot of fantasy novels take place in the outdoors and the characters often get intertwined with the elements of nature. The setting of these stories, often being in very natural places, provide a lot of natural imagery and a mystical quality to nature, which the characters experience in awe, curiosity, and wonder. The natural aesthetic of these worlds can evoke in us a greater appreciation for nature. Keep in mind – the nature in these books is not altogether fictional… it’s based on the nature of our own world, just in combination with a bit of imagination.

But many fantasy stories also include the force of nature and the environment almost as a character itself. In the book, The Name of the Wind, only the most skilled individuals in the story who study the wind know the name of it, which basically means they can call on it with their minds and control it. The point is, the wind – and also other elements, like iron or stone – are great forces that come alive and become vital pieces to the story, almost like characters. The human characters are very intertwined with their natural world – just as we are with ours.

Source: Alicia Ochoa via Art Station

Rediscovering the Magic of the World

Although reading about these magical worlds can still be a form of escapism for many, these stories can also help us rediscover the magic within the real world. I know what you might be thinking – there is no magic in our world. Well, there is definitely a magical essence of nature. Nature is full of life, energy, and beauty – and it’s so complex. Humans have probably only scratched the surface of understanding the planet and the nature around us, but being in nature is far more than understanding – it’s also feeling and experiencing, which goes beyond merely thinking about it. 

When I go into nature, I feel at peace and inspired. When I travel to a new place and experience a whole new ecosystem, I feel shocked and amazed. When I see fireflies, starry skies, colourful sunsets, beautiful birds, the list goes on and on, I feel a way that I imagine magic would make me feel – in awe. There is so much in nature to appreciate, feel, and draw energy from, and I think it’s worth rediscovering the magic in our own world to feel more connected to nature and more motivated to better protect it.

Overall, I have a much greater appreciation for this literary genre than I did before the pandemic. Now that I’ve given it more of a chance without making presumptions about it, like that it would be childish or too “far-fetched” or irrelevant to my own life, I’ve come to realize that many of these books are none of those things. They are simply a look into another world that we can experience, find delight in, and also learn and draw inspiration from. The magic of our world is all around you and maybe picking up a fantasy or adventure book will help you rediscover it.

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The traditional purpose of gardens was to grow and cultivate plants for food and medicine. For centuries, it has provided individuals with the opportunity to learn more about the environment and better appreciate nature. Gardens have become a widespread practice in schools across the globe. Implementing garden-based teaching incorporates concrete experiences that contribute to the understanding of many topics in the classroom curriculum. It is interesting to see how school gardens can differ between regions and how a global pandemic has impacted school gardens. Families have turned to gardening to ease the mental and emotional strain that the COVID-19 pandemic has taken on residents when the need for education surrounding nutrition and health is more critical than ever. Overall, this article aims to analyze the impact school gardens have on an individual’s wellbeing and environmental awareness.

Benefits and Challenges

School gardens can have a positive impact on an individual’s mental health providing students with a sense of autonomy as well as a feeling of belonging. The advantages of school gardens are numerous. For instance, a study done by UNICEF reported that the average happiness for children is the highest for children who play outdoors. Moreover, the memorable learning experiences provided by a school garden helps students link their learning to their feelings. Such engaging experiences like these stay with the students as they grow up and affect their behavior and lifestyle. They also influence the students’ values and decision-making skills. When students are given opportunities to take care of and maintain a school garden, they develop an increased sense of responsibility towards the environment and improve their social interaction skills by working in groups and communicating their experiences. They also experience enjoyment from watching their products grow and sharing their produce with their community. Additionally, school gardens can instill healthy eating habits in students by exposing them to fruits and vegetables, which makes them favor natural produce. However, the benefits of school gardens are still not enough to overcome the challenges that are facing these gardens. For example, school gardens suffer from a lack of funding from the school districts and those gardens rely on contributions from the community members. In addition, school gardens are constrained by the national curriculum guidelines that do not allow teachers to try different approaches with their students.

Source: Unsplash

School Gardens Across the World

School gardens supply outdoor learning and access to healthy food for students and local communities. As the global food supply chains have been severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, access to healthy food options and nutrition is more important than ever. Outdoor learning and school gardens help fill nutritional gaps in places where access to healthy food may be limited, while also supplying recreation, stress reduction opportunities and supply a safe outdoor learning environment, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.

At the international level, the World Food Programme has supported Home Grown School Feeding initiatives at the community level. These initiatives work to promote nutrition education and better eating habits, and encourage the diversification of production with a special emphasis on local crops. Community involvement, in turn, enhances the sustainability of programs.

Many countries decided to tackle the challenges of food security by educating the younger members of society on how to grow their own crops. Indeed, across many countries, we have seen an increase in school community gardens due to the current spread of the COVID- 19 pandemic. For example, children in El Salvador have grown vegetable gardens in the communities and inspired young people and adults in seeking to replicate their initiative to secure their food and avoid the high market prices affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, at least 700 children from across India are now bound together in a microgreens project initiated by Chennai-based E-zone India, a company that does environment projects with and for school children. Founder Hafiz Khan says that the lockdown helped to convert the program into live WhatsApp video sessions with students from anywhere in the world learning how to nurture their school gardens and home gardens. Another example is happening in Papua New Guinea, in the city of Lae, where the launch of a new garden program for secondary schools represents an approach to reduce outside dependence on the external food supply and building community hubs that can help the health and economic recovery from the pandemic.

Since multiple countries are undertaking similar projects, we are left asking how the meaning of school gardens has changed during these challenging times? Children used to be involved in gardening projects at school to be close to nature and enjoy outdoor activities. Now though, learning how to grow your own food is essential for your survival, not just a mere hobby. Children are understanding the importance of learning how to nurture a garden and grow their own food. Indeed, their experience is leading them to be the protagonist of food security and sovereignty in their community, and they are proving to be engaged and successful in such endeavors.

