Health & Wellness

The More-Than-Human world is a willing partner in wellness

Earth Work Supports Health

People of all ages are experiencing high levels of disconnection, isolation, and overwhelm, negatively impacting mental and physical health, cognitive functioning, sense of well being and our relationships.

Spending intentional time outdoors, building relationships and community with other humans and the More-Than-Human-World positively impacts these challenges. Adults need and deserve these programs, but most existing options are heavily weighted toward a youth audience.

Earth Work California programming is uniquely situated to address the need for adult-specific outdoor programming that reconnects, transforms, and keeps people on a healthy path.

Context, Specifics, and Goals

You may have heard of Shinrin-Yoku, the Japanese practice of forest bathing. Did you know Shinrin-Yoku is a modern thing? The practice began in the 1980s as a response to rising rates of cancer and auto-immune disease in Japan, corresponding to an economic and cultural shift to a more urbanized, tech-driven society.

Does this seem familiar?

Our programs are not forest bathing, but they emulate that experience, particularly regarding sensory activation and getting folks into intimate proximity to nature. And they have the same benefits identified in Japan in the 80s, which have been researched extensively since:

Reduced blood pressure

Increase of cancer-fighting cells

Reduction of stress hormones

Nervous system stabilization

Improved sleep

Reduced depression, anxiety, and fatigue

And more!

What about elements of health beyond the physical? This is when Earth Work gets deliciously juicy!

Our programs are more than “time outdoors”. Earth Work is RELATIONAL work: we help folks re-enter into reciprocal relationships with nature and each other. It’s not like going on a hike, or tending a garden, or walking your dogs in a local park (all great things). We get you examining, up-close, the innate bonds that we have with every part of our world.

Science tells us that community and relationships improve our health, too! People with strong social ties have:

A 45% higher likelihood of longevity

Greater physical and emotional resilience

Heightened ability to cope during challenging times

What will we unleash when we extend our idea of community to the More-Than-Human-World?

This is what we believe: being in relationship with our communities AND with nature AND working on these relationships IN TANDEM provides a POWERFUL ANTIDOTE to some very modern, salient issues. With Earth Work, we can:

REDUCE ISOLATION from the human and natural world

INCREASE EMPATHY, unbiased listening, and heart-sense

Contextualize and REFRAME ECO-ANXIETY and dread

HELP WITH GRIEF processes, particularly in the wake of natural catastrophe

DEEPEN AUTHENTICITY, intuition, and creativity

Resources

Learn more about the health benefits of forest bathing, nature therapy, and time spent outdoors:

Association of Nature and Forest Therapy resource library

Harvard Health article: Can forest therapy enhance health and well-being?

American Psychological Association article: Nurtured by Nature

Outside Magazine: Why Being in Nature Makes You Smarter