Atmospheres, landscapes and nature: Off-road runners' experiences of well-being.

Sara Macbride-Stewart

doi:10.1177/1363459318785675

Abstract

This article reflects on the relations between health and natural landscapes. The study explores how the landscape context – its textual and sensory aesthetics – positively shapes experiences and perceptions of the landscape, for those people who seek out natural environments for health. While health promotion is designated along the lines of encouraging choice or improving access to natural environments, this article wants to show how physical activities are intertwined with atmospheres and affects emanating from the natural and human world. An in-depth case-study of trail running across two sites (New Zealand, United Kingdom) is used to analyse the interconnections between health landscapes. It finds that when participants say that landscape ‘matters’ for health, they are referring to: (1) aesthetics and feelings, (2) flexibility and adaptiveness and (3) exploration and adventure. Avoiding the conclusion that the landscape is merely a resource for health, the analysis confirms that it is the complex of spaces, social practices, along with their physical fleshy selves, minds and emotions, and the particular quality of the earth beneath them, that gives rise to positively perceived health, for both immediate and enduring benefit.

Highlights

The accepted claim – that natural environments are good for human health – must be re-examined in light of the rapid pace at which social and physical environments are changing (Nisbet et al, 2011)
The NZ event was used as a ‘comparator’ for the UK event as both were held in a protected area: a Regional Park area of native bush and an Area of Outsanding Natural Beauty (AONB)/World Heritage Site, respectively
The study hoped to explore how the landscape context – its textual and sensory aesthetics – positively shapes experiences and perceptions of the landscape, for those people who seek out natural environments for health

Summary

Introduction

The accepted claim – that natural environments are good for human health (see MacBrideStewart et al, 2016) – must be re-examined in light of the rapid pace at which social and physical environments are changing (Nisbet et al, 2011). This article attempts to respond to this question about the (dis)connection with nature It considers how the ‘special’ qualities or complementary role of aesthetics and landscape shape meanings of health. It attempts to do this using the concept of ‘atmospheres’, described later (Böhme, 1993). The interest here is in what is felt and perceived, as part of the ambition of people to respond actively and physically to the changing world around them Bringing these ideas to their conclusion, the objective of the study is to explore how the landscape context – its textual and sensory aesthetics – positively shapes experiences and perceptions of health (Gobster et al, 2007)

Objectives

Methods

Findings

Conclusion