In celebration of the shortlisted papers for the Rachel Carson Prize 2024 for Early Career Researchers, we’re delighted to introduce you to some of our shortlisted individuals and papers.
Kevin Rozario (they/them)
Read Kevin’s shortlisted paper: ‘The more the merrier? Perceived forest biodiversity promotes short-term mental health and well-being—A multicentre study‘.
About the paper:
What is your shortlisted paper about, and what are you seeking to answer with your research?
Forest bathing (or Shinrin-Yoku) is a mindfulness practice originating from Japan that refers to immersing oneself in the forest with all senses to get away from stressors of our everyday lives. Due to its implications for public health, it is important to understand which forests are best suited to achieve mental health benefits. We therefore conducted an experimental field study in three cities across Europe to test whether the biodiversity of forests matters. Interestingly, while greater tree species richness did not increase mental wellbeing, people’s subjective estimations of biodiversity did, meaning that the more biodiverse people thought a forest was, the better for their mental health.
Were you surprised by anything when working on it? Did you have any challenges to overcome?
We were surprised about how little people’s perceived biodiversity matched with actual tree species richness. Forests probably all seem quite biodiverse to lay people – they are densely vegetated, which maybe impedes how well people identify species richness. The biggest challenge clearly was the study set-up, as we wanted to conduct a highly controlled field experiment. For example, we made sure that the interventions started at the exact same time at all forest patches and the built control. We therefore organised several vans to bring the participants to the study sites that all had to be at a comparable distance from a central meeting point, while at each patch the experimenters always had to be in touch with each other to start the interventions parallelly. Taken together, we were about 10-15 helpers to realise the study.
What is the next step in this field going to be?
I guess the journey of testing biodiversity-mental health linkages just started. We could show that perceived biodiversity matters. But what determines how people perceive biodiversity? And are there ways to increase how well or accurately people perceive it? The field will have to advance both in terms of which biodiversity indicators to test with regards to their mental health implications, while also the study designs probably influence the strength of biodiversity-mental health linkages. For example, studies finding positive effects, mostly exposed people to different biodiversity levels, therefore enabling people to directly compare different environments.
What are the broader impacts or implications of your research?
We want to maximise the co-benefits for people and nature! That is, can we design natural environments that meet biodiversity goals while also improving people’s mental health and wellbeing? Of the perceived biodiversity measures that we applied, it were particularly perceived forest structural attributes that resulted in greater mental wellbeing. Since we did not find any negative mental health effects for biodiversity, we therefore recommend forest managers to design forests high in biodiversity with an emphasis on forest structure, e.g. via multiple vertical layers and alterations in canopy closure.
About the author:
How did you get involved in ecology?
I grew up in the beautiful Swabian Alps in the south of Germany, surrounded by forests. My childhood was characterised by playing outside with friends, building camps in the woods. Nature therefore has always played a central role in my life. During my studies in psychology, I felt I needed to find something to combine the things that mattered to me the most: people AND nature. I then found the “Initiative Psychologie im Umweltschutz” – a student association interested in promoting the role of psychology for conservation. This is also where I first heard about deep ecology – a concept that describes people’s spiritual connection to nature and I knew that I wanted to engage in environmental psychology more .. and well: here I am.
What is your current position?
I currently work as a PhD student in the Biodiversity and People lab at the German Centre for integrative Biodiversity Research. My main research emphasis are biodiversity – mental health linkages and how people connect with nature, also from a spiritual viewpoint.
Have you continued the research your paper is about?
Yes I did. For example, we conducted a study to better understand what perceived biodiversity actually is. We also tested biodiversity-mental health linkages in the lab separately for the visual and the acoustic sense to understand the particular contribution of experiencing biodiversity via different sensory pathways. I am also involved in a project where we look at biodiversity’s relevance for mental health on a population or city level, and we also collaborate with economists to identify the monetary value of biodiversity and associated health effects for people.
What one piece of advice would you give to someone in your field?
I would like to encourage researchers to think outside the box, to be brave enough to ask questions that some people may find useless and to overcome barriers between disciplines through curiosity and openness. Also, I think it is crucial to stay optimistic. It makes me very sad to see how many researchers are struggling, given all the uncertainties that working in academia entails. However, it also allows us to be curious, ask questions and find answers. To me, this is very inspiring.
Relational Thinking 