Wellbeing from Woodland: A Critical Exploration of Links Between Trees and Human Health

274 Pages·2020·5.968 MB·English

by  Alice Goodenough, Sue Waite

Wellbeing
from Woodland
A Critical Exploration
of Links Between
Trees and Human Health
Alice Goodenough · Sue Waite
Wellbeing from Woodland
“From the very first sentence, this timely book wrestles with some of the most
pressing issues of our time. An ecological masterpiece, exploring the nuances
of our complex relationship with trees, as detailed as the electron microscope
imaging used to understand mycorrhizal fungi in the woodland and as far
reaching as the broad canopy of a parkland oak. Grounded in culture, history
and science, Wellbeing from Woodland offers meta-analyses, case studies and
human stories, reflecting a depth of love for woodland and commitment to
making life better for people and our planet.”
“This will be on every Forest School training booklist. It shows why chil-
dren need woods and woods need children.”
—Sarah Lawfull, FSA Director and Endorsed Trainer
“When I told a friend I was part of a research project to investigate whether
being out in the woods was good for health & wellbeing, he laughed out loud
and said “why would you need to research that—everyone knows it’s good
for you!” And perhaps we all share that gut feeling, an assumption that being
out and about in the woods is beneficial for us—it’s obvious, isn’t it? But is it?
Why? And how?”
“The Good from Woods research described in this book goes deeper into
these questions: what is it about being in nature that delivers benefits for
health and wellbeing? Are woods particularly well suited for it? Is it the place
or the activities or the people you’re with? Could I get the same benefits just by
going for a woodland walk with my dog?”
“For the Forest of Avon Trust, taking part in Good from Woods gave us a
chance to really think about what we understood by wellbeing and to take part
in live research, helping develop and test a shared framework to record dif-
ferent aspects of wellbeing. It supported us to examine and improve our own
practice and focus on making our projects as good as possible in delivering
woodland wellbeing to a range of audiences. It is fascinating to read the case
studies of the other partner organisations, who worked with different groups
and used different research methods, and their findings will prompt more dis-
cussion on how to design and develop future projects.”
“At a time of so much discussion about the potential benefits for health and
wellbeing of being in nature, this is an important book for anyone thinking of
commissioning a nature and wellbeing programme, as well as practitioners who
are designing or running such woodland projects for health and wellbeing.”
—Nicola Ramsden, Health and Wellbeing Officer, The Forest of Avon Trust
“The connection between humans and woodlands is old and very rich and this
relationship is deeply woven through human cultures within myths and stories.
Woodlands have traditionally provided us not only with fuel as firewood, but
also refuge and solace in times of trouble. We are now currently living within a
time of huge environmental and social uncertainty creating increasing pressure
on both natural ecosystems and human health and wellbeing. However, prac-
titioners involved in practical woodland-based activities, such as conservation
work or Forest School described in this book, have long recognised woodlands
as a rich source of embodied experience that can have a profound and positive
impact on human health and wellbeing as well as also benefiting woodlands.”
“In this extremely well-researched book, Goodenough and Waite have gath-
ered a wide body of evidence from the literature and diverse collaborative pro-
jects to explain how the idea of “woodland wellbeing” can be used to evidence
the impact of woodland activities on psychological and wellbeing services.”
“This book provides a much-needed evidence base as well as descriptions of
best practice and project evaluation that can allow commissioners and service
users to understand woodland-based activities and to have full confidence that
they will be receiving an effective health and wellbeing service from woodland
practitioners within the setting of the woods.”
—Roger Duncan, CAMHS systemic psychotherapist and author of Nature in
Mind, Systemic Thinking and Imagination in Ecopsychology and Mental
Health
“The need for people to be able to manage effectively the pressures that daily
life brings seems more acute than ever. There is now a very strong body of evi-
dence, which this publication eloquently brings together, which clearly iden-
tifies the connection between improved wellbeing and access to greenspaces,
particularly woodland. As a forester who has worked amongst trees for over 20
years, I am sure I intrinsically understood this but have only recently, by read-
