Maximise your Wellbeing – why choose a Green Study Space

I’m Cassie, a PhD student at the University of Limerick currently completing my PhD in the area of Nature-Connectedness and the mental health benefits that spending time in nature can have. This will be my sixth year in UL (BA, MA and now PhD) and the benefits of UL’s green campus is the main reason I keep coming back.

The University of Limerick has won the award for Best Student Campus in Ireland for 2 years in a row (Education Ireland Awards, 2019 & 2020)

Having spent time at UL studying for both my BA and MA, I jumped at the chance to continue my academic journey here. This time a PhD piqued my interest, ironically focusing on understanding urban nature connectedness as part of the GoGreenRoutes Horizon 2020 funded project.

I always knew that nature made me feel good, but now I get to understand why and, as part of my research, hypothesise how we connect urban citizens to their green spaces. Currently, I’m conducting a survey with our research team and a partner project “ReNature” in Malta, to evaluate citizens’ perceptions of the effect COVID-19 had on activity in green spaces. If you want your voice to be heard please check our survey.

Why studying at UL feels like home

Growing up surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean on an island, it is fair to assume I have a strong connection to nature. You would think that moving away from my home on Valentia Island, Co. Kerry to the suburbs of Castletroy for university would be a culture shock for me, but it was the contrary.

I instantly felt at home in the nature-filled campus at UL and have often sat by the River Shannon that dissects our campus, to hear the water rippling by. When I first came to UL, I couldn’t explain the feeling but now, in the middle of my sixth year at the university, I’m beginning to understand why I feel so at home here.

A recent pan-European study has reported a positive association between greater exposure to outdoor blue spaces and mental health.

Well-being and nature

Natural green and blue spaces are linked to positive physical and mental well-being so it is no shock that taking a walk around UL, even in the midst of exam week, makes you feel good. We often hear about protecting our mental well-being, but where can green space play a part?

When we refer to this type of well-being, we are talking about two concepts which, to avoid jargon, refer to feeling good and positive emotions, and secondly about finding meaning in life. Time in green space is largely associated with the former type of well-being but my research will explore the latter concept - how wellbeing and the sense of being connected to nature is part of who we are.

What all this really means is that spending time in the outdoors, enjoying the fresh air and taking in the scenery is positively linked to feelings of joy and happiness. For some people it goes deeper, it means feeling more connected to themselves and even helps them to find meaning and purpose in their life.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) and United Nations agree that green space is important for health. Not surprisingly, it’s included as one of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals targets, “By 2030, provide universal access to safe, inclusive and accessible, green and public spaces, in particular for women and children, older persons and persons with disabilities.”

UL has climbed to 17th in the world out of 900+ universities in the 2020 UI GreenMetric World University Rankings, which measure a university’s commitment to an environmentally friendly future.

Greenspace is considered such a vital aspect of our well-being that WHO recommends that everybody should be living within a 5-minute walk of an open green space that is at least 2 hectares in size. Two hectares is about the size of two rugby pitches and the benefit of studying at UL is that you are surrounded by a campus that is immersed in nature.

Exercise in nature

We have established that exposure to nature is good for you but what exactly happens when you are exposed to nature? To be frank; lots, and that’s what my doctoral studies will reveal. Green exercise, or physical exercise in natural green space, has many additional benefits beyond indoor training in terms of mental health, well-being, and of course carbon footprint. Remember the lesson of lockdowns, you don’t have to have been reared on Valentia to appreciate nature in your neighbourhood. Try it and you too may feel connected.