The Benefits of Nature Connection
“Never let formal education get in the way of your learning.”
-Mark Twain
Let’s Explore a Little Deeper
We humans have been experiencing nature and waxing on about it since, well, basically forever. There’s something about this topic that makes us want to keep peeling back layers of the onion, only to find at its center a Rubik’s cube covered in a gnarled hairball. Despite the challenge, it’s a topic that’s kept indigenous peoples, scientists, writers, philosophers, and poets rapt for thousands of years. So what have we learned?
It feels f*cking amazing! That’s the short version anyway.
From a scientific perspective, there appears to be enough evidence to say that nature does more for our wellbeing than simply offering pretty decorations by the roadside (see the benefits below). When it comes to understanding the mechanisms, we’ve learned a few. Yet, it feels like it must have felt to be studying exercise science or sleep science thirty years ago. It’s early days.
My hope is that we’ll gain striking enough evidence that it motivates people to incorporate nature connection into their everyday lives, much in the same way we see nutrition, physical activity, and sleep for wellbeing. At the same time, every answer begs more questions, so it’s unlikely we’ll ever have the full picture. And this couldn’t be more fitting.
Nature, in it’s cheeky way, always leaves a bit of mystery on the table. Instead of fighting this, we can embrace it. In the absence of all the data and understanding, we can let the aliveness of our direct, felt experience guide us.
Get outside and see how it feels. Go inside yourself for a moment and scan the landscape. What’s happening? Notice the kinship between people, plants, fungi, and animals. Openly observe, ask questions, experiment. Share what you’ve found. Ask more questions. Let your curiosity burn brightly as you enjoy the ride.
Go ahead, unleash your inner Nature Junkie.
The Holistic Benefits
The Rabbit Hole.
(More resources just in case you want to geek out.)
References
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