Latest news
New handbook to help prescribe nature for mental health and wellbeing
Understanding how the power of nature can help people improve their mental health and overcome conditions such as depression, anxiety and stress has been boosted thanks to a new handbook.…
Exeter academics author WHO “call to action” on nature, biodiversity and health
The multitude of ways in which the natural environment and human health are inextricably linked have been outlined in a document designed to help individuals and organisations across the 53 member states of the WHO European Region make evidence-based decisions.
Save our oceans to protect our health – scientists call for global action plan
Scientists have proposed the first steps towards a united global plan to save our oceans, for the sake of human health. An interdisciplinary European collaboration called the Seas Oceans and Public…
Using green social prescribing to prevent and tackle mental ill health
Lockdown highlighted the impact of green spaces on our mental health and wellbeing – and now researchers are investigating whether prescribing nature can help prevent and tackle mental ill health.…
City health boost from nature mapped by researchers
Your local city park may be improving your health, according to a new paper led by Stanford University researchers and involving the University of Exeter. The research, published in Proceedings of…
A story of success and collaboration highlighted by the European Commission
The Seas, Oceans and Public Health in Europe project SOPHIE has been chosen and highlighted by the European Commission as one of it’s Success Stories, outlining the legacy the team have created since 2017.
Happiest countries are those most connected to nature
Living near, recreating in, and feeling psychologically connected to, the natural world are all associated with better mental health, but many exposure-related questions remain. BlueHealth researchers have published a study based on the 18-country BlueHealth International Survey (BIS).
Virtual reality nature environments offer an opportunity for people with memory loss
Blue Health researchers from the European Centre for Environment and Human Health have published the results of their study looking at the acceptability of virtual reality (VR) natural environments among people with memory loss.
Combining public health and environmental science to develop pollen forecasting
New research, which brings healthcare data together with ground-breaking ecological techniques, could set a roadmap for refining pollen forecasts in the future. Current pollen forecasts, crucial for people with allergic…
Rapid testing developed to combat antibiotic resistance build-up in waterways
Researchers have developed a swift new method that could help reduce the problem of antibiotic resistance increasing via wastewater systems Around 70 per cent of the antibiotics we take as…
Visiting water bodies worth £700bn to economies, study finds
Europeans spend more than £700 billion (€800bn) a year on recreational visits to water bodies – but perceived poor water quality costs almost £90 billion (€100bn) in lost visits, a new study has found.
New ‘virtual nature’ experiment launched
Take part in a new experiment investigating how people respond to different digital nature experiences.