Conclusion

It is imperative to acknowledge the influence school gardens have on students and their understanding of the environment. Schools across the nation have been implementing outdoor learning into their curriculum. This hands-on teaching style has displayed several benefits for the individuals involved. It has created a sense of community during this global pandemic. There are several challenges that could arise when trying to implement a new school garden. Funding and government policies are some of the leading problems preventing schools from executing this learning technique. However, around the world, schools are trying to overcome these obstacles and standardize the use of school gardens. As previously mentioned, gardening has become much more than just a hobby. Not only does it result in the production of food, but it has also become a new teaching method for the younger generations.

This article is part of our March 2021 Western Student Editorial Series – a series that showcases the works of students in the Collaborative Specialization in Environment and Sustainability program. Read more articles from this series here!

References

Basu, S. (2020). Budding kitchen farmers. Retrieved from https://www.thehindu.com/life-and-style/food/the-covid-19-lockdown-has-encouraged-children-across-the-country-to-create-their-own-microgreen-farms-at-home/article32041705.ece

Berezowitz, C. K., Bontrager Yoder, A. B., & Schoeller, D. A. (2015). School gardens enhance academic performance and dietary outcomes in children. Journal of School Health, 85(8), 508-518.  https://doi.org/10.1111/josh.12278

Borbon, C. (2020). Children grow vegetable gardens in El Salvador to survive COVID-19 pandemic, The Gulf News. Retrieved from: https://gulfnews.com/photos/lifestyle/children-grow-vegetable-gardens-in-el-salvador-to-survive-covid-19-pandemic-1.1598003097530

Cornish, L. (2020). Can school gardens help alleviate the economic impact of COVID-19 in the Pacific. Devex. Retrieved from https://www.devex.com/news/can-school-gardens-help-alleviate-the-economic-impact-of-covid-19-in-the-pacific-98161

DeMarco, L. W., Relf, D., & McDaniel, A. (1999). Integrating gardening into the elementary school curriculum. HortTechnology, 9(2), 276-281. DOI: https://doi.org/10.21273/HORTTECH.9.2.276

Evans, D. & Davies, J. (2020). 4 reasons why the world needs more urban farming post-pandemic. World Economic Forum. Retrieved from: https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/09/urban-farming-flourish-post-pandemic/

Food Corps. (July 22, 2020). Growing Healthy Communities in School Gardens during COVID-19. Retrieved from https://foodcorps.org/growing-healthy-communities-in-school-gardens-during-covid-19/

Gromada, A., Rees, G., & Chzhen, Y. (2020). Worlds of Influence: Understanding What Shapes Child Well-being in Rich Countries. Retrieved from https://www.unicefirc.org/publications/pdf/Report-Card-16-Worlds-of-Influence-child-wellbeing.pdf

Ozer, E. J. (2007). The effects of school gardens on students and schools: Conceptualization and considerations for maximizing healthy development. Health Education & Behavior, 34(6), 846-863. https://doi.org/10.1177/1090198106289002

Passy, R. (2014). School gardens: Teaching and learning outside the front door. Education 3-13, 42(1), 23-38. https://doi.org/10.1080/03004279.2011.636371

Waite, S. (2007). Memories are made of this: Some reflections on outdoor learning and recall. Education 3-13, 35(4), 333-347. https://doi.org/10.1080/03004270701602459

World Food Programme WFP (2020). Home Grown School Feeding. Retrieved from  https://www.wfp.org/home-grown-school-feeding

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Over the past week or so, my world has been very high-energy, productive, and busy, busy, busy! I have been maximizing my time at A\J by writing, thinking, creating, editing, and giving as much of myself to my work as I can – not only because I have obligations, but because I love it! I am someone who thrives on busyness. I want to have my foot in every door and I want to check off every box on the to-do list – these things energize me and move me forward. But recently, I came to a point, after a lot of constant creative output, where I was left with a mental block. I sat down to write this article, which was going to be about how nature relieves eco-anxiety (we’ll get to that later), and I could not think of anything to write. I had zero ideas, and when I dipped into my creative pool, it was dry. 

My brain felt like an internet browser with 25 tabs open, tons of information whizzing around, and all the softwares working at once – and it was starting to get slower and slower, lagging and loading… loading… loading … I actually did have tons of tabs open on my computer and its functionality was diminishing. My screen was exhausted and my eyes were sore from staring at it; I literally felt connected to my computer. So, when I finished work the other day, I closed all the tabs, shut down my computer, and walked away from it. And funny enough, I was unintentionally doing the same thing to my brain – disconnecting and unplugging.

After finishing up my work for the day, I decided to go for a walk around the block. It was around 6pm, so the sun was no longer in the sky, but the light of day remained and blanketed the world in a golden hue. I stepped outside, took a deep breath of fresh air, and the first thing I heard was the call of a mourning dove. It instantly calmed me. I heard its familiar call and it had a very real, very immediate effect on me. For a moment, the only thing occupying my brain was the sound of another living being. It was as if all the other thoughts that usually have intense bumper car competitions in my mind were temporarily wiped away – the bumper car ride at the amusement park was closed for maintenance and it was finally quiet. 

I walked a little farther down the street, then stopped for a moment by a giant pine tree. A little identification trick that I learned in school popped into my mind, so I picked up a fallen needle and tried bending it between my fingers – snap! It broke in half, indicating that it was a red pine. Then, I heard tiny chitter-chatter noises coming from squirrels in the trees as they sat exchanging their latest news to one another. I also heard another unknown bird – chip! chip! chip! And then I heard the whirr of bikes as a few people sped past me, and I decided to keep walking before I looked weirder than I already did, standing alone on the sidewalk, looking at squirrels. 

I turned around a corner onto another street and was boldly met with the sky – bright, royal blue fading into deep, golden orange on the horizon. No clouds were in the sky, which made the colours even more striking. All of the sudden, after stepping outside and noticing a few mere suburban elements of nature, I realized I felt inspired again. I had been giving so much of myself in my life and work that there was not enough left for me to draw inspiration from. It was time for me to refill myself, so I could once again have the capacity to give and share again, and being in nature was what allowed me to do so. 

