#green activities

[ausetkmt]

Inverse: Even Just a Little of This 1 Overlooked Activity Can Reduce Depression

Spring comes with many little rituals and urges: A deep clean, the shelving of winter jackets, a desire for a salad instead of soup — and an urgent, gnawing need to buy and cultivate as many plants as possible (garden optional). Nature is aligned: The stretch of time right before summer is also the moment when bright, flashy flowers start to bloom and suddenly your lawn needs to be cut. It’s a moment for impulse buying tomato plants, lugging bags of topsoil, and investing in some fresh gardening gloves. Fortunately, this particular ritual does more than beautify our spaces: Gardening has a powerful effect on our mental health.

Consider this: In the first months of the Covid-19 lockdowns, some studies suggest people used their gardens and outdoor spaces 50 to 82 percent more than they did before the lockdown. In one 2022 study, researchers quote a participant who hits on the truth that gardening relieves stress:

“You can’t worry when you are engrossed in weeding, building rock walls, and installing stone paths, or planning and planting a garden,” the participant explained. “Having your hands in the earth connects you directly to nature, which is a welcome companion in my life.”

The findings jibe with a mountain of evidence showing interacting with nature — taking a walk, for example — holds massive health benefits. But gardening is distinct in that it's an active engagement with green spaces. In turn, it offers unique perks. Any garden, big or small, can aid your mental health, but there are certain elements you can include that can enhance the benefits and create a fulfilling space scientifically shown to boost your brain.

Why gardening is good for your brain

What I’m about to state might seem obvious, but science backs it up: Being in nature is good for us. A large body of research shows that time spent in natural settings provides physical and psychological benefits, including (but not limited to) feeling happier, more relaxed, more focused, less anxious, and less fatigued.

Studies on gardening also support the link between enjoying green spaces and better mental health. Gardening can reduce depression and anxiety; it can also improve emotional well-being.

For example, in the study that examined the mental health impact of gardening during the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, people who gardened were less anxious. The paper’s senior author, Rachel Rosenberg Goldstein, says the study also found a connection between spending more time outdoors on weekdays and decreased anxiety scores.

“People who listed exercise as their motivation for gardening have less anxiety, suggesting that the physical activity involved in gardening might impact mental health,” explains Goldstein, who is an assistant professor at the University of Maryland. She is also leading a project examining how gardening can address mental health challenges and food insecurity.

Naomi Sachs, an assistant professor at the University of Maryland and the founding director of the nonprofit Therapeutic Landscapes Network, adds that studies suggest “green exercise” — exercise performed in nature — even “benefits people more than the equivalent amount of exercise indoors.”

How to garden for your mental health

Gardening is good but gardening with others can be even better. Getty Images

Gardening is demonstrably helpful for the mind and body, and there are certain actions that can enhance the experience. These include:

Gardening with others

In a recent study published in the journal The Lancet Planetary Health, researchers found that first-time gardeners found their stress and anxiety lessened after they started tending a plot in a community garden. These new gardeners also got more physical activity than the comparison group, which suggests this outdoor work could play an important role in preventing disease.

Jill Litt is the paper’s senior author and a professor at the University of Colorado, Boulder. She says that it's possible that the social support in the community garden amplifies the general benefits of gardening.

“This social support can activate a series of social processes such as shared learning, reciprocity, and relatedness,” explains Litt. “All these processes tap into intrinsic motivation, which is important for behavior changes that support health and well-being.”

Creating a garden that activates the senses

While what you can grow often depends on where you live, It can be helpful to “have a variety of positive sensory engagement plants — plants that engage all the senses throughout the entire year,” says Sachs.

“For example, lavender is beautiful to look at and smells lovely, and can even taste good when used in baking,” explains Sachs. “It’s also great for pollinators.”

She also recommends serviceberry trees, which come in different varieties that are native to various regions. They are visually striking in different ways throughout the year — in spring they bloom, in fall they often turn orange-red — and their summer berries are edible. They also provide a great habitat for animals.

“The aesthetic experience of gardening is crucial for awakening the senses and creating a sense of wonder,” says Litt.

Other ways of engaging the senses include getting your hands dirty, planting colorful flowers, and making the space inviting to birds — research also suggests the sound of birdsong benefits the brain.

Incorporating other joyful elements

Your garden doesn’t need to be limited to plants and flowers. You can also make space for other activities that destress you.

“Maybe it’s a space for yoga and a separate space for kids or dogs to run around,” Sachs says. “Maybe it’s a space for entertaining, or a hammock for reading a book or taking a nap.”

Litt describes spaces that are hospital to company as “interactional spaces” — areas where people can come together, meditate, and more. You can make way for these sorts of spaces by adding shade and walking paths, she explains.

