Campus Nature Rx

Campus Nature Rx @ Trinity University, San Antonio  

Trinity University offers a 4-hour undergraduate course teaching students the benefits of the natural environment. The Natural Environment and Well-Being course began in Fall 2021 and combines theory, research, and practice to immerse students in the outdoors, while teaching them the evidence base around nature and health. Approximately 50% of the course takes place outdoors in local parks and green spaces. On a full-day field trip to a state park, students collect their own pre-post data to compare to the literature using the Profile of Mood States inventory. Research comparing students taking the class to like-students not taking the class have shown decreases in rumination and increases in psychological well-being. In addition, the class is quite popular, with a waitlist double the course capacity. Faculty developed the course to help students improve their well-being while learning the restorative capacity of the outdoors.