Nature Deficit Disorder

Trees Are a Teen’s BFF

| February 22, 2018 | Categories: Biophilia, Nature and Wellbeing, Sustainable Living
Are you and especially your kids getting enough vitamin N - as in Nature? Good Earth Plant Company San Diego
  It wasn’t all that long ago that my son and daughter, Ted and Allie, were typical high school students, in a typical 21st century high school. But you don’t have to be a parent or a high school student to feel the impact of the recent events in Parkland, Florida and worry about our teenagers. No, this blog isn’t going to turn into a discussion about events in the news. There are plenty of other places to talk about those issues. But what I do want to talk about is what seems like an epidemic of troubled, depressed teenagers. As a parent it upsets me to see so many kids hurting.… Read More

Meet the Next Generation of Eco-Warriors

| April 5, 2017 | Categories: Biophilia, Environment, Gardening, Good Earth Plant Company, Green Roofs, Living Walls, Nature and Wellbeing
Sixth grade students from Innovation Academy took a field trip to Good Earth Plant Company’s living lab earlier this year. Students are working on green roof and living wall projects and wanted to see the “real deal.” During their visit to our living lab, we first did a power point presentation about how to build a green roof or living wall and some of the issues and concerns keeping them alive. We showed them photos of green roofs and living walls around the world. Then it was time to go outside and see them up close. Boy do they have a lot of questions, some really smart ones.… Read More

Projects Inspiring Us At Good Earth Plants RN

| September 29, 2016 | Categories: Biophilic Design, Case Studies, Green Roofs, Living Walls, Sustainable Living
Regular blog readers know about my passion for improving our communities and our health and well being through strengthening our connection to nature. It’s amazing to me how something simple like introducing natural elements in our work environment like plants and natural light can reduce job stress and improve our health overall. I get inspired when I see people around the world creating projects taking this simple idea and making it real. Yes, I also admit to being a little envious too, because I would love to see more projects like this in San Diego. Several projects got a “wow” out of me and I’d like to share them with you for your daily dose of “wow” instead of a basketball trick shot or cute pet video.… Read More

Before You Go Back to School, Go Back to Nature

| August 11, 2016 | Categories: Environment, Gardening, Nature and Wellbeing, Sustainable Living
A Harvard study found teens living in areas with high quality green spaces are at less risk of depression.
Those precious days of summer vacation are already starting to wind down. Back to school ads are everywhere. By this point of the summer back when I was a kid (yes, I realize this is a LONG time ago to some of you), I didn’t stay at the breakfast or dinner table a second longer than I had to. I was too busy outside with all kinds of activities. Do kids even build forts anymore? If you are still trying to pry your kids away from the screens of their phones, tablets or laptops to enjoy outdoor activities during the summer and haven’t been too successful, don’t give up.… Read More

Let’s Make San Diego A Biophilia Hub

| March 2, 2016 | Categories: Architecture and Design, Biophilia, Biophilic Design, Environment, Good Earth Plant Company, Green Roofs, Indoor Plants, Living Walls, Sustainable Living
Leaders from 40 of the best large gardens in North America came to San Diego last week for the Directors of Large Gardens Conference at the San Diego Botanical Garden in Encinitas. When I opened my San Diego Union-Tribune on Saturday, I was glad to see an article about the meeting by reporter Phil Diehl, and I especially loved the headline:  “Stressed? You may need some nature.” Right up my alley. It’s worth reading. As many good things as the article covered, there were so many other great topics it couldn’t fit in. Many are the things we write about here in this blog: biophilia, bioinspiration, biomimicry, author Richard Louv’s concept of “nature deficit disorder,” the new Wellbeing Standards – I could go on.… Read More

Prescribing Nature as the Cure: Ecotherapy

| October 23, 2015 | Categories: Biophilia, Gardening, Good Earth Plant Company Tips, Nature and Wellbeing, Sustainable Living
Human beings need exposure to nature for their physical and mental health.
When I first started writing this blog over two years ago in 2013, one of the first topics I wrote about was the concept of biophilia, the study of the connection between human beings and nature. I’m sure a lot of people thought the idea was a little “out there.” We have come a long way in thinking about how nature affects our well-being in that time. This month, the respected magazine The Atlantic published an article called “The Nature Cure.” It is all about the growing practice of medical professionals including mental health specialists actually prescribing nature to their patients to help treat their ills.… Read More