“These spaces can amplify the social experience by activating social support, promoting shared learning, and fostering friendships,” Litt says.

[hinamie]

long way home

[politijohn]

Source

[canisalbus]

*carefully picks you up and peeks into your conch snail shell*

Ehm... Sorry to bother, but... Could we, maybe, possibly... see Vasco's wife and her lover pictured by your hand? Sorry again, thank you for listening. Take care.

*delicately lays you back into the water to prevent any stress or dehydration*

Unfortunately I don't have her lover figured out yet, but I think Ludovica looks something like this:

[chaithetics]

THE TREATY PRINCIPLES BILL IS BEING PRESENTED TO THE HOUSE TOMORROW!!!!!!!

EDIT: Here's a link with more info on the Bill and it's contents and breaches!

This matters to EVERYONE in our country! If you're Māori this is about our LITERAL existence, if you're Pākehā, tauiwi, tangata Tiriti this concerns you because Tiriti is what gives you the privilege of existing on this whenua! The Waitangi Tribunal has already said this Bill will be the biggest Waitangi breach ever. YOU have a responsibility to do something.

ACT, our coalition government, and the Ministry of Justice have been intentionally keeping this bill under the wraps. Mad mihi to the MoJ analyst who leaked that draft though (I'm sure they got sacked if not massive repercussions).

What we know so far is that Te Pāti Māori, Green Party, and Labour WILL NOT be voting for this and that ACT, NZ First, and National WILL be voting for this tomorrow. NZ First and National have said that they WILL NOT support this Bill after its first reading so it will go to Select Committee and then die at first reading.

National and NZ First have said they'll only support this Bill to first reading (thankfully) but there is always the chance of closed door promises & favours and we still need to advocate for this disgusting bill to die.

I'll post more about submissions when they open for Select Committee but I'm happy to help answer questions or help with that and the process.

But the racist idiots to email and drill in that you DO NOT want this Bill are...

ACT MPs

1. David Seymour (Email: David.Seymour@parliament.govt.nz ) (the one bigoted brain cell behind this bill)

2. Brooke Van Velden (Brooke.Vanvelden@parliament.govt.nz)

3. Nicole McKee (Nicole.McKee@parliament.govt.z)

4. Todd Stephenson (Todd.Stephenson@parliament.govt.nz)

5. Andrew Hoggard (Andrew.Hoggard@parliament.govt.nz)

6. Karen Chhour (Karen.Chhour@parliament.govt.nz)

7. Mark Cameron (Mark.Cameron@parliament.govt.nz)

8. Simon Court (Simon.Court@parliament.govt.nz)

9. Parmjeet Parmat (Parmjeet.Parmat@parliament.govt.nz)

10. Laura Trask (Laura.Trask@parliament.govt.nz)

11. Cameron Luxton (Cameron.Luxton@parliament.govt.nz)

AND

- Prime Minister Christopher Luxon (Christopher.Luxon@parliament.govt.nz)

- Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters (Winston.Peters@parliament.govt.nz)

If you're able to participate with any part of the hīkoi please do and please be safe!!!!

Toitū te Tiriti! Ake ake ake!

[reasonsforhope]

Holy crap, I didn't think Biden would be able to get the Climate Corps established without Congress. This is SUCH fantastic news.

--

"After being thwarted by Congress, President Joe Biden will use his executive authority to create a New Deal-style American Climate Corps that will serve as a major green jobs training program.

In an announcement Wednesday, the White House said the program will employ more than 20,000 young adults who will build trails, plant trees, help install solar panels and do other work to boost conservation and help prevent catastrophic wildfires.

The climate corps had been proposed in early versions of the sweeping climate law approved last year but was jettisoned amid strong opposition from Republicans and concerns about cost.

Democrats and environmental advocacy groups never gave up on the plan and pushed Biden in recent weeks to issue an executive order authorizing what the White House now calls the American Climate Corps.

“After years of demonstrating and fighting for a Climate Corps, we turned a generational rallying cry into a real jobs program that will put a new generation to work stopping the climate crisis,” said Varshini Prakash, executive director of the Sunrise Movement, an environmental group that has led the push for a climate corps.

With the new corps “and the historic climate investments won by our broader movement, the path towards a Green New Deal is beginning to become visible,” Prakash said...

...Environmental activists hailed the new jobs program, which is modeled after the Civilian Conservation Corps, created in the 1930s by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, a Democrat, as part of the New Deal...

Lawmakers Weigh In

More than 50 Democratic lawmakers, including Massachusetts Sen. Ed Markey and New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, had also encouraged Biden to create a climate corps, saying in a letter on Monday that “the climate crisis demands a whole-of-government response at an unprecedented scale.”

The lawmakers cited deadly heat waves in the Southwest and across the nation, as well as dangerous floods in New England and devastating wildfires on the Hawaiian island of Maui, among recent examples of climate-related disasters.

