Mental Vitality: Assessing the Impact of a Walk in the Woods

In this article, Mark Bowen presents an abridged version of his 2016 doctoral thesis entitled, “Mental Vitality: Assessing the Impact of a Walk in the Woods”.

The thesis attends to a gap in literature pertaining to studying nature and late adolescence.  In particular, Dr. Bowen mentioned that “this study measured one aspect of mental vitality, that of mental acuity in 16-18 year old students at an international school. Using the d2 Test of Attention to measure the impact of regular nature walks, this study found a significant improvement in participants’ mental acuity after a regular, twice weekly, 40 to 60 minute duration nature walk intervention.”

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Last Call

“It’s a detail, but just in the years 1973-74 the Italian government claimed some “Sundays with no cars at all”.  All people, not only children, were very happy for living in a world with no cars. 

That was “Last call”: nobody answered.”

In this essay by Guido Dalla Casa, he explains how economics and population growth are the main contributors to what seems to be inevitable demise.

Yet hope is not lost.  Read the “Last Call” to see his perspective.

Guides to Recycling in the U.K.

Eco-Friendly Guide to Recycling Electronic Waste

  • Aerial Recycle allows you to recycle your mobile (cellphone) or tablet.  Click here for more information.

Guide to Recycling

For general recycling information, please visit this link.

**Sending thanks to Nadia Sommers for sharing these resources with all of us!**

A Field Guide to Container Gardening

Photo from huffingtonpost.com

It might seem strange to talk about container gardening in February (at least, for people who live in the middle of winter at the moment), but for those who are interested in creating a container garden it is worthwhile to prepare for plant health and growth in a context bounded by containers.

This Field Guide to Container Gardening covers topics such as appropriate soil, types of containers, plants that thrive in vessels, as well as demystifying this kind of gardening by comparing the benefits and differences between in-ground beds and container gardens.

Using very accessible language and beautiful pictures, read more about container gardening by clicking on this linkContinue Reading →

2018 Ecopsychology Certificate Program

The Holos Institute is holding a 100-hour Ecopsychology Certificate Program that aims to facilitate a deeper connection with the natural world with subjects such as eco-therapy, climate change grief and anxiety, and sustainable practices.  Continue Reading →

The Sensuous Kinship of Body and Earth

 

In this article which appeared in the March 2017 issue of the Ecopsychology Journal, Sophia Reinders asks us a compelling question:

“How can we bring into being in ourselves and in our communities a consciousness that is earth-cherishing and aware of the planet as the living matrix in which all earth communities, including the human, are embedded and have their ground?”

The manner in which the author suggests that we go forward is poetically derived from her own experiences of oneness with nature as she beautifully recounts her embodiment of a coyote’s song and melding with the fragrance of the morning.  Using these examples, the author asks us to go beyond contemplation and gently invites us to act by “sensory reception” and “intuitive perception”.  She suggests that, as we re-awaken “our ancient capacity to be enchanted with the mystery that has given birth to us and surrounds us… we may begin to listen to the ancient dialogue of body and earth”.

Sophia’s full article may be found at http://online.liebertpub.com/doi/pdf/10.1089/eco.2016.0035

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This article first appeared in the March 2017 issue of the Ecopsychology Journal, which regularly features articles free of charge to the public for a limited period of time.

Acknowledgement for featured image: “Coyote Leaping” by John Nieto, 24″ x 30″ acrylic.  Available at Ventana Fine Art, 400 Canyon Road, Santa Fe, New Mexico 87501

Principles of Cultural Ecoresilience

Linda Buzzell and Craig Chalquist, co-editors of Ecotherapy: Healing with Nature in Mind, present principles of Ecoresilience as guidance for people adjusting to a world in the midst of change.  Their preamble speaks to the need for balance now and in the coming era if we hope, as persons and communities, to maintain a focused pace of working towards ecological restoration and to retain our individual and collective resilience despite the widespread effects of ecological imbalance:

“It’s pretty clear what isn’t working, but not so easy to envision the practicalities of a sustainable world that could really work. Craig Chalquist and I have been wrestling with this, and have developed 20 ecoresilience principles for personal and cultural adaptation to a changed planet. We’ve gathered wisdom from many sources, including the nature-based permaculture principles, ecopsychology, ecotherapy, ecospirituality, community building endeavors, indigenous wisdom, the arts, and depth psychology. Our hope is to provide at least the beginnings of an integral and hopefully inspirational view of how we and “all our relatives” might survive and even thrive on our Earth homeplace as environmental, political, economic and cultural conditions become ever more challenging.”

Click to view the paper:

2017 Buzzell – Handout The 20 Principles for Cultural Ecoresilience

REFERENCE

Buzzell, L. & Chalquist, C. (2017). 20 principles for ecoresilience. Communities Magazine, 176, Fall.

