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https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/nov/01/britain-one-of-least-nature-connected-nations-in-world-with-nepal-the-most>
"Britain is one of the least “nature connected” nations in the world, according
to the first ever global study of how people relate to the natural world.
Britain ranks 55th out of 61 countries in the study of 57,000 people, which
looks at how attitudes towards nature are shaped by social, economic,
geographical and cultural factors.
The most nature-connected nation is Nepal, followed by Iran, South Africa,
Bangladesh and Nigeria, according to the study, which is published in the
journal Ambio. Croatia and Bulgaria are the only European nations in the top
10, followed by France in 19th place.
Languishing below Britain are the Netherlands, English-speaking Canada,
Germany, Israel, Japan and Spain, which is the least nature-connected of the 61
nations surveyed.
Nature connectedness is a psychological concept that measures the closeness of
an individual’s relationship with other species. Studies have found that people
with higher levels of nature connectedness enjoy improved wellbeing and are
more likely to act in environmentally friendly ways. Low levels of nature
connectedness have been identified as one of three major underlying causes of
biodiversity loss alongside inequality and the prioritisation of individual,
material gains.
Researchers from Britain and Austria, led by Miles Richardson, professor of
nature connectedness at the University of Derby, found the strongest indicator
for a close relationship with nature was high levels of “spirituality” in a
society. More religious societies and cultures where there was a preference for
faith over science showed high levels of nature connection.
In contrast, the study also found that “ease of doing business” – a World Bank
measurement of the business-friendly character of a country – was correlated
with less nature connection.
Although Britain is believed to have one of the highest levels of membership of
environmental organisations in the world, this apparently pro-nature indicator
was found to have little impact on closeness to nature.
More concrete factors found by the study to be linked to a lack of connection
with nature included levels of urbanisation, mean income and internet use."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
