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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Environment
Patrick Barkham

Human connection to nature has declined 60% in 200 years, study finds

Walkers in the woods out on a dull morning in the countryside in Oxfordshire
The study found people in Sheffield on average spent just four minutes and 36 seconds in natural spaces each day. Photograph: Geoffrey Swaine/Shutterstock

People’s connection to nature has declined by more than 60% since 1800, almost exactly mirroring the disappearance of nature words such as river, moss and blossom from books, according to a study.

Computer modelling predicts that levels of nature connectedness will continue to decline unless there are far-reaching policy and societal changes – with introducing children to nature at a young age and radically greening urban environments the most effective interventions.

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