Current
Research
1. Essex County Council-
Generations Growing Together
We are involved in the
evaluation of the Generations Growing Together Project, funded by Essex
County Council. The GGT project targets users of community allotments
throughout Essex to determine the mental and physical health benefits of
contact with nature participation in these schemes. Participant
well-being, connectedness to nature, physical activity, community
belonging and intergenerational links will be examined at three stages
throughout the project to examine any changes over the course of the
project.
2.
Mind -
Ecominds Grant
Programme
We are involved in the evaluation of the ‘Ecominds’ programme, which is part of the Big Lottery Fund’s (BLF) Changing Spaces initiative, and which will be managing an open grant scheme funding environmentally-orientated projects. The projects will target people with direct experience of mental distress and help integrate them into the community using environmental projects conducive to good mental and physical health. We will be looking at the psychological, social and environmental benefits that result from projects involved in the programme.
3.
Linking Environment And Farming (LEAF) and The Sensory Trust -
Let Nature Feed Your Senses
(LNFYS)
We are involved in
the evaluation of the LNFYS project which
connects disengaged groups and individuals with nature and the
countryside, through food and farming. The LNFYS project will involve a
programme of activities and events throughout England, aimed at getting
young people, disabled groups and older people out onto farms, nature
reserves, education centres and city farms, to experience nature and the
countryside in their everyday lives. Innovative learning materials,
complementary information, farm visits and nature walks will be
developed, specifically designed to help these diverse groups make long
lasting connections with the natural world around them. We will be
looking at the
health and
wellbeing benefits gained by beneficiaries as a result of their
involvement in the project. We will also be analysing any changes in
outlook and understanding amongst those attending the events and
utilising the resources developed by the project. We intend to
evaluate the effects of the
LNFYS programme as a whole (a meta-analysis), in addition to an in-depth
case study evaluation of a sub-sample of individual LNFYS initiatives.
4.
Discovery Quest -
Walking and Outdoor Activity Therapy
Project
Discovery
Quest is a project set up for people whose mental health difficulties
have a significant impact on the way they manage their lives. The
project is run by Julian Housing Support and it aims to promote
healthier lifestyles through challenging 6 month walking programmes in
green and wild places. We are involved in both short-term and long-term
analyses of the programme using both quantitative and qualitative
methodologies. Psychological health and wellbeing changes will be
assessed along with physiological measures, connectedness to nature,
lifestyle factors, environmentally friendly behaviours and social
functioning.
5.
Wilderness Foundation -
TurnAround Project
We are involved in a evaluating the second phase of the Wilderness Foundation’s ‘TurnAround’ community project, targeting youth at risk in Essex. It combines the use of wilderness trail experiences, personal development workshops, one to one life coaching and work experience to bring about a change in outlook, build self esteem, social ability and life skills.
6. Green Exercise and Cardiovascular
Health
We are engaged in a series of experiments using continuous blood pressure and heart rate monitoring to assess the effects of green exercise during exercise and in recovery, both in a simulated laboratory environment and in the field. The investigation assesses the control of the cardiovascular system and the time course of recovery. It also explores both the interaction between the environment and physical activity and the reaction to stress prior and post a green exercise intervention (i.e. can green exercise be used as a preventative or a way to alleviate stress?). The focus is on encompassing new target groups of subjects including those with long-term stress (businesses) and major diseases e.g. cardiovascular disease.
7. Reducing the incidence
of cardiac events: The use of natural green space to modify psychophysiological responses associated with workplace stress
This
study seeks to find explanations for the positive impacts of nature on
cardiovascular health. The psychophysiology alterations that occur with
single exposure by using controlled laboratory conditions (images) and
real environments will be examined. Although single exposure may only
result in short-lived changes it may provide protection against
inappropriate responses to stress, which is one of the triggers of acute
CVD. The additive effect of exercise and repeated exposure through an
intervention programme should increase the scale and the longevity of
the positive impacts of the exposure to nature. Thus the exposure to
nature and the synergistic combination of exercise and nature could be a
powerful tool to prevent both acute and chronic CVD.
8.
Dementia Adventure
This study aims to
examine the benefits of contact with nature and participation in
adventure activities for individuals living with dementia. The study
will determine whether Green Exercise enables people living with
dementia to feel well and experience a temporary reduction or absence of
dementia related symptoms and also whether walking outdoors can help
them to positively reframe their identity and self worth.
9.
Reconnecting Nature and Culture
We are engaged in further analysis of indigenous revitalisation projects, including the health benefits, social impacts, economic and ecosystem implications of established projects, including looking at the importance of longevity, funding sources and the objectives of individual projects.
