One thousand good things in Nature: aspects of nearby Nature associated with improved connection to Nature

As our interactions with nature occur increasingly within urban landscapes, there is a need to consider how ‘mundane nature’ can be valued as a route for people to connect to nature. The content of a three good things in nature intervention, written by 65 participants each day for five days is analysed. Content analysis produced themes related to sensations, temporal change, active wildlife, beauty, weather, colour, good feelings and specific aspects of nature. The themes describe the everyday good things in nature, providing direction for those seeking to frame engaging conservation messages, plan urban spaces and connect people with nearby nature

Against all odds—why UK mothers’ breastfeeding beyond infancy are turning to their international peers for emotional and informative support

The health benefits of breastfeeding are well documented and current recommendations are that women should breastfeed their child for two years and beyond. Despite this the UK has the lowest initiation breastfeeding rates in the world. Additionally, a considerably small percentage of women who do successfully initiate go on to breastfeed past infancy. This could in part be explained by the lack of support women receive when breastfeeding an older child. In this study we provide insight into women’s experiences of healthcare interventions during the transition from breastfeeding an infant to a toddler. We conducted semi-structured interviews with 24 women with experience of breastfeeding at least one child past the age of twelve months. We used a theory driven thematic analysis to identify pertinent themes that ran through the interviews. As mothers progressed through their breastfeeding journey they faced increased social stigma. They also experienced a change in attitudes from healthcare professionals as support was replaced by judgement. This negatively impacted upon trust in healthcare professionals and the advice they offered. In response, the women turned to volunteering organizations and closed social media groups for emotional support and healthcare advice. These women experienced specific issues regarding breastfeeding in toddlerhood as opposed to infancy. They needed specialized interventions tailored for this. Social media was highlighted as a useful platform for supporting women who breastfeed beyond infancy. It allowed these women to feel part of a supportive international community and gain access to practical advice. Healthcare professionals should explore ways to engage in digital platforms to provide support to mothers’ breastfeeding beyond infancy.University of Derb

"We've been exploring and adventuring." A investigation into young people's engagement with a semi wild, disused space

This paper uses ethnography to explore young people’s engagement with an intervention run by Feral Spaces which was designed to promote a meaningful connection to a disused space. Over the course of three sessions, each lasting two hours, seven young people aged between 11 and 12 years old took part in a range of den building activities in a semi-wild area which was local to them. The sessions were recorded using audio and video equipment and an inductive thematic analysis informed by a realist framework was used to analyse the naturalistic data collected. The analysis presents four themes - engaging with the environment, developing a sense of awe and wonder, respect and attachment to the space and a sense of belonging which map out the young people’s growing connection to nature evidenced during the intervention. Within each of these themes the young people’s experiences are discussed in relation to theory of biophilia and the pathways to nature model in order to evaluate their relevance for researchers and practitioners who seek to understand children’s connection with nature and promote it. Furthermore, the positive relationships and emotions experienced during the intervention are explored. It is argued that the community-based intervention developed the young people’s understandings of the natural world and their confidence to engage with it in a personally meaningful way. This had positive implications in terms of supporting the young people’s wellbeing.N/

The secret language of flowers: insights from an outdoor, arts-based intervention designed to connect primary school children to locally accessible nature.

This paper uses ethnography to explore an outdoor, arts-based intervention run by Urban Wilderness, in partnership with an English primary school. Urban Wilderness are a not-for-profit organisation which aims to connect children and young people from disadvantaged areas to locally accessible nature. Over the course of three afternoon workshops, Urban Wilderness facilitators, a professional artist and teaching staff explored a local park with ten 9–10-year-old children and co-created a sculpture which was exhibited in the park as part of a family festival. Analysis of audio recordings and photographs taken during the workshops explored the ways in which a youth led approach and arts-based methods (i) fostered a sense of connection to the park and (ii) deepened the children’s knowledge about the plants they observed. It is argued that arts-based methods created a sense of presence in nature which fostered close attention to the surrounding environment and reflection upon the children’s relationship with it. The creation of art also facilitated the development of multi-levelled understandings of nature which encompassed identification, folk law and symbolism. As such analysis highlighted the relevance of outdoor learning and a Froebelian approach for older primary school children who are traditionally taught in classroom environments.N/

Do commencing nursing and paramedicine students differ in interprofessional learning and practice attitudes: evaluating course, socio-demographic and individual personality effects