2018 Expressive Arts and Ecotherapy Program

Interested in learning about nature-focused therapies?

Sky Mountain Institute runs an annual 100-hour Certificate program in Expressive Arts and Ecotherapy from March to June.  Modalities include clay therapy, movement arts, ceremony, visual arts, poetry, sandtray, performance, language arts, and even collage!

To view the offering for 2018, please click here for the flyer.

For more information about Sky Mountain Institute, please visit their website at http://www.skymountain.org/

 

Positive effects of nature imagery on inmates

In a year-long study of 500 male prison inmates placed in restrictive housing, researchers found that watching videos of nature imagery were linked to lowered stress levels and a significant decrease in the number of disciplinary referrals due to violent infractions.

Inmates’ self-report on their emotional responses agree with the study’s overall findings.  A great majority of the participants reported feeling calmer and felt better for sustained periods.  They also stated that they enjoyed more positive relationships with prison staff.

This study adds to the growing literature on nature-based interventions and on nature exposure within urban spaces.

For details about this research, click here.

REFERENCE

Nadkarni, N, Schnacker, L, Hasbach, P., Thys, T., & Crockett, E. (2017). From Orange to Blue How Nature Imagery Affects Inmates in the Blue Room,  Corrections Today, Jan/Feb 2017, 36-40.

 

Shoal Sanctuary – Nature Retreat

Shoal Sanctuary is a 50-acre nature preserve in Florida that is open to the public for “retreats, civic-minded growth, and repose with nature”.  Individuals and groups from around the world are invited to immerse in nature, explore sculpture trails, and experience the peacemaking power of harmony with nature.

According to their website, you can:

“pitch a tent, bring a pop-up,
hop on a hammock,
rest in the “Little Green Mansion,”
or stay in the farm house.”

Find out more at www.ShoalSanctuary.com to learn about the Sanctuary’s history, its projects and activities, and accommodation information.  The Sanctuary also has a Facebook page here.

 

 

 

Experience Greenwave with Michael J. Cohen

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Dear Editor,

For revolutionary change that reverses disorders including climate change consider this:

“As exemplified by the sensation of thirst, on cellular and molecular levels, sensors (senses and their sensations) in an organism, large(Earth) or small(nanobe), are receptors that are attracted to detect stimuli. When the information that they register is out of balance, they become the main homeostatic driving force for change that promotes life in balance. Their detection process is a fundamental source that functions on mechanical, thermal and chemical levels as it promotes the survival of life. When they are not adulterated by nature-disconnecting stories the senses can be depended on as self-evident, recovery and balancing tools that are part of every space/time moment of Planet Earth.”

A new scientific tool that generates a natural genius way of thinking and feeling produces critical remedies. The art of this super-intelligence technology increases personal and global well-being in a balanced way. It is effective because it uniquely uses Nature’s healing and purifying energies to restore the wisdom of our 54 inherent natural senses We have learned to hurtfully suppress them so we “normally” suffer the pain and depression from our loss.

Ecotherapy: Nature Reconnection Workshop by Linda Buzzell

2016 April Buzzell Image for Workshop
When:  May 13 to May 15, 2016, Friday to Sunday
Where: Pacifica Graduate Institute’s Ladera Lane Campus

Exciting new research is revealing that various nature reconnection practices are powerful medicine for improved mental and physical health—in fact, many now qualify as “evidence-based medicine.” Yet little training has been available for those wanting to include the various ecotherapies in their professional healing practices or personal lives. On the beautiful Ladera campus of Pacifica Graduate Institute in Santa Barbara, nestled between the mountains and the ocean, our intensive weekend will cover the many different applied ecopsychology methods now being practiced in consulting rooms and outdoor spaces around the world. 

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New Book – The Green Troubadour

Responding to the question of whether shamanic practice can be coupled with the performing arts, David Sparenberg promotes the concept of ecosophy as the integrative link between these seemingly distanced forms of embodiment.  In The Green Troubadour, he looks at ways in which ecosophy can be the common understanding — the value system — weaved into both the process and the outcome of performance.  In the actor, therefore, we find the eco-shaman performing, healing, and being healed. Continue Reading →

The Nature Kids Institute

The founder of Nature Kids Institute (NKI), Kenny Ballentine, adds to the growing voice of nature-based organizations whose raison d’etre is to strengthen children’s familiarity and bond with the environment.  Through his organization, the Nature Kids Institute, his simple message is — help children develop a relationship with nature by promoting the idea that children should spend more time in natural areas.

The premise behind NKI’s message is that people care more about those persons, places, or things with whom they have relationships.  And what better time to develop a relationship than in childhood!  Adults, as decision makers and guides, are called upon as pivotal agents in growing the relationship between kids and nature.  Thus, NKI’s tools are intended to help adults introduce and maintain nature in children’s lives. Continue Reading →