Nature provides vital spaces for human connection, offering relief from loneliness. Photo / the Washington Post
Loneliness has become a global public health concern.
Countries including the United Kingdom and Japan have appointed “ministers of loneliness” to help tackle the problem.
In the United States, then-Surgeon General Vivek Murthy issued a public health advisory on loneliness, stating that the risk for premature death from loneliness is akin to smoking up to 15 cigarettes a day.
The adverse health outcomes linked to loneliness, including anxiety and depression and a greater risk of heart disease and dementia, are many and well-documented.
However, finding effective solutions has been a challenge. It’s unclear whether person-based interventions like cognitive behavioural therapy or social skills training actually help.
What if, instead of trying to “fix” the individual, strategies focused on shaping the environment in a way that facilitates social connection?
Recently, researchers have been trying to leverage nature as a way to bring people together and reduce negative feelings about social isolation.
They say living in what is known as a “lonelygenic environment” – one dominated by cars and concrete instead of grass and trees – can cause or aggravate loneliness.
Even if you live in a lonelygenic environment, experts say, spending just an hour or two in nature per week – whether in the form of a park, botanical garden, or your own backyard – may help people feel less isolated.
“Much research emphasises the absence of quality relationships, certain personality characteristics like introversion, and a perceived lack of social skills as determinants of loneliness,” said Xiaoqi Feng, professor of urban health and environment at the University of New South Wales in Australia.
“This has resulted in a conventional narrative of blame, shame, and weak solutions.
“But we are not destined to be lonely – it is the environments we create that are lonelygenic.”
Feng, who coined the term “lonelygenic environment” in 2022, wants to change how people think about loneliness.
Instead of stigmatising loneliness as a failing, she says the condition is a natural outcome of urban planning and societal systems that have long neglected human health and social needs.
For example, dependency on cars for transportation limits the spontaneous meetings with other people that can happen in a walkable neighbourhood.
Lack of tree cover leaves residents more exposed to heat and rain, discouraging them from spending time outdoors in public spaces.
And having no nearby parks leaves people deprived of a “third place” outside of the home and workplace to engage with members of the community.
“Neighbourhoods that are cooler because of trees, that are beautiful because of greenery – they get people outside and physically active,” said Matthew Browning, associate professor of behavioural, social and health sciences at Clemson University.
“They get people more likely to trust each other, independent of political or other divides, and talk.
“And when we feel bonded to our community, we feel less lonely.”
In a 2024 study, Browning and his colleagues found that greater residential green space was associated with a reduced risk of loneliness in a group of 8383 middle-aged and older adults.
In general, the term “green space” refers to open areas covered with vegetation, such as parks, gardens and natural landscapes.
They used satellite imagery to calculate the density of vegetation in a given area and measured the proportion of public parks. The results held even after controlling for possible confounders such as income, education and age.
Similarly, Feng and her colleagues looked at the effects of urban greening in a 2021 study involving 8049 city dwellers in Australia.
Green space was measured as the percentage of land cover of parks, nature reserves and other protected or conserved areas within circular regions up to a mile from their homes.
Having 30% green space in the surrounding region was associated with a 26% reduced incidence of loneliness over four years in adults generally and 52% in those living alone.
More recently, the researchers have investigated the amount of time people spend in nature and its relationship with loneliness.
A 2024 study involving 3043 Australian adults found that participants who spent more time in green spaces or blue spaces – outdoor areas that include water such as oceans, lakes and rivers – were more likely to feel relief from loneliness.
Just one to two hours of being in nature per week was associated with a 69% increase in the odds of finding relief at four months and 110% at 16 months compared with less than one hour.
“There is some evidence that those who spend time in nature are less likely to report being lonely,” said Julianne Holt-Lunstad, professor of psychology and neuroscience at Brigham Young University.
“But those are correlations, so then we have to understand why would that be the case, and if you put people in nature, does that actually reduce loneliness?”
Holt-Lunstad, who studies the link between social connection and health, suggests a number of possible mechanisms.
Being in public spaces such as parks or hiking trails increases the chances of social interaction and can foster a sense of feeling like you’re a part of something bigger than yourself, such as the natural world or humanity.
Exposure to natural environments may also lower levels of stress and anxiety.
One proposed approach for tackling loneliness as a public health issue is through social prescribing, where physicians connect their patients with non-medical services in the community similar to how they prescribe medication.
An ongoing global research project called Recetas – “Reimagining Environments for Connection and Engagement: Testing Actions for Social Prescribing in Natural Spaces” – is putting nature-based social prescribing to the test in six countries with an aim to reduce loneliness and improve quality of life.
Recetas, led by environmental health researcher Jill Litt at the Barcelona Institute for Global Health, has recruited 1200 people, who have reported feeling lonely in a survey, for participation in group activities in urban green spaces.
The activities include visiting gardens, birdwatching, park walks, bike rides, and exploring area forests.
Other expert tips for using nature as a remedy for loneliness include:
– Dedicate a little time to nature each week. As little as one to two hours per week could be enough to benefit, Feng said, and it doesn’t have to involve rigorous physical activity. “Do anything you find pleasant: sitting, walking, birdwatching, drawing, noticing the beauty of natural landscapes,” she said. “Give yourself permission to take time out from the usual daily demands.”
– Nature comes in many forms. An ongoing study by Browning and his colleagues investigates the amount of time a representative sample of Americans spends outdoors in nature. “What we find is that nature is, for most people, not going to a national or even a state or local park,” he said. “It’s watching their kids play soccer outside or grilling in the backyard. These places are all nature.”
– Move meetups from indoors to outdoors. Instead of meeting a friend at a restaurant or bar, try taking a neighbourhood walk or sitting at a park bench together.
– Join an outdoor class or club. Check your area parks and recreation department or join a walking, hiking, or biking group to meet people with shared interests.
– Being alone is okay, too. Being in nature by yourself can still have positive effects, such as stress reduction and improved mood.
“Contact with nature creates a space for restoration, recovery, and connection,” Litt said.
“It allows people to open up, feel a sense of connection with others, and experience the rhythms and cycles of life.”
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