Newsletter from Thursday, March 17th, 2022
Dear NCH2 Community,
Happy St. Patrick's day from NCH2! We hope you and your families are staying safe and healthy. Please submit materials for the next newsletter by March 30th, 2022 so we can make sure to include them. Submit items by emailing [email protected].
This week's newsletter includes information on the next NCH2 coffee and discussion event, upcoming local events, a save-the-date for an in-person "May as Mental Health Awareness Month" event, job opportunities, and links to articles in the popular press.
This week's newsletter includes information on the next NCH2 coffee and discussion event, upcoming local events, a save-the-date for an in-person "May as Mental Health Awareness Month" event, job opportunities, and links to articles in the popular press.
Next NCH2 Coffee and Discussion
On April 7th, 2022, from 12 noon to 1:15 CST, join us on Zoom for Accelerating Health and Nature Collaboration
Description: Although research demonstrates the physical and mental health benefits of time spent in nature, historic and systemic injustices prevent equitable access to these benefits, particularly for individuals from low-income and BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Color) communities. Like other social determinants of health, access to a clean and healthy environment is not incentivized through traditional fee-for-service models of healthcare. In contrast, value-based care, or VBC, (driven by quality of patient care, not quantity) presents opportunities for bridging healthcare and nature-based organizations to improve patient outcomes. This study explores the institutional and financial potential for this collaboration in the Chicagoland region, employing interviews with 27 leaders in healthcare and conservation, as well as breakout discussions with 60 community leaders in Lake County, IL. The results identify six key categories of themes, including both near term and long term opportunities and strategies for driving equitable nature-based healthcare solutions. This data has informed the development of an emerging Health, Equity, and Nature Accelerator at Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods in the northern Chicago region. Significant opportunity remains for additional investigation in other regions of the United States given the varied implementation of VBC across the country.
Presented by: The Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods. Catherine Game, Dani Abboud, and Natalia Ospin.
Attendance is free and open to the public. Register in advance for this meeting here.
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
Photo by Tirachard Kumtanom
Description: Although research demonstrates the physical and mental health benefits of time spent in nature, historic and systemic injustices prevent equitable access to these benefits, particularly for individuals from low-income and BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Color) communities. Like other social determinants of health, access to a clean and healthy environment is not incentivized through traditional fee-for-service models of healthcare. In contrast, value-based care, or VBC, (driven by quality of patient care, not quantity) presents opportunities for bridging healthcare and nature-based organizations to improve patient outcomes. This study explores the institutional and financial potential for this collaboration in the Chicagoland region, employing interviews with 27 leaders in healthcare and conservation, as well as breakout discussions with 60 community leaders in Lake County, IL. The results identify six key categories of themes, including both near term and long term opportunities and strategies for driving equitable nature-based healthcare solutions. This data has informed the development of an emerging Health, Equity, and Nature Accelerator at Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods in the northern Chicago region. Significant opportunity remains for additional investigation in other regions of the United States given the varied implementation of VBC across the country.
Presented by: The Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods. Catherine Game, Dani Abboud, and Natalia Ospin.
Attendance is free and open to the public. Register in advance for this meeting here.
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
Photo by Tirachard Kumtanom
Local Events
Forest Preserves of Cook County: Salamander Night Walk
Date: Thu, Mar 17th
Time: 7 pm - 9 pm
Location: Little Red Schoolhouse Nature Center
9800 Willow Springs Rd
Willow Springs, IL 60480
Description: Join a naturalist to discuss habitats of salamanders and search for these amazing amphibians, which are making a remarkable seasonal migration. Ages 10 & up. Registration Required:
Call Little Red Schoolhouse at 708-839-6897.
For more information, click here.
Photo Credit: Forest Preserves of Cook County
Date: Thu, Mar 17th
Time: 7 pm - 9 pm
Location: Little Red Schoolhouse Nature Center
9800 Willow Springs Rd
Willow Springs, IL 60480
Description: Join a naturalist to discuss habitats of salamanders and search for these amazing amphibians, which are making a remarkable seasonal migration. Ages 10 & up. Registration Required:
Call Little Red Schoolhouse at 708-839-6897.
For more information, click here.
