The potential of green space in schools to enhance biodiversity, ecological knowledge and student wellbeing
type: CreativeWork
description: Children in the UK are increasingly disconnected from the natural world, a trend often attributed to rapid urbanisation and reduced daily contact with nature. Spending time in the presence of biodiversity is known to benefit mental health, physical health and wellbeing, and increase awareness of the natural world and conservation, yet there are concerns that direct experiences in nature are being replaced by indirect, technology-mediated experiences, such as through television programmes. However, there is little understanding of how the natural world is portrayed within these media, or how new types of nature experience contribute to the development of a connection with nature, ecological knowledge or the wellbeing benefits of biodiversity. There is also concern that an increasing disconnect between children and the natural world could lead to the attrition of ecological knowledge, reducing awareness of biodiversity loss and eroding support for conservation. In this context, the relationship between children and the natural world is of crucial importance to the future of conservation and children’s wellbeing. In this thesis, I use school grounds in the UK as a focal point for studying the relationship between children and the natural world, and nature-documentary content to assess portrayals of the natural world in the media, as well as exploring the effects of the COVID-19 lockdown in the UK on parental attitudes to green space. Chapter One: A wide range of disciplines are currently involved in research investigating people’s relationship with the natural world. I conducted a literature review and used an evidence-mapping approach to quantify existing research focused on human relationships with the natural world and to identify the extent of overlap between disciplines. I also quantified which disciplines use which terminology and to what extent terminology is discipline-specific. I found that research on people and nature is generally well integrated, with dispa…
abstract: Children in the UK are increasingly disconnected from the natural world, a trend often attributed to rapid urbanisation and reduced daily contact with nature. Spending time in the presence of biodiversity is known to benefit mental health, physical health and wellbeing, and increase awareness of the natural world and conservation, yet there are concerns that direct experiences in nature are being replaced by indirect, technology-mediated experiences, such as through television programmes. However, there is little understanding of how the natural world is portrayed within these media, or how new types of nature experience contribute to the development of a connection with nature, ecological knowledge or the wellbeing benefits of biodiversity. There is also concern that an increasing disconnect between children and the natural world could lead to the attrition of ecological knowledge, reducing awareness of biodiversity loss and eroding support for conservation. In this context, the relationship between children and the natural world is of crucial importance to the future of conservation and children’s wellbeing. In this thesis, I use school grounds in the UK as a focal point for studying the relationship between children and the natural world, and nature-documentary content to assess portrayals of the natural world in the media, as well as exploring the effects of the COVID-19 lockdown in the UK on parental attitudes to green space. Chapter One: A wide range of disciplines are currently involved in research investigating people’s relationship with the natural world. I conducted a literature review and used an evidence-mapping approach to quantify existing research focused on human relationships with the natural world and to identify the extent of overlap between disciplines. I also quantified which disciplines use which terminology and to what extent terminology is discipline-specific. I found that research on people and nature is generally well integrated, with dispa…
author: Howlett, Katherine
language: eng
keywords: biodiversity, children, ecological knowledge, education, nature, nature connection, wellbeing
license: https://apollo8-f-pro.lib.cam.ac.uk/bitstreams/27aed26e-26e8-4403-8dee-8b90235b7e6b/download
license: https://www.rioxx.net/licenses/all-rights-reserved/
date published: 2023-05-05
date modified: 2026-07-22T22:24:17Z
provider: Cambridge University
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: University of Cambridge

PropertyValue
property ID: DOI
value: 10.17863/CAM.101680