shinrinyoku

‘Komorebi’ – sunlight filtering through leaves

envirohistory NZ3 Comments
skyward-view-of-kohekohe-grove
Light through the leaves of a kohekohe grove in Waikanae, Kapiti Coast. C. Knight

As part of my literature review for my book exploring the connection between nature and wellbeing in New Zealand, I have been reading Shinrin-yoku: The art and science of forest-bathing, by Dr Qing Li, who has researched the subject extensively in Japan.

Shinrinyoku LiIn describing the Japanese experience of spending time in a forested environment, he draws the reader’s attention to the Japanese word ‘komorebi’, 木漏れ日 in Japanese characters, meaning ‘sunlight filtering through leaves’ (木 = tree, 漏れ = leak through, 日 = sun). Continue reading →

Nature & wellbeing in NZ – case study ideas please

envirohistory NZ2 Comments

nature_and_wellbeingAs you may have seen from an earlier post Can you help? The connection between nature & wellbeing  I am interested in exploring the connection between nature and wellbeing as the subject of my next book. In that earlier post, I asked for help finding existing literature on the topic, particularly in the New Zealand context. And I got some super-helpful responses, so thank you so much to everyone who responded! Continue reading →

Can you help? The connection between nature & wellbeing

envirohistory NZ2 Comments

woman in forest

I see that a focus of this year’s Mental Health Awareness week was ‘Letting nature in’, encouraging New Zealanders to get out and connect with nature, in light of its proven benefits for mental and spiritual wellbeing. (A survey undertaken by the Mental Health Foundation last year found that 95 per cent of New Zealanders reported a lift in mood after spending time in nature.) Continue reading →