Mandai mangrove, Singapore: Lessons for the conservation of Southeast Asia's mangroves

Raffles Bulletin of ZoologySUPPL.2555-6

Connection to nature is predicted by family values, social norms and personal experiences of nature

To achieve broad-based public support for conservation policies and actions, we need to understand what strengthens a person’s connection to nature, since that has been shown to translate into environmentally protective attitudes and behaviour. We conducted a national survey in Singapore to investigate the associations of family values (biospheric, altruistic, and egoistic), social norms relating to spending time in nature, and experiences of nature, with three dimensions of connection to nature (measured using the nature-relatedness scale) – NR-Perspective (cognitive), NR-Self (affective) and NR-Experience (experiential). We found that family values were significantly associated with all three dimensions of a person’s connection to nature. Biospheric and altruistic family values had a direct and positive association with NR-Perspective, while egoistic family values had a direct but negative association. The relationship between biospheric values and the three dimensions of connection to nature was also mediated through social norms of family and friends, and experiences of nature. Our findings indicate that family values, social norms and experiences of nature can variously explain different aspects of connection to nature, and that strategies focused on strengthening and/or appealing to biospheric family values, and the design of interventions that make spending time in nature with family and friends a social norm, could be useful in enhancing connection to nature in people

Social media, nature, and life satisfaction: global evidence of the biophilia hypothesis

10.1038/s41598-020-60902-wScientific Reports101412

Nature-based social prescribing programmes: opportunities, challenges, and facilitators for implementation

Background Evidence on the health benefits of spending time in nature has highlighted the importance of provision of blue and green spaces where people live. The potential for health benefits offered by nature exposure, however, extends beyond health promotion to health treatment. Social prescribing links people with health or social care needs to community-based, non-clinical health and social care interventions to improve health and wellbeing. Nature-based social prescribing (NBSP) is a variant that uses the health-promoting benefits of activities carried out in natural environments, such as gardening and walking. Much current NBSP practice has been developed in the UK, and there is increasing global interest in its implementation. This requires interventions to be adapted for different contexts, considering the needs of populations and the structure of healthcare systems. Methods This paper presents results from an expert group participatory workshop involving 29 practitioners, researchers, and policymakers from the UK and Germany’s health and environmental sectors. Using the UK and Germany, two countries with different healthcare systems and in different developmental stages of NBSP practice, as case studies, we analysed opportunities, challenges, and facilitators for the development and implementation of NBSP. Results We identified five overarching themes for developing, implementing, and evaluating NBSPCapacity Building; Accessibility and Acceptability; Networks and Collaborations; Standardised Implementation and Evaluation; and Sustainability. We also discuss key strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats for each overarching theme to understand how they could be developed to support NBSP implementation. Conclusions NBSP could offer significant public health benefits using available blue and green spaces. We offer guidance on how NBSP implementation, from wider policy support to the design and evaluation of individual programmes, could be adapted to different contexts. This research could help inform the development and evaluation of NBSP programmes to support planetary health from local and global scales

Nature-based social prescribing programmes: opportunities, challenges, and facilitators for implementation

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Elsevier via the DOI in this record Background: Evidence on the health benefits of spending time in nature has highlighted the importance of provision of blue and green spaces where people live. The potential for health benefits offered by nature exposure, however, extends beyond health promotion to health treatment. Social prescribing links people with health or social care needs to community-based, non-clinical health and social care interventions to improve health and wellbeing. Nature-based social prescribing (NBSP) is a variant that uses the health-promoting benefits of activities carried out in natural environments, such as gardening and walking. Much current NBSP practice has been developed in the UK, and there is increasing global interest in its implementation. This requires interventions to be adapted for different contexts, considering the needs of populations and the structure of healthcare systems. Methods: This paper presents results from an expert group participatory workshop involving 29 practitioners, researchers, and policymakers from the UK and Germany’s health and environmental sectors. Using the UK and Germany, two countries with different healthcare systems and in different developmental stages of NBSP practice, as case studies, we analysed opportunities, challenges, and facilitators for the development and implementation of NBSP. Results: We identified five overarching themes for developing, implementing, and evaluating NBSPCapacity Building; Accessibility and Acceptability; Networks and Collaborations; Standardised Implementation and Evaluation; and Sustainability. We also discuss key strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats for each overarching theme to understand how they could be developed to support NBSP implementation. Conclusions: NBSP could offer significant public health benefits using available blue and green spaces. We offer guidance on how NBSP implementation, from wider policy support to the design and evaluation of individual programmes, could be adapted to different contexts. This research could help inform the development and evaluation of NBSP programmes to support planetary health from local and global scales.German Research FoundationGlasgow Caledonian UniversityScottish GovernmentEva Mayr-Stihl Foundatio