ing research such as those detailed within, been able to understand what this
really means. My hope, along with that of the National Trust is that this infor-
mation can only help to encourage more people to access the amazing array of
greenspaces located across the whole UK and benefit from the increased well-
being that I am fortunate enough to take for granted.”
—John Deakin, Head of Trees and Woodland at the National Trust, UK
Alice Goodenough · Sue Waite
Wellbeing
from Woodland
A Critical Exploration of Links
Between Trees and Human Health
Alice Goodenough Sue Waite
Independent Researcher Institute of Education
Stroud, UK University of Plymouth
Plymouth, UK
ISBN 978-3-030-32628-9 ISBN 978-3-030-32629-6 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-32629-6
© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2020
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Acknowledgements
We would like to acknowledge and thank BIG Lottery and the
University of Plymouth for funding support, Sarah Vaughan and trus-
tees of the Silvanus Trust, and all the practitioner-researchers and their
organisations:
Jane Acton and Nature Workshops
Jenny Archard and Otterhead Forest School
Jennie Aronsson and Mayflower Community Academy
Gemma Baal and The Centre for Contemporary Arts and the Natural
World
Jade Bartlett and The National Trust
Ali Coles, Seb Buckton, Richard Keating, Jackie Rowanly and Stroud
Community Woodland Coop
Katy Lee and Vince Large, Courage Copse Creatives
Victoria Norris, Nicky Puttick and The Woodland Trust
Nicola Ramsden, Rachel Tomlinson, The Forest of Avon Trust and Into
the Woods
Richard Turley and Ruskin Mill College
v
vi Acknowledgements
Jessie Watson-Brown and Embercombe
Naomi Wright and Play Torbay
without whom this book could not have been written.
We also owe huge thanks to our families who have been patient and
supportive throughout the process because they share similar enthusi-
asm for trees.
Contents
1 Introduction: The Good from Woods Project 1
Why ‘Wellbeing from Woodland’? 3
The Organisation of the Book 5
References 6
2 Woodland Wellbeing 9
The Power of Green and Our Evolution Within Nature 10
Biophilia 10
Environmental Preferences 11
Restoration 11
Testing Hypotheses of Benefits 12
Focusing on Forest Effects 13
Complicated Associations 15
Cultural Perspectives on Woodland 16
Sociodemographic Influences on Woodland Experience 19
Cultural Lightness in Woodland 20
Plants as Partners: Interspecies Relational Theories 21
Popular Woodland Practices 24
What Is Woodland Wellbeing? 27
vii
viii Contents
Woodland Wellbeing for Us and for Trees? 29
References 30
3 Framing Complexity in Wellbeing 41
Wellbeing and Green Space Impetus in UK 41
Why Wellbeing as a Measure of What’s Good from Woods? 42
Understanding, Defining and Measuring Wellbeing 44
A Framework for Conceiving of Good from Woods 48
References 57
4 Assessing the Affective in Active Spaces 61
Why Measure Woodland Wellbeing? 62
Who Should Measure Woodland Wellbeing? 62
Action Research 63
Starting Points 64
Tidying Up or Getting Messy? 66
Groundwork for Building a Holistic Picture of Health
and Happiness Outcomes 72
Standardisation in Measuring Woodland Wellbeing 75
A Dose of Nature 80
References 82
5 Natural Sources of Emotional Wellbeing 85
What Is Emotional Wellbeing? 85
Recognising Emotion and Its Significance in a Natural
World Context 86
Nature and Emotion 87
Case Study 1: Reconfiguring Relationships for Emotional
Wellbeing 91
Case Study 2: Escaping the Everyday for Emotional
Wellbeing 96
Contexts for Emotional Wellbeing 101
Implications for Promotion of Emotional Wellbeing:
‘Feel Good Factors’ 103
Capturing Emotional Wellbeing from Woodland
Experiences 104
References 105
Contents ix
6 Natural Sources of Social Wellbeing 109
What Is Social Wellbeing? 109
Social Animals 109
Shared Social Encounters Within Nature 111
Biophilic and Social Benefits of Time in Natural Outdoor
Spaces 112
Case Study 1: Sharing Success 114
Combining Research and Delivery 117
Sticking Together 117
Implications for Practice 121
Case Study 2: Tackling Tasks Together 122
Safe Supportive Relationships in Shared Community 124
References 129
7 Natural Sources of Psychological Wellbeing 133
What Is Psychological Wellbeing? 133
Feeling on Top of Things 134
Restorative Settings 135
Place and People Interactions 137
Factors Associated with Positive Functioning 137
Case Study 1: Taking Action, Changing Cultures 138
Meaningful Activity 140
Mastery 144
Recognition 145
Case Study 2: Women’s Wellbeing Through Woodland 148
Gaining Control, Challenging Norms 151
Models of Alternative Being 155
References 158
8 Natural Sources of Physical Wellbeing 161
What Is Physical Wellbeing? 161
Moving More and Exposed to Nature 162
Case Study 1: Learning on the Move 165
Case Study 2: Forest School for Young Teenagers 171
Case Study 3: Centre for Contemporary Arts
in the Natural World (CCANW) 177