Restorative places or scary spaces? The impact of woodland on the mental well-being of young adults

UK woodland policy and mental health in young adults.

"In recent years, there has been a substantial increase in mental healthproblems amongst young adults in the UK, prompting the BritishGovernment to seek to identify services and preventative measures tocombat the problem. At the same time, the policy agenda around woodlandhas shifted away from the agro-forestry agenda that dominated much ofthe late 20th century toward the development of ‘social forestry’,defined in terms of multi-purpose, multi-benefit woodland that cancontribute to an enhanced quality of life and well-being. Against thisbackground of change and policy response, this paper examines theextent to which childhood experiences of play—particularly in woodedlandscapes—may influence access to woodland in young adulthood, and thepotential implications for their health and mental well-being. Engagingwith notions of restoration and therapeutic landscapes literatures, thepaper maintains that we cannot accept uncritically the notion that thenatural environment is therapeutic. Indeed, from this paper it is clearthat a range of influences acts to shape young people's relationshipwith woodland environments, but not all of these influences do so inpositive ways." [Abstract]