Photo Credit: Forest Preserves of Cook County
Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods: Nature in Concert with KV 265
Date: Sat, Mar 19th
Time:
Youth and Family Concert
10:15am: Pre-concert activities
11am: Concert followed by Q & A with Dr. José Francisco Salgado
Matinee Concert
3:15pm: Pre-concert activities
4pm: Concert followed by Q & A with Dr. José Francisco Salgado
Location: The Christ Episcopal Church
410 Grand Avenue
Waukegan, IL 60085
Description: "The Planets" by Gustav Holst. Audiences are taken on a journey through our solar system and beyond in this film that showcases Holst’s own two piano composition. It features visuals from NASA, the European Space Agency (ESA), as well as historical illustrations from the Adler Planetarium. As Dr. Salgado explains: “The film is not intended to be seen as a documentary but rather as an art piece that aims to inspire audiences and encourage them to learn more about our solar system and the Universe. It serves as a synthesis of what humans have achieved as solar system explorers.” Admission is free but registration is required.
For more information and registration, click here.
Photo Credit: Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods
Date: Sat, Mar 19th
Time:
Youth and Family Concert
10:15am: Pre-concert activities
11am: Concert followed by Q & A with Dr. José Francisco Salgado
Matinee Concert
3:15pm: Pre-concert activities
4pm: Concert followed by Q & A with Dr. José Francisco Salgado
Location: The Christ Episcopal Church
410 Grand Avenue
Waukegan, IL 60085
Description: "The Planets" by Gustav Holst. Audiences are taken on a journey through our solar system and beyond in this film that showcases Holst’s own two piano composition. It features visuals from NASA, the European Space Agency (ESA), as well as historical illustrations from the Adler Planetarium. As Dr. Salgado explains: “The film is not intended to be seen as a documentary but rather as an art piece that aims to inspire audiences and encourage them to learn more about our solar system and the Universe. It serves as a synthesis of what humans have achieved as solar system explorers.” Admission is free but registration is required.
For more information and registration, click here.
Photo Credit: Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods
Edible Evanston: 9th Annual Seed Swap - Robert Crown
Date: Sat, Mar 19th
Time: 12 pm - 2:30 pm
Location: Robert Crown Center Library
1801 Main Strett
Evanston, IL 60202
Description: Get free seeds and share your saved seeds.We're happy to announce an indoor, in-person seed swap for our 9th Annual Seed Swap. Come on out and get free seeds and share your saved seeds or seedlings you started (or seeds you did not use which were for growing season 2019 or more recent). Masks are REQUIRED and you will be asked to properly distance from others. Limits will be posted as to the number of packets each family may take. Event takes place inside at the Robert Crown Center lobby* outside the library.
For more information, click here.
Photo by Markus Spiske from Pexels
Date: Sat, Mar 19th
Time: 12 pm - 2:30 pm
Location: Robert Crown Center Library
1801 Main Strett
Evanston, IL 60202
Description: Get free seeds and share your saved seeds.We're happy to announce an indoor, in-person seed swap for our 9th Annual Seed Swap. Come on out and get free seeds and share your saved seeds or seedlings you started (or seeds you did not use which were for growing season 2019 or more recent). Masks are REQUIRED and you will be asked to properly distance from others. Limits will be posted as to the number of packets each family may take. Event takes place inside at the Robert Crown Center lobby* outside the library.
For more information, click here.
Photo by Markus Spiske from Pexels
Chicago Park District: Birding is for Everyone at Northerly Island
Date: Tue, Mar 22th
Time: 10 am - 11 am
Location: Northerly Island Park
1521 S. Linn White Dr.
Chicago, IL 60605
Description: Join us for a guided bird hike at the Northerly Island Park. This gathering is for first-time birders, long-time birders and everyone in between. All you need is the ability to appreciate our feathered friends. Participants in this event will be introduced to basic birding techniques including how to use binoculars, common Chicago birds, different points of interest around Northerly Island and meet other birders. Binoculars will be available to borrow for this program. This is a free event. If you have questions, please contact Julie Ohmes at [email protected] or call at 312.745.2910. We will meet up at the Northerly Island Park Visitor Center, located at 1521 S Linn White Drive.
For more information, click here.