I have often turned to nature for inspiration and healing when I feel empty or distant from my own self. I stop looking at the screens that so often dictate my every move. I get away from the obligations, the voices, the lists. And I go outside. I listen and look closely, paying attention to minute details. I clear my brain of the constant reel of information and thoughts that run through each day, and start making room for new thoughts that are meaningful, that spark inspiration, and that allow me to reconnect with my physical surroundings. These types of thoughts can come in when I stop thinking about all the how’s, why’s, when’s, and where’s of my day. I had been pondering how I was going to write this article for a couple of weeks, then in one moment, it all came to me – just from going for a walk and intentionally NOT thinking about it. 

Tiny fungi rainbows // Credit: Siobhan Mullally

Nature as a Remedy for Eco-anxiety 

I have found that there are a great many things to befriend in nature that can heal, inspire, and give us peace in our lives. It’s quite known these days that nature greatly benefits mental health. There have been many studies that show how interacting with nature can be therapeutic and calming, and help relieve stress, anxiety, and depression. Even bringing nature indoors by listening to recorded nature sounds or having images of natural spaces in our homes can help improve our moods. So, we know that nature is beneficial for a healthy mind, but what if the state of nature is the core reason for mental negativity?

As a young person today, a main source of anxiety for me is the state of the world. I’m sure many others are with me on this who experience this eco-anxiety on the daily. The world is on fire, species are dying, our natural world is becoming trashed and artificial, but greed seems to win the fight every time. The people fighting for a better world are exhausted and the young people inheriting it are terrified (and most of the time these two groups consist of the same people). This isn’t the kind of stress or anxiety that goes away after finishing a project at work, submitting a final assignment, or giving a major presentation. It’s a constant, looming anxiety that will never go away because it is about holding the world together. 

The people fighting for a better world are exhausted and the young people inheriting it are terrified (and most of the time these two groups consist of the same people).

Imagine the world is a giant broken vase. Some people are actively contributing to the breaking, and some people have no active role in either the breaking or fixing, but the rest of us are all working together to hold the pieces in place and fill in the cracks where we can. Older generations are starting to let go of the pieces, passing them onto younger generations, but the pieces are breaking more than ever, so young people are having to use both hands. They can’t let go or it will fall apart. But wait! My nose is itchy and I can’t scratch it; I can’t take my hands off because I have a duty to hold this world together. I must ignore my own natural, normal needs (i.e. my hopes and dreams of pursuing my life goals, having a full career, starting a family, having a functional planet to live in, etc) to keep it from falling apart. Eco-anxiety is fully real.

Climate Strike at the University of Waterloo // Credit: Siobhan Mullally

As young people who deal with eco-anxiety, we need to be taking breaks from work and screens to be in nature to help sustain our mental health. By being in nature, we can reconnect with it, feel like we are a part of it, rediscover our innate thirst for the beauty of the natural world and our dependence on it, feel it in our own hands, and be grounded in it. Nature’s great peril is what drives eco-anxiety, so it makes sense that nurturing our relationship with the Earth by physically being with it can help aid this.

Connecting with nature can look like a lot of different things: growing plants in your garden, digging your hands into the soil, going to a local forest and feeling the bark of the trees, learning the names of the birds in your backyard, laying on the grass and watching the clouds, or even simply noticing living things that you might not have noticed before, like lichens, fungi, and moss. I think all of these small actions can help alleviate greater anxieties about the world. It’s about bringing your mind from the global picture and scaling it down to the hyper-local microclimate where you physically stand, honing in on the small details. I believe that we may be more able to continue advocating for a better world in a global sense if we devote time and energy to connecting with the natural world around us on a more intimate level.

A closer look at a Citrus Flatid Planthopper (Metcalfa pruinosa) // Credit: Siobhan Mullally

By stepping outside, not only are you getting a good dose of fresh oxygen, serotonin, vitamin D, and maybe a pretty sunset out of it – you’re reconnecting with the earth. The ground you’re walking on. The plants and animals that you coexist with. The little delights that live and thrive and breathe and walk and live all around you. And if we keep connecting with these things, I hope we will feel a little bit more grounded in our own backyards, realizing that we’re part of nature and we can take care of it in the footsteps of people who have done so for many generations. We can get to know the names of the species around us, the bird calls, the texture of the grass outside, the smell of the soil in our gardens. These details are important – they are vital to upholding the connection we have to the Earth. And we will be able to fight for this planet and remedy our eco-anxiety if we keep tending to the relationship we have with nature.

All you have to do is shut down your internet browser brain, close all the tabs, and let it rest. Shut down the cranial bumper cars for maintenance. Embrace the quiet in your mind to feel inspired and rejuvenated. Go outside and find treasures in nature that calm you, reconnect you, ground you, and inspire you. Listen for your mourning dove call.

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When you attend Hillside Music Festival at Guelph Lake, Ontario you enter an eco-village where sustainability and community are top priorities. This 36 year old grassroots organization opens up a world of possibilities and solutions that other events can strive towards. They set the bar high with thoughtful innovations that have earned them several awards over the years. It’s a paradigm shift and hopefully a glimpse into the future of all music festivals.

Here are some of the highlights of how Hillside operates a zero-waste, eco-conscious concert experience. 

01: Seed Swap

Hillside offers a seed swap where you can bring seeds from your garden and exchange them for something different. It’s an amazing way to build your garden’s biological diversity.

02: Bike Lot

Hillside is located about 10 km from the nearest town but it seems that biking is the preferred method of transportation for many people. This bike lot offers a secure place to store your ride during the festival.

03: Independent Food Vendors

You won’t see a chain anywhere at this festival. The food vendors are all independent businesses carefully vetted by the organizers. You can get some seriously gourmet grub here, from organic ice cream to a fresh oyster bar. Hillside is a foodies’ paradise.

