Rooting Relationships: Realigning Nature and Nurture in Outdoor Healing Programs

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This study examines 50 outdoor programs on Oʻahu that incorporate cultural wisdom, land-based practices, and community engagement. Findings highlight how these nature-based approaches offer powerful adjuncts to traditional therapy, supporting healing through ecological relationships and shared cultural knowledge to cultivate personal growth, community resilience, and systemic wellbeing.

As a result of this presentation, participants will be able to:

• Identify four key themes emerging from outdoor, nature-based programs on Oʻahu that support individual and collective healing.
• Explain how Indigenous cultural knowledge and ecological connection contribute to mental health and relational wellbeing.
• Evaluate the potential for land-based and community-informed approaches to complement or enhance conventional mental health services.