Photo by Chris F from Pexels
Date: Tue, Mar 22th
Time: 10 am - 11 am
Location: Northerly Island Park
1521 S. Linn White Dr.
Chicago, IL 60605
Description: Join us for a guided bird hike at the Northerly Island Park. This gathering is for first-time birders, long-time birders and everyone in between. All you need is the ability to appreciate our feathered friends. Participants in this event will be introduced to basic birding techniques including how to use binoculars, common Chicago birds, different points of interest around Northerly Island and meet other birders. Binoculars will be available to borrow for this program. This is a free event. If you have questions, please contact Julie Ohmes at [email protected] or call at 312.745.2910. We will meet up at the Northerly Island Park Visitor Center, located at 1521 S Linn White Drive.
For more information, click here.
Photo by Chris F from Pexels
Chicago Wilderness Café: Reducing Barriers to the Outdoors through Gear Libraries
Date: Tue, Mar 22th
Time: 1 - 2:30 pm
Location: via Zoom
Description: Gear libraries can help expand access to the outdoors in the Chicago Wilderness region and beyond. Learn about the Outdoors Empowered Network, which works with local partners to provide gear and support communities in changing the face of adventure recreation. The Chicago Park District, Field Museum, and Forest Preserves of Cook County will share what's happening with local gear libraries, how to use them, and how gear libraries can help increase access in your community!
Moderator: Teish Daniel, Chicago Park District
Co-hosts: Allison Paul, Field Museum; Liz Holley, Chicago Park District; Brian Arnoldt, Forest Preserves of Cook County; Katie Grundin, Forest Preserves of Cook County; Justin Mercer, Forest Preserves of Cook County; Kristen Baecker, Forest Preserves of Cook County
For more information and registration, click here.
Photo Credit: Chicago Wilderness
Date: Tue, Mar 22th
Time: 1 - 2:30 pm
Location: via Zoom
Description: Gear libraries can help expand access to the outdoors in the Chicago Wilderness region and beyond. Learn about the Outdoors Empowered Network, which works with local partners to provide gear and support communities in changing the face of adventure recreation. The Chicago Park District, Field Museum, and Forest Preserves of Cook County will share what's happening with local gear libraries, how to use them, and how gear libraries can help increase access in your community!
Moderator: Teish Daniel, Chicago Park District
Co-hosts: Allison Paul, Field Museum; Liz Holley, Chicago Park District; Brian Arnoldt, Forest Preserves of Cook County; Katie Grundin, Forest Preserves of Cook County; Justin Mercer, Forest Preserves of Cook County; Kristen Baecker, Forest Preserves of Cook County
For more information and registration, click here.
Photo Credit: Chicago Wilderness
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Forest Preserves of Cook County: Community Science - Frog Monitoring
Date: Fri, Mar 25th Time: 7:15 pm Location: Crabtree Nature Center 3 Stover Rd Barrington Hills, IL 60010 Description: Contribute to community science while learning about frogs. Learn to identify frogs from their calls, then listen for them on a 2-mile walk with stops. Ages 10 & up. Registration Required: Call Crabtree at 847-381-6592. For more information, click here. Photo Credit: Forest Preserves of Cook County |
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30 by 30 Task Force Session 3: Natural Areas
Date: Thurs, Mar 31st
Time: 11:45 am
Location: via Webex, Meeting number: 245 800 56138
Link: illinois.webex.com/illinois/j.php?MTID=m4afc68c3058168d2faa4f59217c47c6e
Description: Illinois’ newly established 30 by 30 Conservation Task Force will host a series of virtual listening sessions over the next eight weeks to discuss the future of natural land and water in Illinois and set an ambitious goal for conservation. The task force, comprising stakeholders such as farmers, hunters and environmental scientists, will explore how Illinois can protect 30% of its land and water resources by 2030. It’s part of a larger national and multinational effort. Conserving 30% of land and water by the year 2030 is the amount scientists have argued is the minimum effort needed to mitigate the effects of climate change and save an estimated 1 million species currently at risk of extinction. A series of virtual listening sessions are scheduled to gather input from Illinois residents regarding the state’s conservation goals and strategies to get achieve them.
For more information and recordings of past sessions, click here.