04: Zero-Waste Dining

This part is mind-blowing. All the food vendors are supplied with reusable plates, cups, and cutlery to serve their food on which are then washed by volunteers. No paper plates, plastic cups, forks etc. Food vendors are also not allowed to sell bottled water.

05: Trash Turnaround Areas

These are scattered around the island to handle trash. There is a bin for compost, dirty dishes to be washed, recyclables (paper, plastic, cans), and landfill (usually empty). People are diligent about keeping the island clean and their trash sorted. All the bins are carted away on a trike.

06: Water Refill Station

BYOB as in bottle. The City of Guelph sends a truck full of their great-tasting tap water for people to fill up their own reusable water bottles for free. There are no single-use plastic water bottles anywhere and it’s glorious.

07: Eco Merch

The Hillside wristband is made out of cloth instead of plastic and the reusable beer and wine cups are made from stainless steel.

08: Zero Waste Drinking

The beer is on tap and sourced from local microbreweries. The wine is from Ontario. To purchase a cold one, you must have your own Hillside reusable cup, which are sold at cost for $6.

09: Indigenous Circle

The area hosts story-telling, music, dancing, workshops and ceremonies.

10: Solar-Powered Charging Stations

You have to keep your phone charged at a festival. What if the performer asks for crowd flashlight action? Hillside has you covered with several charging stations powered by solar panels. It does a great job charging your phone quickly and there are quite a few outlets available.

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The cottage on the lake, the cabin in the woods – these are the trademarks of an iconic Canadian summer. Cottages are our own personal slice of the wilderness that defines Canada, and those lucky enough to own a cottage also feel a connection to that place that holds so many family memories. It is easy to see that we love cottages for the natural beauty that surrounds them, the recreation opportunities they provide, and that home-away-from home feeling. However, when you look deeper into the history and traditions cottage culture is built on, the story is a little more complicated. I want to explore that story, as well as why we need to, and can, do better. 

Let’s start with Canadian wilderness identity in general. And by that, I mean when the world imagines Canada, when Canadians imagine Canada, they see the Rocky Mountains, the boundless prairies, igloos and polar bears, Mounties, beavers, and maple syrup. What’s pictured is the vast, open, and somewhat lonely wilderness portrayed by the Group of Seven. A place that is still remote and open to adventure; a wild west just beyond backyards and railways. 

Despite these images being far from what the average Canadian experiences daily, it is still how we define ourselves, and it is often part of what we are trying to capture in our cottage experiences. What is less obvious is how these ideals and images were born out a history of erasure, sexism, racism, and classism, as well as how this history shapes our current relationship with nature. It turns out there’s a lot more than meets the eye in those iconic postcard scenes. 

To keep this brief, historically, the narrative of Canada was written by white male settlers. Much of the art that is considered ‘Canadiana,’ like the Group of Seven, depicts beautiful but eerily empty, lonely landscapes. These sorts of images further promoted the idea that the landscape was devoid of people and in need of conquering. This is one of the many, many ways Indigenous people have been erased and dehumanized through our collective documented history. Early tales of this country describe places so wild only the most masculine of men could thrive – only men of superior northern (white) races. These tales are exclusionary of women, children, and other races. As our nation grew and we formed cities, our relationships with these ideas of wilderness shifted, but only slightly.

We began to see nature as separate from human society, but it continued to be a place to be conquered, and a place for the privileged to recreate. This is the colonial or postcolonial space we exist in. We view nature as outside of society, we try to conquer and shape the landscape as we see fit, and nature is still in many ways much more accessible to the privileged. To tie this back to cottage culture, let’s first consider how for most people the cottage is at least an hour’s drive from home, an escape from the city. And have you ever looked around a lake and wondered why so many properties have been turned into a manicured subdivision lot? This speaks to an ingrained desire to conquer and change wilderness. Lastly, the ability to own a cottage continues to be a privilege many cannot afford. 

Perhaps this history is the root of the disconnect between the beautiful, natural, and inviting spaces we want our cottages to be, and the elitist, hyper-manicured realities we often find ourselves in. Consider the common values cottagers collectively share: good water quality, natural beauty, and a healthy ecosystem. Yet their actions – keeping manicured lawns, removing plants, developing the shoreline, and not properly maintaining septic systems – do not support these values. This may speak to the last piece of the colonial mindset puzzle we have been building here, and that is the idea that our wilderness is so vast it cannot entirely be conquered, thus rendering our individual actions inconsequential. In this age of globalization and planet-wide environmental crisis, I hope it is becoming clear how wrong this mindset is. 

I don’t mean to suggest that these ideas are in the front of peoples’ minds or that they are consciously following in these traditions, but rather that colonial narratives have shaped our culture and social norms. They run in the background of our minds and our society, and it is up to us to acknowledge them, replace them, and move forward. This requires the deconstruction of the frontier mentalities of boundless wilderness and the drive to conquer, alter, and control. It involves confronting the notion of property as a right for the privileged and replacing it with the idea that property is a privilege with the burden of responsibility; a responsibility to maintain its ecological integrity, to preserve it, and to allow it to be part of the larger system owned by us all. 

Change involves accountability at an individual and community-scale. It involves seeing the lake as an ecosystem before a place to wakeboard and seeing your cottage as taking over a piece of nature, rather than seeing a seedling as taking over your lawn. A new mindset puts ecosystem priorities over recreation priorities and seeks to find ways to recreate which do the least harm. 

This new mindset needs to define Canadians as both part of the wilderness and keepers of the wilderness, and the wilderness as necessary, changing, and worthy of protection. Canadians being a part of Canada, not Canada being a part of Canadians. It needs to be inclusionary of all peoples, locations, and ecosystems. It is not a mindset that inhibits the enjoyment of nature, but one that sees the whole picture and does not seek to compartmentalize. 

