GETTING BACK TO NATURE

“OUR lives are overcrowded, overexcited, over-strained...

- JOHN ORNA-ORNSTEIN

We all want quiet. We all want beauty. We all need space.” National Trust cofounder Octavia Hill’s words from 1895 still ring true today.She believed that nature wasn’t a luxury, but an essential part of a full and happy life. She set up this conservation charity, dedicating her life to looking after green spaces for people and nature, and making sure everyone could enjoy them.

The Trust's new strategy continues to put people and nature at its very heart. More than a century later, science confirms what Octavia instinctively knew: that spending even 15 minutes in nature can improve your mood and reduce stress.

And recent research from More In Common shows we're a nation of nature-lovers, overwhelmingly citing parks and green spaces as our favourite things about the places where we live. But they can feel out of reach. Fewer than half the people in England live within a 15-minute walk of a good quality green space, which is rich with wildlife. In some areas, this drops as low as one in 10.