New Study: The Benefits of Time Outdoors The Sierra Club and the Greater Good Science Center at UC Berkeley are partnering to perform a three‐year, longitudinal study documenting the benefits of spending time in nature. The results from this cutting edge, $2.8 million research project will help support physical and mental health improvements specific to youth from typically economically disadvantaged backgrounds and communities of color, as well as veterans. Using state‐of‐the‐art laboratory equipment, field‐based research, and mobile phone data gathering, we will show that outdoor experiences improve physical and mental health. Overview Preliminary research begins this summer, and the full project will launch in 2015 with a pool of 75 urban youth and 75 veterans. All research, including considerations to physical health that measures obesity prevention and weight loss, will highlight three classes of beneficial effects: ●
Social benefits and social connections. Nature creates experiences of awe, which leads people to feel more empathetically and more inclined to socially engage with others. ● Cognitive benefits and cognitive perspective. Spending time in nature often instills a sense of perspective and distance to stressful experiences, which reduces stress and anxiety. ● Purpose and self‐efficacy. Brief experiences in nature seem to recalibrate people, to remind them of their deeper purpose in life. Anticipated Results Data will be gathered through laboratory visits prior to and following outdoor experiences, daily diaries, and in vivo reporting. During the research period, we will use digital technology to expand our participant pool nationwide. Some of the data on the physical impacts of outdoor experiences will be gathered using non‐invasive measures like genotyping, neuroendocrinology, autonomoic physiology (such as heart rate, respiration rate, and electrodermal activity). This data will show specifically how exposure and immersion in nature over time reduces depression, anxiety, and poor physical health and positively impacts inflammatory cytokine activity, cortisol levels, vagal tone, pain, and sleep. Broader Implications We believe the findings will suggest that spending time in nature often leads to a sense of awe and inspiration, which directly triggers positive, long‐term effects upon physical and mental health. Once the results are analyzed, it can be used as evidence to support policy decisions and funding that promote outdoor recreation, recess in schools, and urban design changes that facilitate easy access to green spaces, as well as programmatic and policy improvements around health support for youth, veterans, and all Americans.