We have been defining ourselves by a place, an idea of wilderness devoid of people and society. This has never been accurate, no matter how far we went to prove it through the attempted genocide of Indigenous peoples. It is time to define ourselves within – to find a connection that goes beyond propaganda, hype, and postcards. The narrative of the past is worn out, the narrative of the future is clear, and it’s up to us to get there, one mindset and one cottage at a time. 

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Constructing unique world-class competition facilities for multisport events often leaves behind overbuilt, expensive and underused relics. With this harsh reality in mind, organizers for this summer’s Pan Am and Parapan Am Games in Toronto are taking lessons from other host cities to develop best practices for infrastructure design and construction during both competition and post-games operation. Placing long-term legacy ahead of short-term spectator demands, planners are prioritizing venue usability after the games in an effort to produce one of the most sustainable multisport events in the world.

While Toronto 2015 will use 15 renovated and rehabilitated venues, construction of new facilities is part of most major multisport competitions. The CIBC Pan Am/Parapan Am Aquatics Centre and Field House is the largest single construction project for the 2015 games – and its $205-million price tag is also the largest single investment to date in Canadian amateur sport. Yet the complex, located on the University of Toronto Scarborough Campus, is designed for long-term sustainability, both in construction and operation.

Architect’s rendering of the CIBC Pan Am/Parapan Am Aquatics Centre and Field House exterior.

A geothermal system of 100 boreholes, each reaching 200 metres deep will provide approximately 40 percent of peak building cooling needs, and 20 to 50 percent of the peak-heating load.

But design teams have been successful in using building methods and technologies that count as credits toward LEED certification, an international rating system for green buildings and neighbourhoods. For example, the entire 312,000-square-foot facility includes a geothermal system of 100 boreholes, each reaching 200 metres deep. This system will provide approximately 40 percent of peak building cooling needs, and 20 to 50 percent of the peak-heating load. The roof of the Aquatics Centre boasts a solar array to help offset energy costs. That system is expected to produce 690,000 kilowatt hours annually, approximately 6.5 percent of the total energy needs for the facility. Through such features, designers have achieved LEED Gold certification (the second-highest LEED ranking) for the Aquatics Centre and Field House.

To work toward the Toronto Green Standard, which aims to reduce the city’s greenhouse gas emissions beyond the criteria laid out by the Ontario Building Code, the complex also incorporates a green roof over the training pool and other sections of the facility. The venue has automated systems for ventilation, heating and cooling; detailed monitoring to compare these systems’ performance against benchmarks; and water-saving and water-recovery systems.

To accommodate future sporting events and community needs, the Aquatics Centre portion of the facility will be scaled down following Pan Am competition. Much like the aquatics centre built for the London 2012 Olympic Games, the Toronto facility will reduce capacity from approximately 10,000 to 3,200 seats – still enough space to host other world-class competitions. Temporary external walls will be removed once the seating is reduced and a permanent exterior wall will be installed, leaving more outdoor space for community pick-up and drop-off.

If venues exist primarily for the development of high-performance sport, the local community gains little more than upkeep costs

Such concerns for “legacy” are increasingly driving venue design for Olympic and Pan Am competitions. Decades ago, legacy referred to how facilities would support the development of future high-performance athletes. The quarter-century-old bobsleigh track in Calgary, for example, has contributed to strong performances by Canadians at more recent Olympic and World Cup events. However, such venues are expensive, and if they exist primarily for the development of high-performance sport, the local community gains little more than upkeep costs.

In contrast, the Richmond Oval, used for speed skating events at the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games, has been converted for use as a community recreation and fitness centre. The speed skating track was removed and replaced by basketball and badminton courts, hockey rinks and gym space. The legacy plan was aimed squarely at encouraging the public to enjoy an active lifestyle.

The 2015 Pan Am Velodrome, built to LEED silver specifications in Milton, Ontario, blends the models used in Calgary and Richmond. The banked track will host cycling competitions at the games, then will be maintained over the long term as a training facility for elite athletes and neophytes alike. The infield of the track – a marshalling area for athletes and coaches during the games – will be converted to three basketball courts. A gym and other fitness facilities will also be available to the general public, supported by “learn to ride” programs aimed at getting more people to try track cycling. The Velodrome will thereby bolster recreation opportunities in one of the fastest-growing parts of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA).

Canada’s track cycling team will also benefit from the Pan Am Velodrome: The team currently trains in Los Angeles because an appropriate venue previously did not exist in Canada. Both Cycling Canada and the Ontario Cycling Association are setting up offices in the Velodrome.

 “Other games have used less overlay or built only permanent facilities. We’ve really worked to try to avoid that white elephant in our planning.”
– John Baker, VP of overlay
 

Not all venues designed for the Toronto Pan Am games will remain beyond the summer of 2015. Many of the competition and festival venues around the GTA fall into a category of facilities known as “overlay.” Plans for overlay projects entail renting and constructing temporary grandstands, tents and other facilities as needed, then removing them once the event is over. Such temporary venues will be erected around the GTA, including at Nathan Philips Square in front of Toronto City Hall. The building process for overlay features started this spring and will take approximately six weeks. Once the games are finished, the equipment will be disassembled and returned to the stage and equipment rental companies.

Like the seating reduction plan at the Aquatics Centre, every Pan Am venue has some facet of overlay construction. The Direct Energy Centre, currently a convention venue on the grounds of the Canadian National Exhibition, is being converted into competition areas for a variety of sports, including squash, racquetball, basketball and handball.

The CIBC Pan Am/Parapan Am Park on Toronto’s waterfront, pictured at night.

“For Toronto 2015, our focus has been on what we need for the long term,” explains vice president of overlay John Baker. “Overlay fills in the gaps. The process in Toronto was really about figuring out our existing stock of venues. If there’s not a long-term need for a facility, the whole thing is done through overlay.”

The Pan Am beach volleyball facility, much like the venue for the 2012 London Olympics, is completely overlay. Only the sand will remain after competition is complete, and even that will be relocated to other facilities.

The CIBC Pan Am/Parapan Am Athlete’s Village
looking west toward downtown.

