Everyday Ecotherapy: Nature Connection Practices for Where We Live, Learn, Work, and Play - Paperback

by Carolyn Schuyler (Author), Dorothy Ibes (Author)

Everyday Ecotherapy introduces ecotherapy as a path to personal growth and creating community, guiding readers to deepen their bond with nature for well-being and a compassionate, conservation-minded outlook.

Drawing on core ecotherapy values and research, the book illustrates how to reimagine everyday places--schoolyards, campuses, parks, gardens, and neighborhoods--as spaces to support mental health, community, and environmental action. At the heart of the book is the Nature Connection Continuum, which helps practitioners understand where people are in their relationship with the natural world - estranged, engaged, or embedded - and select practices that support deeper connection. Activities throughout the book are coded according to the continuum, providing a practical framework for meeting people where they are and supporting their journey toward a deeper relationship with the living world.

Step-by-step guidance empowers both new and experienced leaders to facilitate ecotherapy experiences for people of all backgrounds and experience levelsThis is a practical, user-friendly guide for mental health professionals, educators, community builders, and individuals seeking engaging ways to disconnect from digital distractions and reconnect with the living world. With this resource, nature connection becomes a nurturing, creative, collaborative endeavor.

Author Biography

Carolyn Schuyler, MSW, is a psychotherapist, visiting scholar at the University of Virginia, and nonprofit founder of Wildrock and Nature Connection Lab.

Dorothy C. Ibes, PhD, is faculty in William and Mary's Environment and Sustainability Program, director of the Parks and Ecotherapy Research Lab, a certified Ecotherapy guide, and founding co-director of the Campus Nature Rx Network.