Democrats called creation of the climate corps “historic” and the first step toward fulfilling the vision of the Green New Deal.

“Today President Biden listened to the (environmental) movement, and he delivered with an American Climate Corps,” a beaming Markey said at a celebratory news conference outside the Capitol.

“We are starting to turn the green dream into a green reality,” added Ocasio-Cortez, who co-sponsored the Green New Deal legislation with Markey four years ago.

“You all are changing the world,” she told young activists.

Program Details and Grant Deadlines

The initiative will provide job training and service opportunities to work on a wide range of projects, including restoring coastal wetlands to protect communities from storm surges and flooding; clean energy projects such as wind and solar power; managing forests to prevent catastrophic wildfires; and energy efficient solutions to cut energy bills for consumers, the White House said.

Creation of the climate corps comes as the Environmental Protection Agency launches a $4.6 billion grant competition for states, municipalities and tribes to cut climate pollution and advance environmental justice. The Climate Pollution Reduction Grants are funded by the 2022 climate law and are intended to drive community-driven solutions to slow climate change.

EPA Administrator Michael Regan said the grants will help “communities so they can chart their own paths toward the clean energy future.”

The deadline for states and municipalities to apply is April 1, with grants expected in late 2024. Tribes and territories must apply by May 1, with grants expected by early 2025."

-via Boston.com, September 21, 2023

[bet-on-me-13]

Why are there so many gods here?

SO! One day, the Eternal Trio decided to Check if they had ant past lives using Magic.

They already knew that Tucker was the Reincarnation of some Pharoah, so maybe they were also some historical figures in a last life.

It does not go as expected.

Danny finds out that he was the Ancient of Space, and the reason Clockwork was so invested in keeping him from being erased from Time is because he's his Brother apparently.

Sam finds out that she was the Embodiment of The Green, and Undergrowths attempt at Adopting her was some scheme to become the Parent of his used-to-be Queen while she was in Mortal Form, therefore overthrowing her.

Tucker finds out that Duulaman was just one in a long line of the Reincarnations of the Sun God Ra, and that he had been quite a few more historical figures in the Past.

They were surprised to figure this out, but then they got curious.

They tested the Spell out on Jazz, and found that she used to be an Amazonian Goddess, alongside Pandora.

They test it on Dash, and find that he used to be Hermes, God of Travel and Speed.

Ellie was an Embodiment of something called the Speed Force, who was also a child of Space before their rebirth, apparently.

They slowly realize that almost every person of note in Amity Park is the Reincarnation of some kind of God or Spirit. And none of them seem to realize that.

Why are there so many reborn Gods in this town?

...

Constantine is actually asking himself the EXACT same question at that very moment, after a botched teleportation spell landed him in Amity Park.

[zhuzhee]

me 😳 when da watcher👁️ is ceaseless 🥵

[academic-vampire]

𝔞𝔲𝔱𝔲𝔪𝔫 𝔞𝔫𝔤𝔢𝔩 🍁🪽

[wizardemotions]

pinterest showed me some screenshots of posts that gave me the concept for an au where both harry and ron are sorted slytherin & draco is just slightly less rude in the first book. i could go into why i think this makes a lot of sense for ron but i won't. i've affectionately dubbed them the platinum quartet in my head and they will not leave me the fuck alone

[pudrid]

ㅤ ㅤㅤ.○oOㅤCurita Al Almaㅤ❤︎ :-3

[idanit]

solidarity

[aroaceleovaldez]

apparently pjotv twt was being weird about book!Percy's eyes being green because they don't think the ocean can be green (???) so consider this a sequel to my Grace siblings eye colors post and here is some visual references of green water for all your Percy inspo needs:

And for reference, the water around New York-ish where Percy is usually is somewhere around this color:

or some alternatives:

or here is a nice hazel green if you want his eyes more on the brown side, which is very common in freshwater ponds and streams:

or if you want him to have totally brown eyes - water rich in tannins will appear brown, greenish-brown, or very dark brown - this is sometimes called "blackwater" due to often appearing very dark or having low visibility:

[politijohn]

By the time these politicians take climate change seriously, their districts will be flooded into nonexistence.

And if Kamala Harris wants to win in Nov, she would campaign on the most progressive green agenda ever seen by a presidential candidate. Low hanging fruit at this point.

[dogahed]

dont you wanna be the best ?

[nyracel]

it’s always ‘rhaenyra did nothing to secure her ascension, she just relied on her daddy to uphold her claim’ and never ‘aegon did nothing to prove he was worthy of being named heir, let alone being king, and solely relied on his mommy and grandpa to cover for his less than stellar hobbies like his drinking issues and his raping of serving girls’ in this essay i will-