Photo Credit: Illinois 30 by 30 Conservation Task Force
Date: Thurs, Mar 31st
Time: 11:45 am
Location: via Webex, Meeting number: 245 800 56138
Link: illinois.webex.com/illinois/j.php?MTID=m4afc68c3058168d2faa4f59217c47c6e
Description: Illinois’ newly established 30 by 30 Conservation Task Force will host a series of virtual listening sessions over the next eight weeks to discuss the future of natural land and water in Illinois and set an ambitious goal for conservation. The task force, comprising stakeholders such as farmers, hunters and environmental scientists, will explore how Illinois can protect 30% of its land and water resources by 2030. It’s part of a larger national and multinational effort. Conserving 30% of land and water by the year 2030 is the amount scientists have argued is the minimum effort needed to mitigate the effects of climate change and save an estimated 1 million species currently at risk of extinction. A series of virtual listening sessions are scheduled to gather input from Illinois residents regarding the state’s conservation goals and strategies to get achieve them.
For more information and recordings of past sessions, click here.
Photo Credit: Illinois 30 by 30 Conservation Task Force
Save the Date -
Discovering Mental Health in Nature: Big Marsh Park
Discovering Mental Health in Nature: Big Marsh Park
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Date: Tues, May 17th
Time: 9:00 am - 12:00 pm Location: Big Marsh Natural Area 11555 S. Stony Island Ave. Chicago, IL 60617 (Parking onsite) Description: Save the date for this community leaders engagement event at Big Marsh Park on Chicago’s South Side during Mental Health Awareness Month. Join us as we:
We hope to see you there for this informative and fun in-person event highlighting nature and mental health in the Chicago area! |
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Job Opportunities
- Study of Active Neighborhoods Detroit (STAND): Field Staff Member
an example of healthy, active neighborhoods for other cities across the USA. You will be responsible for a variety of tasks including study material transportation, participant consent and enrollment at events, transporting participants to and from our
office, and taking height, weight, blood pressure, a finger prick, and administering surveys using a tablet computer.
You will be trained on all these techniques – no prior experience is necessary. You will be part of a Detroit-based team and will be assisted
by a team at Michigan State University and supported by two Detroit-based coordinators and the
overall Study Coordinator.
To learn more about the STAND Project, click here.
To apply, click here. (Job number: 766119)
- The Field Museum: Environmental Social Scientist
To learn more and apply, click here.
In the News
Overview: The Patron Saint of Trees - Diana Beresford-Kroeger
Just in time for St. Patrick's Day! Having learned the ways of druids in her youth, Diana Beresford-Kroeger is trying to save the boreal forest from the ravages of climate change.
Climate reporter Cara Buckley writes about Dr. Beresford-Kroeger’s research and her accomplishments and includes Jane Fonda and Richard Powers as admirers of this independent botanist.
Dr. Beresford-Kruger has saved several endangered native trees, growing them on her land and “repatriating” them by giving away saplings to anyone who promises to care for them. She has impressive academic and research credentials but maintains her independence from academia. Her “main focus for decades now,” Ms. Buckley writes, “has been to telegraph to the world, in prose that is scientifically exacting yet startlingly affecting, the wondrous capabilities of trees.”
Dr. Beresford-Kroeger has “cultivated an arboreal Noah’s Ark of rare and hardy specimens that can best withstand a warming planet.” Trees, she says, are “the best and only thing we have right now to fight climate change and do it fast.”
Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/24/climate/celtic-wisdom-trees-climate.html
Photo by Felix Mittermeier from Pexels
Just in time for St. Patrick's Day! Having learned the ways of druids in her youth, Diana Beresford-Kroeger is trying to save the boreal forest from the ravages of climate change.
Climate reporter Cara Buckley writes about Dr. Beresford-Kroeger’s research and her accomplishments and includes Jane Fonda and Richard Powers as admirers of this independent botanist.
Dr. Beresford-Kruger has saved several endangered native trees, growing them on her land and “repatriating” them by giving away saplings to anyone who promises to care for them. She has impressive academic and research credentials but maintains her independence from academia. Her “main focus for decades now,” Ms. Buckley writes, “has been to telegraph to the world, in prose that is scientifically exacting yet startlingly affecting, the wondrous capabilities of trees.”
