There is some great research coming from the University of Derby about the relationship with connecting with nature and human wellbeing. The research led by Professor Miles Richardson shows that you don’t actually need to go for a walk in the countryside, or plant a native hedge, for example, to feel the lift that being in nature gives you, even though both those activities are beneficial.

They conducted a large survey of people asking them when they were outside, to stop what they were doing and notice the good things in nature. By stopping and noticing things like birds song, or the breeze moving trees, or a small flower growing on a wall people experienced a clinically significant improvement in their mental health and that was in an urban environment.

You can just as easily connect with nature waiting at a bus stop, or going out to the bin. All that is needed is for you to stop what you are doing and notice the living world around you. Their research found that it is clear that just simple moments with nature matter for human’s and nature’s wellbeing, so they developed the Green Care Code which is:

To remember every day, and wherever you are outside, Stop – Look – Listen and Enjoy nature!

Coincidentally, I caught a snippet of a discussion on the BBC’s What’s Up Doc? programme on Radio
4 where the doctors were talking to Hester Parr, a Professor of Human Geography from the University of Glasgow. They were discussing depression and especially Seasonal Affected Disorder and its relationship to natural daylight. Apparently in a British midwinter the amount of light an average Briton gets is 250 lux per day. Whereas an Amish person who spends a lot of their life working outside gets 1,000 lux per day. Any kind of natural light outside is more beneficial to our mental health than staying inside, even when it is overcast.

We know how light levels affect the Circadian rhythm of all living beings, including humans. One of the suggestions from the programme was that we get a cardboard frame, (either make one out of a cereal packet or use the mount from a picture frame) go outside and look through it at one spot in the sky for about 5 minutes noticing any changes. I haven’t tried it yet, but it sounds a good idea especially if you are prone to getting low in the winter months.

Talking of frames have you ever done the citizen science survey for the UK Pollinator Monitoring Scheme? They want to collect data on the insects that visit specific plants from April to September. They ask you to count the number of insects that land in 10 minutes on the flowers in a 50cm by 50cm area. This is a great thing to do with family and friends and is helping to keep track on the quantity of pollinators we have in this country.

They have very helpful information and instructions for making a 50 x 50 quadrat to help your counting. The easiest way, I think, is to take a just over 2 metre length of string and tie knots every 50cm then tie the ends together. There you have your mobile quadrat that can travel with you.

If you are interested in doing this very easy citizen science project go to https://ukpoms.org.uk/ and
get counting!

Some of us at Greener Henley are desperate to get outside and do some of our own connecting with nature. We have decided to hold a “Wild Coffee Morning – a morning of Conversation and Conservation” on Thursday 23rd April at the Friends Meeting House, 45 Northfield End, Henley. We thought we could gather at 10.00 a.m. have a quick cuppa then go out into the Meeting House garden to see what we can find living there. Sharon will be there to show us how to identify and record certain species for the Thames Valley Environmental Records Centre. If interested in joining us, please get in touch with me through greenerhenley@gmail.com

Last month we were invited to an event organised by South Oxfordshire Housing Association residents and staff in preparation for a community event they are hosting at Henley Leisure Centre soon. In the middle of the room was a huge 3-d map of an imaginary town surrounded with lots of coloured cards with different themes. To begin with, I thought we had come to a rather complicated game of Monopoly. Instead, it was an inspiring exercise where everyone present took on a role of a fictitious person connected with the town of ‘Ennywhere’, and moved around the table selecting cards with suggestions for improvements and solutions to problems that most places have.

Apparently, this activity was devised some years back and has been used successfully by all sorts of groups in many locations as an enjoyable means of getting the views and suggestions from ordinary residents. At the end of the evening we were shown the giant map of Henley that has been produced for the special event on Saturday 18th April 1.30 – 4p.m.

If you can, come along to a relaxed, friendly community event where you can share what matters most to you locally in a non-threatening way and help shape the future of our community. Soha have provided free entertainment for children, free refreshments and a welcoming space for all.

There is a similar project Future Streets Oxfordshire that is trying to involve residents thinking about what they want our towns, villages and communities to be like. I went to the first online session and heard about the kinds of things people from all over the county would like to change in their local areas. The sorts of things people are not keen on are petrol hedge trimmers, potholes (obviously) and not enough space for hedgehogs to move around. Generally there was a desire for green space and nature, and a deep appetite for social connection and local life.

It seems a good exercise to think about what we want our local streets and areas to be like, not just
the physical areas but the cohesion among different groups and organisations. Even better, if we
can make it happen.

I sometimes meet people very keen for things to change in the town. For instance, hedgehogs are doing better in urban areas than in the countryside but although there are a few areas in Henley hedgehogs visit, we could do a lot more to support them. I am sure there are people here that care enough about the plight of our endangered hogs that we could get a Henley group going.

Another friend can’t abide the waste from people buying water in plastic bottles. She would like to work with others to get a scheme where shops and cafes can display a simple symbol showing that people can fill up their own water bottles at their premises.

Likewise, a proper discount scheme in the town where people can take their own drinks containers into cafes to get coffee refills instead of wasting huge numbers of cardboard coffee cups.

Please get in touch if you have suggestions or other ideas at greenerhenley@gmail.com