The games’ largest overlay projects will augment the Pan Am/Parapan Am Athlete’s Village. This LEED Gold project was constructed for the games on a 32-hectare site near the Toronto waterfront. While the village will provide housing for 10,000 athletes and coaches, some accommodation will also remain after the games: 787 units will be sold at market value; 253 units will be made available as affordable rental housing; and George Brown College will take over one building as a residence capable of housing 500 students. The overlay components include the main restaurant for athletes and coaches, a temporary facility with a kitchen capable of serving 2,500 people. A welcome centre and small shopping plaza will also be constructed entirely through overlay methods, including tents and hard-walled temporary structures.

“Toronto 2015 has set a high standard in terms of overlay use,” said Baker, who has worked on multisport events since the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games. “Other games have used less overlay or built only permanent facilities. We’ve really worked to try to avoid that white elephant in our planning.”

Beyond creating locations for events, Pan Am organizers are also tackling transportation. Navigating Toronto has become a sore point for many people in the GTA as car traffic has pushed average commute times to well over an hour. With more than 250,000 Pan Am spectators expected in Toronto this summer, getting around the city could become even harder. The Ontario Ministry of Transportation is finalizing an overall transportation plan for the games, part of which will rely on bike-share programs.

The largest such system is Bike Share Toronto, operated by the Toronto Parking Authority since it took ownership from Bixi in 2013. Although the system has changed hands, Bike Share Toronto is committed to its predecessors’ expansion plans. The existing system consists of 80 bike parking and pay stations and 1,000 bikes. Another 20 stations will be added ahead of the 2015 Games. These new stations will be distributed to align with major Pan Am venues, then redistributed after the games to expand the current Bike Share Toronto layout.

“Bike Share Toronto will also corral a fleet of additional bikes to handle demands that exceed the capacity of a standard station when games events finish,” says Marie Casista, vice president of real estate and development for the Toronto Parking Authority. “The most likely locations for those corrals will be at major venues like BMO Field, Union Station and the Rogers Centre.”

Bike Share Toronto is also considering investment in additional communications efforts to help explain the system to new users and visiting tourists. “We really think bike share is an excellent form of transportation, and a key part of the transportation system in Toronto, not just for the Pan Am games, but in general,” says Casista, adding that membership has increased in the last few months.

The Toronto 2015 Pan Am/Parapan Am Games will host elite athletes from across the Western hemisphere. Thanks to the efforts of planners and builders, venues that remain after the games will serve as legacy for swimmers, cyclists and the greater community in general, motivating Canadians young and old to embrace a more active lifestyle. 

Images courtesy of TO2015.

Use Bike Share Toronto to get around during the Pan Am/Parapan Am Games! Check out bikesharetoronto.com for a map of in-service stations and the number of bikes available at each location. 

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Recently, a group of senior citizens calling themselves the “Walking Sticks” met at High Park Nature Centre in Toronto to participate in a unique Nature Elders program. Nature Elders is an environmental education experience designed to address the unique needs and interests of seniors. As the Walking Sticks and other seniors gathered for their Nature Elders session, the topic of conversation focused on past experiences with nature, times when – for many seniors – nature was a big part of everyday life. The Nature Elders program was developed, in part, to give seniors the opportunity to reminisce about such experiences. According to environmental psychologist Louise Chawla, recalling such experiences can deepen one’s connections with the natural world. Such memories, she says, continue to enrich our lives as we grow older; they’re like radioactive jewels buried within us emitting energy across the years of our lives.

The Nature Elders program – now under revision to accommodate differing levels of mobility and to include seniors in retirement residences – is just one example of an emerging trend to get more seniors engaged with nature. As described by Richard Louv in his book The Nature Principle, we all need nature for our physical, psychological and emotional well-being. Yet, opportunities for active engagement with nature are rapidly diminishing.

RELATED: “Prescribing a Dose of Nature” in A\J’s Ultimate Health Issue.

While nature centers and other environmental institutions offer programs to reconnect people with nature, their activities are often designed for younger people who hike, bike and kayak. Health, mobility and stamina issues may prevent seniors from being active participants in such programs – thus the emergence of specifically designed programs.

Some programs bring seniors to nature; others bring nature to seniors. The Fontenelle Forest Nature Center in Bellevue, Nebraska, does both. Their on-site program – referred to as SUN (Seniors Understanding Nature) – has been in place for 12 years and attracts 30 to 50 seniors each monthly session. A typical SUN session includes a stimulating nature-related program (an interactive presentation on native plants, for example), light refreshments and some social time – all with the special needs of seniors in mind. SUN sessions are usually followed by an optional guided walk through the forest or along the river. A boardwalk makes this accessible for participants with wheelchairs and walkers.

The Fontenelle Forest Nature Center also offers Traveling SUN, which takes the program to locations where seniors gather, including church groups, community groups, independent living facilities and assisted living and long-term care sites. Catherine Kuper, an educator at Fontenelle Forest, reports that Traveling SUN is actually more in demand than SUN. Last year, Traveling SUN presented 220 outreach programs to 4,000 seniors. Such a demand, along with ten years of history, attests to the success of this program in meeting seniors’ interest in the natural world and their desire to learn.

OWLS (Older and Wiser, Learning for Seniors) is another example. OWLS is offered through the Brillion Nature Center in Brillion, Wisconsin. Louie Kolberg, naturalist with the Brillion Nature Center, says that OWLS started after the activities coordinator of an assisted living center asked if her residents would be able to participate in “Smalls and Talls” – a program designed for young children (preschoolers) and their caregivers. Activities for preschool children who are highly mobile and have lots of energy are generally not a good fit for seniors, so Kolberg started the OWLS program, where activities accommodate a wide range of mobility, dexterity and cognitive abilities.