Dr. Beresford-Kroeger has “cultivated an arboreal Noah’s Ark of rare and hardy specimens that can best withstand a warming planet.” Trees, she says, are “the best and only thing we have right now to fight climate change and do it fast.”
Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/24/climate/celtic-wisdom-trees-climate.html
Photo by Felix Mittermeier from Pexels
Overview: Is St. Patrick’s Day Related to the Equinox
Staff of the Irish Central explored the pagan connection between the spring equinox and St. Patrick's Day. The Newgrange website (newgrange.com) explains: “The early Christian church in Ireland incorporated pre-Christian spirituality and festivals into the 'new religion', it is conceivable that the Spring Equinox festival became Christianised and rebranded as Saint Patrick's day. …
“The Spring Equinox is the beginning of the 'light' half of the year where the sun is strongest and the days are longer than the nights. Saint Patrick brought the 'light' of a different sun, the son of God to Ireland, the adaptable Irish Celts may have simply rebranded the Spring Equinox festival to Saint Patrick's Feast day.”
Read more: https://www.irishcentral.com/roots/history/irelands-spring-equinox-st-patricks-day
Photo by Sudipta Mondal from Pexels
Staff of the Irish Central explored the pagan connection between the spring equinox and St. Patrick's Day. The Newgrange website (newgrange.com) explains: “The early Christian church in Ireland incorporated pre-Christian spirituality and festivals into the 'new religion', it is conceivable that the Spring Equinox festival became Christianised and rebranded as Saint Patrick's day. …
“The Spring Equinox is the beginning of the 'light' half of the year where the sun is strongest and the days are longer than the nights. Saint Patrick brought the 'light' of a different sun, the son of God to Ireland, the adaptable Irish Celts may have simply rebranded the Spring Equinox festival to Saint Patrick's Feast day.”
Read more: https://www.irishcentral.com/roots/history/irelands-spring-equinox-st-patricks-day
Photo by Sudipta Mondal from Pexels
Overview: Being Able to Garden
Horticultural Therapy as a profession began in 1973. The American Horticultural Therapy Association defines horticultural therapy as "the engagement of a client in horticultural activities facilitated by a trained therapist to achieve specific and documented treatment goals." One important application of horticultural therapy treatment is the design and use of enabling gardens.
The “practical side” of horticultural therapy involves choosing appropriate plants, tools and accessories, but initial focus should be on the site. It must be accessible and barrier free, safe, and welcoming; sun, shade, smell, texture and personal preference will determine the plants; and the tools and accessories should be tailored to the needs and goals of the gardeners.
A Cooperative Extension Fact Sheet of Rutgers University was compiled by Madeline Flahive DiNardo, Agriculture and Natural Resources Agent, Union County; Laura DePrado, Horticultural Therapist, Branchburg; Nicholas Polanin, Agriculture and Natural Resources Agent, Somerset County; Joel Flagler, Agriculture and Natural Resources Agent, Bergen County (all in New Jersey).
The authors offer an historical perspective, noting that the first designed gardens were in Mesopotamia in about 2000 BCE, and nearly 3,000 years later, in the 1100s (CE) “the therapeutic benefits of gardening were first described in a hospice garden located at a monastery in Clairvaux, France.”
The article then gets down to the immediate considerations of creating a garden that will enable those with a disability to get close to the healing aspects of nature.
Read more: https://njaes.rutgers.edu/fs1208/
Photo of Levy Center Enabling Garden from City of Evanston
Horticultural Therapy as a profession began in 1973. The American Horticultural Therapy Association defines horticultural therapy as "the engagement of a client in horticultural activities facilitated by a trained therapist to achieve specific and documented treatment goals." One important application of horticultural therapy treatment is the design and use of enabling gardens.
The “practical side” of horticultural therapy involves choosing appropriate plants, tools and accessories, but initial focus should be on the site. It must be accessible and barrier free, safe, and welcoming; sun, shade, smell, texture and personal preference will determine the plants; and the tools and accessories should be tailored to the needs and goals of the gardeners.
A Cooperative Extension Fact Sheet of Rutgers University was compiled by Madeline Flahive DiNardo, Agriculture and Natural Resources Agent, Union County; Laura DePrado, Horticultural Therapist, Branchburg; Nicholas Polanin, Agriculture and Natural Resources Agent, Somerset County; Joel Flagler, Agriculture and Natural Resources Agent, Bergen County (all in New Jersey).