Background Interprofessional education (IPE) requires health students to learn with, from and about each other in order to develop a modern workforce with client-centred care at its core. Despite the client centred focus of IPE, training programs often utilize standard approaches across student cohorts without consideration of discipline, sociodemographic and personality variability that attract students to different health disciplines. Knowing the students who engage in IPE to tailor training may prove as beneficial as knowing the client to delivered individualized client centred care in interprofessional practice (IPP). This research investigates whether students commencing undergraduate nursing and paramedicine degrees ener training with existing demographic and personality differences and, if these are associated with different attitudes towards health care teams and interprofessional education. Method This online study recruited 160 nursing and 50 paramedicine students in their first week of their undergraduate course. Students completed questionnaires regarding their background, personality (General Perceived Self Esteem Scale, International Mini Markers) and the attitudes towards health care teams scale (ATHCTS) and interprofessional education perception scale (IEPS). Results Results show that commencing nursing and paramedicine students are demographically different on education, gender, speaking a language other than English at home (LOTE) and their own experience with healthcare. The results further demonstrate that LOTE, discipline being studied and personality factors play a role in perceptions regarding interprofessional training whilst discipline being studied impacted on attitudes towards health care teams in the workforce. Conclusion These results highlight a number of existing personal and psychological differences between individuals who choose to train in these selected professions. This suggests a need for tertiary education IPE programs to move towards tailoring their education to value this student diversity in the same client centred manner that students are asked to develop clinically

The good things children notice in nature: An extended framework for reconnecting children with nature

This research identifies themes emerging from a children’s writing task, where they wrote about good things they noticed in nature over a five day period. Eighty four children aged nine to eleven participated, resulting in 847 written statements. Content analysis using an emergent coding approach identified ten themes, with “Active Animals” being the most frequently occurring theme. Combining the themes with Author (2017a, b, c) pathways to nature connection provides an extended framework to inform children’s activity programmes, design of school grounds and urban spaces, aiming to connect children with nature. Future research could extend the framework into a practitioner’s tool kit.N/

Opening doors to nature: Bringing calm and raising aspirations of vulnerable young people through nature-based intervention

This qualitative study explores the experiences of YMCA residents who participated in a nature-based intervention designed to support wellbeing run by Derbyshire Wildlife Trust and YMCA Derbyshire. The intervention ran over 9 weeks and involved taking groups of residents off site for a range of outdoor activities from allotment gardening to nature conservation in various outdoor environments.  After the intervention took place semi-structured interviews, which explored the personal journeys of 8 residents who had participated in the intervention, were conducted. An IPA analysis of the interviews identified three superordinate themes: building social relationships, developing skills and developing feelings of self-worth and managing emotions through nature. It is argued that the intervention enabled the residents to feel part of a supportive community which enabled a positive shift in identity. Furthermore, the programme helped residents manage their emotions, supporting their mental health and promoting a general sense of wellbeing. This is especially important, given that members of the intervention have a history of mental health issues and often come from a background of higher socio-economic deprivation, where opportunities for social cohesion and nature connectedness are scarce. N/

Communicating choice: an exploration of mothers' experiences of birth

YesObjective: This article gives an in-depth insight into the ways in which communication between midwives and the birthing woman shape the birth experience. Background: Birth is a significant life event for many women that can have profound, long-lasting effects on how they see themselves as women and mothers. Within the literature the importance of control over the birth experience and the support that the birthing woman receives from midwives is stressed. Methods: Six women who had recently given birth participated in one-to-one semi-structured interviews designed to explore the kinds of support they received before, during and after their birth. An inductive thematic analysis was employed in order to identify and explore key issues which ran throughout the interviews. Results: Within the interviews the importance of being an active mother, someone who made decisions in relation to her labour, was stressed. The analysis explores the ways in which communication style and compassionate care either enabled or prevented women from adopting the position of ‘active’ mother. Conclusion: It is argued that a personal connection with midwives and clear and open communication which places the birthing woman in a position of control are key to positive birth experiences

Governing the souls of young women: exploring the perspectives of mothers on parenting in the age of sexualisation

The sexualisation of young women has emerged as a growing concern within contemporary western cultures. This has provoked adult anxieties that young women are growing up too fast by adopting inappropriate sexual practices and subjectivies. Psychological discourses have dominated which position sexualisation as a corrupting force that infects the ‘true self’ of young women, so they develop in abnormal ways. This in turn allows psychological practices to govern how to parent against sexualisation within families. To explore this further, six mothers each with daughters aged between eight and twelve years old took part in one to one semi-structured interviews designed to explore how they conceptualised and parented against the early sexualisation of young women. A Foucauldian inspired discourse analysis was employed, which suggested that the mothers talk was situated within a psychological discourse. This enabled sexualisation to be positioned as a corrupting force that disrupted the natural development of young women through deviant bodily practices (e.g. consuming sexualised goods), which prevented them from becoming their ‘true self’. Through the disciplinary gaze of psychology, class inequalities were reproduced where working class families were construed as ‘chavs’ who were bad parents and a site of contagion for sexualisatio

Bermuda 2.0: Reflections from Santa Cruz

In February 1996, the genome community met in Bermuda to formulate principles for circulating genomic data. Although it is now 20 years since the Bermuda Principles were formulated, they continue to play a central role in shaping genomic and data-sharing practices. However, since 1996, “openness” has become an increasingly complex issue. This commentary seeks to articulate three core challenges data-sharing faces today