Kolberg says that one of the goals of OWLS is to give seniors an opportunity to get “out of the box” – both literally and figuratively. So many people, she notes, end up spending the majority of their golden years alone inside the same walls day in and day out. For Kolberg, it was important to give seniors a chance to have social interaction while learning something new in a beautiful setting. Through the OWLS program, seniors are getting out in the woods, sitting around a campfire, visiting a pond, seeing live animals and sharing memories that haven’t surfaced in years.

By the end of the program, participants dealing with depression reported greater feelings of happiness and joy and reduced feelings of sadness, hopelessness and loneliness.

Programs like these are based on the understanding that getting seniors outside in nature promotes their overall well-being. Research provides strong support for this understanding. Ruth McCaffrey, Professor of the College of Nursing at Florida Atlantic University, helped to establish the “Stroll for Well-Being” garden walk program at Morikami Park near Boca Raton, Florida. By the end of the program, participants dealing with depression reported greater feelings of happiness and joy and reduced feelings of sadness, hopelessness and loneliness. These findings are consistent with other studies reporting less depression and improved cognitive functioning for seniors who spend time actively engaged with nature, indicating that engagement with nature can improve seniors’ capacity for living independently over a longer period of time.

Another avenue for seniors to become engaged with nature is through the Road Scholar program (run by Elderhostel). Road Scholar Canada offers educational tours in all provinces. An online search can be done by province, monthly features or most popular programs. The most popular nature tours in Canada include “Rockies by Rail: Western Canada’s Splendor” and “Northwest Waterways.” Travellers can also search by area of interest, such as birding, walking/hiking, or natural history. Not all seniors have access to nature-focused programs in their communities or are interested in nature-related travel, but opportunities for connecting with nature are numerous. Something as simple as a garden bench or a path through a nearby park can be used to enhance closeness with nature. Studies from Japan suggest that walking through a forest may be especially effective in reducing stress, lowering blood pressure, strengthening the immune systems, and reducing symptoms related to depression and anxiety. These studies are based on the popular practice of shinrin-yoku, or “forest-bathing,” which is now a recognized relaxation and stress management activity in Japan.

In The Nature Principle, Louv explains how a daily dose of “Vitamin N” – nature, not something that comes in a bottle – is essential to our health and well-being. Seniors, like everyone else, can reap the benefits of this prescription – and have fun at the same time.

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Picture a towering garden overflowing with native wildflowers. Add a Hobbit hole, an Ewok village, an airplane and a pirate ship all made from recycled and repurposed materials. Weave it all together with a network of winding trails and hidden treasures, and what do you get? The most fabulous natural play space you can imagine!

Shauna Leis and Kirk Bergey have been designing and manually constructing this magical landscape – or “playscape” – in Wellesley, Ontario, for over a decade. As their two young children flitted around like woodland fairies, we toured the garden and learned some of its secrets.

In 2005, Richard Louv published Last Child in the Woods: Saving our Children from Nature Deficit Disorder and brought popular attention to the importance of reconnecting children with nature. In a time and place of rapid urbanization, individual efforts to create and sustain natural spaces that welcome children have become critically important.

Spending time in nature has remarkable benefits for children’s health that researchers are only starting to explore.

Spending time in nature has remarkable benefits for children’s health that researchers are only starting to explore. Norwegian researchers found that when children play in green spaces, they are physically active in diverse ways, engaging a variety of muscle groups as they run, jump and climb. Play becomes more creative when children interact with loose parts that are inherently provided by natural settings. They even get along better, as there is less competition for resources and space. Time in nature has been tied to decreases in stress and anxiety, as well as improved attention. There are even studies demonstrating a link between time spent in nature and better vision, and a possible link between soil bacteria and learning ability.

RELATED: “Prescribing a Dose of Nature” in A\J’s Ultimate Health Issue.

While everyone’s health clearly benefits from time in nature, the long-term sustainability of our natural environment relies heavily on how today’s children understand and interact with the world. Children who spend time in nature develop a sense of responsibility for its welfare. Nature can become something familiar, reassuring and expected, rather than the occasional novelty. Providing children with these types of experiences will help ensure the survival of the natural world, as they grow up to become planners, politicians and parents.

RELATED: Generation Green

Despite these benefits, efforts to preserve natural spaces often revolve around the intentional exclusion of little feet and hands. Children can, of course, do significant damage to a landscape. However, I would argue, with a little creativity, there are countless ways to promote harmonious interactions between the two. Shauna and Kirk have created that harmony right in their own backyard. The family spends most of their time outside. The children are entirely comfortable and spend their free time exploring, playing, building, creating and imagining here.

Our tour of the one-acre garden begins with a lovely circular vegetable patch. The children are heavily involved with the planting and care of the vegetable garden from choosing the seeds to harvesting the rewards. The garden is bordered on one side by an arbour tunnel hosting both grape vines and a swing. On the other side is a fantastic play structure nestled in the trees. The structure features an “Ewok village” with bridges, ropes, planks, and multiple platforms. Attached are a pirate ship and airplane just waiting to play a role in daring adventures.

Photo taken by Paul Habsch (taken June 2013)

Next we explore the winding paths that meander through gardens of native species, downhill toward a pond. Along one path, we find a Hobbit hole nestled into the side of a hill, with a small round entrance leading to an underground playhouse. Following the network of trails, we come across a tunnel and plenty of other surprises – hanging guitars, a sunken chair, a bicycle. In winter the paths are converted into a speedy luge track.

Given this enticing natural setting for play, the children who live here are likely to develop an understanding and comfort with nature that is unusual in today’s society.

During the interview, our hosts offered a few tips on building natural playgrounds.

1. It doesn’t have to cost a lot of money. All of the work in this garden was done by hand, and almost all of the materials were found by the side of the road, donated by friends or neighbours, or bought at garage sales or the re-store. Nothing was pre-fabricated.
2. Creativity in play space design is key. Almost anyone can set up standard play equipment from a local building store, but these structures fail to capture the imagination and are limited in flexibility and personalization.
3. The garden should evolve as the children grow. Components can appear gradually – and disappear – over time. As the children’s capabilities and interests change, so will the garden.
4. Involve children in the process, from dreaming up the initial ideas to helping them come true.