The authors offer an historical perspective, noting that the first designed gardens were in Mesopotamia in about 2000 BCE, and nearly 3,000 years later, in the 1100s (CE) “the therapeutic benefits of gardening were first described in a hospice garden located at a monastery in Clairvaux, France.”
The article then gets down to the immediate considerations of creating a garden that will enable those with a disability to get close to the healing aspects of nature.
Read more: https://njaes.rutgers.edu/fs1208/
Photo of Levy Center Enabling Garden from City of Evanston
Overview: The Vernal Equinox
The spring, or vernal, equinox rolls into the Chicago area this coming Sunday morning. Writing in Earthsky.org, Dr. Deborah Byrd offers “all you need to know” about this upcoming equinox.
For one thing, although light and dark seem similar at the equinox – from the Latin words meaning “equal” and “night” – they are not in perfect balance even for that fraction of a minute that is the equinox itself.
With charts, images and her own wealth of knowledge, Dr. Byrd guides the reader through the “Earth-centered view” and the “Space-centered view” of the equinox.
The equinoxes and solstices are caused by Earth’s tilt on its axis and ceaseless motion in orbit, she writes, and adds that the fastest sunsets and sunrises of the year happen at the equinoxes. Except at the northern and southern tips of the planet, the sun will rise due east, set due west and be directly overhead at noon.
“In terms of daylight,” she writes, “the knowledge that spring is here – and summer is coming – permeates all of nature on the northern half of Earth’s globe. … Responding to the change in daylight, birds and butterflies are migrating back northward, too, along with the path of the sun.”
Read more: earthsky.org/astronomy-essentials/everything-you-need-to-know-vernal-or-spring-equinox/
Photo by Mark G from Pexels
The spring, or vernal, equinox rolls into the Chicago area this coming Sunday morning. Writing in Earthsky.org, Dr. Deborah Byrd offers “all you need to know” about this upcoming equinox.
For one thing, although light and dark seem similar at the equinox – from the Latin words meaning “equal” and “night” – they are not in perfect balance even for that fraction of a minute that is the equinox itself.
With charts, images and her own wealth of knowledge, Dr. Byrd guides the reader through the “Earth-centered view” and the “Space-centered view” of the equinox.
The equinoxes and solstices are caused by Earth’s tilt on its axis and ceaseless motion in orbit, she writes, and adds that the fastest sunsets and sunrises of the year happen at the equinoxes. Except at the northern and southern tips of the planet, the sun will rise due east, set due west and be directly overhead at noon.
“In terms of daylight,” she writes, “the knowledge that spring is here – and summer is coming – permeates all of nature on the northern half of Earth’s globe. … Responding to the change in daylight, birds and butterflies are migrating back northward, too, along with the path of the sun.”
Read more: earthsky.org/astronomy-essentials/everything-you-need-to-know-vernal-or-spring-equinox/
Photo by Mark G from Pexels
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Overview: Green Schoolyards Sustain Learning – and More
More than a year ago, 10 U.S. cities joined the Green Schoolyards Technical Assistance Cohort led by Cities Connecting Children to Nature (CCCN), an initiative of the National League of Cities and the Children & Nature Network. CCCN is a three-year peer-learning and technical assistance program based on research that outdoor spaces support children’s learning and well-being. Alejandra Pallais described the program in “Cities take the lead in transforming schoolyards with nature to help kids thrive.” The 10 cities – selected from an applicant pool of 27 –formed local partnership, recruiting leaders from the city, recreation, school and nonprofit sectors. Their priorities will be schools in neighborhoods that lack access to parks and green space. While these new green school yards will be exclusive to the school communities during the school day, after-hours they will be open for use by children, families and local residents. Read more: www.childrenandnature.org/resources/cities-take-the-lead-in-transforming-schoolyards-with-nature-to-help-kids-thrive/ Photo by Valeriia Miller from Pexels |
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Overview: A Challenge to Become the Best City for Children and Nature
In a speech given in Louisville, Ky., recently Richard Louv suggested cities create their own challenges to become the best city it can be for children, the best at connecting people to nature. As examples of success he said, cities can measure such things as how many more pediatricians prescribe nature for children, how many more parks and nature trails were added, and how many ponds were healed. A journalist and author, Mr. Louv coined the term “nature deficit disorder,” a problem he particularly for the children of this country. Hear more: richardlouv.com, “A Challenge to Make Your City the Finest City in America for Children and Nature Photo by Gotta Be Worth It from Pexels |
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Overview: Integrative Medicine Can Help Offset the Toxicity of Urban Living
A recent posting on the website for the Academic Consortium for Integrative Health and Medicine describes the work of two NCH2 members, Drs. Teresa Horton and David Victorson. The posting reports that the World Health Organization (WHO) is predicting that by 2050, 70% of the world’s population will be living in towns and cities, taking up more space on the planet that was once left to nature.
