Supporting Mental Wellbeing with Green Spaces at Solidarity Farm
Green spaces, areas with plants, vegetation, are more often thought of in urban settings, yet farms are considered a type of green space to visit to get away from the business of everyday life. Farms have large isolated green spaces that have a multitude of benefits towards wellbeing.
Scientists have confirmed that human interaction is intrinsically linked to mental and physical health, describing that connection to nature can release serotonin and recharge your battery. Green spaces can improve the seven senses in young people, you’ve read correctly the seven senses. There’s the main senses – sight, smell, taste, touch, and hearing – as well as vestibular (movement) and proprioception (body position).
Located in the inner ear, the vestibular system tells the brain where the body is in relation to motion and gravity and helps us maintain coordination and spatial orientation. In young people, green spaces are especially areas where physical play is increased. So climbing on trees or swinging on a hammock encourages balance, body awareness and equilibrium improvement.
The proprioceptive sense tells us where our body parts are in relation to each other, it allows us to calibrate how much strength to use for each task, for instance animal care tasks provides joint awareness and controlled movements. Stimulating both these senses, as well as the other senses, improves body awareness, balance, and physical health which is closely linked to mental health. Solidarity Farm provide a lot of sensory experiences and hands on engagement that are unlike indoor activities.
Being in nature can release various positive emotions, feelings of awe and gratitude for the beauty of nature, feelings of perspective where problems can feel smaller compared to the vastness of landscapes, and also soothing and grounded feelings. It can encourage reflection, giving people a chance to pause, observe and process emotions in a safe environment.
At Solidarity Farm, we believe that nature can be an active participant in learning and personal development. By providing access to green spaces, we give young people the tools to manage stress, build resilience, and regain connectivity to their surroundings.