While this particular project took shape on an acre of land, natural playscaping doesn’t require a great deal of space. With a little imagination and some reclaimed materials, an appealing natural play space can be built almost anywhere, at very low cost.

There is a magic in this garden that is surprisingly difficult to capture with words or even pictures. As we watched the children dance around the yard, it was clear that some of its magic has been transferred to them. 

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Psychologist Elizabeth Nisbet explains why greenery takes away the blues.

MUCH OF OUR discourse around environmental issues involves hazards like air and water pollution, deforestation, species extinction or the looming consequences of global climate change. Rarely do we ponder the importance of protecting the natural environment as a mental health resource.

Psychologist Elizabeth Nisbet explains why greenery takes away the blues.

MUCH OF OUR discourse around environmental issues involves hazards like air and water pollution, deforestation, species extinction or the looming consequences of global climate change. Rarely do we ponder the importance of protecting the natural environment as a mental health resource. Yet, increasingly, scientists from varied disciplines are investigating how interaction with the natural world can improve both physical and psychological health. For those feeling discouraged about the seemingly overwhelming environmental problems we face and the many barriers to changing destructive behaviour, the notion of nature as a source of health, healing and even happiness is exciting.

A growing body of evidence points to the importance of green space for mitigating the health hazards associated with urbanization, such as heart disease, respiratory illness, low birth weight, poor immune functioning and higher mortality. Several decades of research in Japan, Korea and Finland have demonstrated that natural and urban environments affect the human stress response differently. People immersed in nature show benefits on a variety of physiological indicators, such as heart rate variability, levels of cortisol (the “fight or flight” hormone), the presence of anti-cancer proteins and the natural killer-cell activity important for immune functioning.

Natural environments can enhance problem solving, concentration and social cohesion.

Contact with nature improves mental health as well. People suffering from clinical depression ruminate less and have more positive emotions after walking through an arboretum than after walking in an urban core. Beyond simply reducing stress and ill-being, natural environments can enhance problem solving, concentration and social cohesion. Not surprisingly, in greener communities neighbours interact more with each other and people feel safer and better adjusted.

Even brief contact with unspectacular urbanized nature can increase happiness more than we realize. Researchers who asked people to predict in advance what their mood would be like after a short walk in nature found they tended to underestimate how much it would boost positive emotions. Other research indicates that the greater the amount of nature time, the larger the happiness boost. An additional benefit of nature contact is a stronger sense of connection with the natural world. This has important implications for both happiness and environmentally friendly behaviour.

Because nature contact is lacking in our daily routines, researchers and organizations – including the Nature Connectedness Research Group at the University of Derby and the David Suzuki Foundation – are testing interventions that promote more nature time.This emerging research is informing nature-based programs like hospital gardens, therapeutic gardening, schoolyard greening, animal-assisted therapy, forest schools, “mood walks” and ecotherapy. As nature’s potential as a mental health resource is recognized, we can hope it will inspire further research, new clinical applications and, most importantly, a greater desire to protect our “happy” nature places. 

Dr. Melissa Lem dispenses practical tips on reducing stress through nature.

FROM NORTHERN NURSING stations to urban campus health clinics, my career as a family physician has taken me to some two-dozen communities across Canada. Though every practice population is unique, mental health issues cross socioeconomic boundaries, affecting one in five Canadians each year. Whether it is cross-country skiing on Inuvik’s world-class trails or running through Toronto’s ravine system, I seek out nature daily to unwind and recharge after hectic emergency shifts and long office days. Given the disparity in local healthcare resources, connecting with nature is a powerful way to combat stress, mood and attention disorders.

Nature exposure is certainly not a panacea for mental illness. Social inequalities, among other factors, also contribute to poorer health status. But for residents of rural and northern areas, who encounter higher rates of depression, access to green space and a close community could both be harnessed to improve well-being.

Just looking out a window at nature helps lower stress, but exercise in nature has still more positive effects. Since well-attended sports leagues exist in most towns, nature leagues would be a logical next step. The Mood Walks program jointly run by Hike Ontario and the Canadian Mental Health Association is a prime example of a partnership that emphasizes the health-promoting role of nature in neighbourhoods of all sizes.

Children have the most to gain from everyday green time.

Although it may be more challenging to find a meadow within a metropolis, mindfulness is key to getting more green time even there. City-dwellers can enjoy daily micro-experiences in nature by walking or biking to work and taking scheduled mental health breaks using nearby parks, gardens and trails. Detailed urban greenspace maps, like the groundbreaking one launched by Scotland in 2011, could help locate these calming green pockets. And because recreation in greener environments produces greater benefits, urbanites should make a routine of weekend encounters with wilderness in provincial and national parks.

Children have the most to gain from everyday green time – an effective remedy for the modern malady of excessive screen time. Sleep, school performance and social skills all suffer in avid television watchers. By contrast, stress goes down and self-esteem and cognitive function improve in youth with more nature contact. In fact, a 2009 study by A.F. Taylor and F.E. Kuo in the Journal of Attention Disorders showed that the attention-boosting effects of a 20-minute walk in the park for children with ADHD rivalled those of prescription stimulant medication. For developing brains, unstructured time in green space, cloud watching, tree climbing or fort building form the basis for a sound relationship with nature that can last a lifetime.

Removing barriers to green space access is essential. One-quarter of Japanese citizens regularly escape to government-funded shinrin-yoku or “forest-bathing” sites. Our governments could consider offering tax credits for passes to parklands or dues paid to nature societies. Physicians also have a role to play: Like recently introduced “exercise prescriptions,” nature prescriptions could be an effective motivational tool. To address parental concerns about stranger danger, organizations like the Children & Nature Network focus on linking up and educating families aiming to get outside together. Finally, advocating for greener cities and the preservation of wild spaces will help make nature more accessible for all. 

Get inspired by great examples of nature programs for seniors and tips for building a natural playground!

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