With well documented evidence of the benefits of nature on human health and well-being, plans on two different fronts are already addressing the problem. Integrative medicine is pointing the way for healthcare providers to include nature-based interventions in their care for patients, and WHO is calling on governments around the work to integrate elements of nature into their plans to accommodate the planet’s burgeoning population.
Drs. Horton and Victorson, both Northwestern University professors, have conducted research and created programs that emphasize the importance of nature to the health and well-being of humans.
Dr. Horton, who founded and leads the Nature, Culture and Human Health (NCH2) network, has recently unveiled the Health and Nature Catalyst program. The program, funded through the Walder Foundation, is designed to foster nature-based solutions that will incubate grass roots improvements in equity, the environment, and public health with help from a regional collaborative including healthcare/public health, environmental and equity communities.
The work of Dr. Victorson, Professor of Medical Social Sciences in the Feinberg School of Medicine and Associate Director of the Cancer Survivorship Institute at the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center, melds his interest in nature and health with the implementation of evidence-informed, nature-based interventions in patient care and education.
The two along with colleagues Drs. Linda Carlson (University of Calgary), Mats Jong (Mittuniversitetet, Sweden), Miek Jong (NAFKAM, Norway), and Anne Lown (UC San Francisco) will present “Eco-Wellness: Connection, Cancer, and Preservation of Mind, Body, and Soil” at the International Congress for Integrative Health and Medicine in May.
Read more: imconsortium.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/3.15.22-Impact-Cirlces.pdf
Photo by Benjamin Suter from Pexels
A recent posting on the website for the Academic Consortium for Integrative Health and Medicine describes the work of two NCH2 members, Drs. Teresa Horton and David Victorson. The posting reports that the World Health Organization (WHO) is predicting that by 2050, 70% of the world’s population will be living in towns and cities, taking up more space on the planet that was once left to nature.
With well documented evidence of the benefits of nature on human health and well-being, plans on two different fronts are already addressing the problem. Integrative medicine is pointing the way for healthcare providers to include nature-based interventions in their care for patients, and WHO is calling on governments around the work to integrate elements of nature into their plans to accommodate the planet’s burgeoning population.
Drs. Horton and Victorson, both Northwestern University professors, have conducted research and created programs that emphasize the importance of nature to the health and well-being of humans.
Dr. Horton, who founded and leads the Nature, Culture and Human Health (NCH2) network, has recently unveiled the Health and Nature Catalyst program. The program, funded through the Walder Foundation, is designed to foster nature-based solutions that will incubate grass roots improvements in equity, the environment, and public health with help from a regional collaborative including healthcare/public health, environmental and equity communities.
The work of Dr. Victorson, Professor of Medical Social Sciences in the Feinberg School of Medicine and Associate Director of the Cancer Survivorship Institute at the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center, melds his interest in nature and health with the implementation of evidence-informed, nature-based interventions in patient care and education.
The two along with colleagues Drs. Linda Carlson (University of Calgary), Mats Jong (Mittuniversitetet, Sweden), Miek Jong (NAFKAM, Norway), and Anne Lown (UC San Francisco) will present “Eco-Wellness: Connection, Cancer, and Preservation of Mind, Body, and Soil” at the International Congress for Integrative Health and Medicine in May.
Read more: imconsortium.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/3.15.22-Impact-Cirlces.pdf
Photo by Benjamin Suter from Pexels