Connection to Nature: supporting people living with dementia and their carers
EUROPARC WEBINAR
Connection to Nature:
Supporting people living with dementia and their carers
5th July 2023 – 14:30 CEST
Contact with nature can deliver real benefits to people’s mental, physical, emotional and social health and well-being. COVID-19 has raised awareness of the value of Europe’s Parks and Protected Areas as a setting for people to connect with nature and improve their health and well-being.
There are many forms of dementia, with Alzheimer’s disease being the most prevalent. Whilst many countries are becoming better at tackling rates of mortality caused by cardiovascular diseases and cancer, work is ongoing with regard to effective treatments for dementia and it is becoming more significant in terms of disease burden.
In this webinar we introduced the condition of dementia, its risk factors, and explored how activities in nature have a potential to relieve and improve the lives of affected persons and their carers.
Healthy Parks Healthy People Europe is a programme developed by the EUROPARC Federation and builds on the innovative practices gathered by the Health and Protected Areas Commission over several years.
Setting the scene
“Welcome and introduction to the webinar” – Peter Rawcliffe, EUROPARC Federation Council and NatureScot
Pete introduced EUROPARC activities and the HPHPe Programme, its objectives and pillars.
Find Pete’s presentation here
“An introduction to thinking differently about dementia” – Gordon Malcom, Dementia Adventures
Find Gordon’s slide deck here
- Case Studies
“Improving accessibility and expanding learning and engagement opportunities at Bradgate Park, Leicestershire, England” – Gordon Malcom, Programme Leader of Training, Research and Consultancy, Dementia Adventures, UK
Find Gordon’s slide deck here
The videos embedded in Gordon’s presentation can be accessed below:
“Dementia-friendly Region – Wir 5 in Wienerwald at Biosphere Reserve Wienerwald, Austria” – Susanne Käfer Headmaster of Sparbach Nature Park Office and volunteer in “We 5 in WIenerwald”
Find Susanne’s presentation here
- Final questions and conclusions
“Q&A and conclusions” – Peter Rawcliffe, EUROPARC Federation Council
More information contributed from our great speakers and audience:
- Case Study from Klosterneuburg, Austria – Final Report / Sustainability Report, Caritas (2020) (GER)
- Case Study from Dementia Adventure Bradgate Park – inclusive outdoor experiences
- Greening Dementia – a literature review of the benefits and barriers facing individuals living with dementia in accessing the natural environment and local greenspace, Natural England (2013);
- Is it nice outside? – Consulting people living with dementia and their carers about engaging with the natural environment Natural England (2016);
- Website: European Parkinson Therapy Centre
- Associations of Greenness, Parks, and Blue Space With Neurodegenerative Disease Hospitalizations Among Older US Adults, Journal of American Medical Association – JAMA (2022)
- Is Greenness Associated with Dementia? A Systematic Review and Dose–Response Meta-analysis, published by Springer (2022)
