Ecotherapy: An Introduction

According to UN estimates, in the year 2007, a silent but significant shift occurred in our progression as a species. That year, for the first time in history, more people lived in cities than in rural areas, and in the years since then, the concentration of humans into urban areas has only increased. There are certainly good reasons for this, and much to be said for city life, but in a world where humanity is collectively experiencing unprecedented alienation from the natural world, we must take time to consider our relationship with nature, with the ecosystems that sustain us (indeed, sustain all life on Earth) and fundamentally, what it means to be human.

Our transition into being a primarily urban species comes with a variety of challenges and existential questions, and as we contemplate our relationship with the world around us, it highlights the relevance and exceptional power of ecotherapy to meet our needs for healing, for maintaining vibrant mental and physical health, and for making meaning of our lives.

Many indigenous languages do not have a specific word for nature. They don’t differentiate between humans and the natural world, recognizing that we are, in fact, not separate in any meaningful way. We are an integral part of the ecological whole which makes up the biosphere of the planet, and indeed cannot thrive - nor even survive - without consistently nurturing our relationship with the web of life.

It was only during the early stages of the industrial revolution that the concept of nature as something distinct from humanity began to gain traction. In the 18th and 19th centuries, there were massive migrations of people in Europe flocking to cities for socioeconomic opportunities not available in the countryside. However, these opportunities most often came with dark shadows - the brutality of industrial labour, the explosion of slums for the working poor, and new epidemics of disease springing from these loathsome conditions.

As early as the 19th century, French city-dwellers with the means to do so were being prescribed visits to the Mediterranean coast to ease their stress, and during WWII, Londoners involved in the resistance were advised to take time out of town to recover mentally and physically from the personal tolls of warfare. Romantic art, literature and music extolled the beauty and sublimity of nature and the virtues of living a life of communion with the natural world, seeing it as a means of nourishing one’s deeper humanity and of growing closer to God.

Later, in North America, and to a lesser extent in Europe, the hippie movement emerged in the mid-1960s, as the Baby Boomers came of age, and central to this movement was the “back to the land” ethos, of living in tune with nature and rejecting much of the toxicity and alienation inherent in modern life.

WHAT IS ECOTHERAPY?

These cultural movements have had enduring impacts on life into the 21st century. One of them is modern environmentalism, which is considered to have its origin in Rachel Carson’s book Silent Spring, released in 1962. Another such impact, which has not become so wide-spread but is nonetheless significant, is the development of the field of ecotherapy.

This word encompasses a diverse spectrum of practices whose general aim is to nurture human health through interaction with elements of the natural world. These practices have roots in indigenous land-based healing practices, in the academic fields of ecopsychology and deep ecology, in insights gleaned from psychedelic explorations and the aforementioned environmental movement. With aims ranging from easing stress, anxiety and depression to the relief of pain, immune and cardiovascular issues, recovery from medical procedures and trauma, the development of social connection, environmental consciousness and more supportive ways of viewing one’s identity and purpose in life, ecotherapy can be broad in its application, varying significantly depending on the type being practiced, the needs of the individual receiving treatment, and the practitioner facilitating the therapeutic experience.

Ecotherapy can take many forms, with some being more or less appropriate for certain complaints and needs. Some can be practiced by one’s self, without the guidance of a therapeutic practitioner, whereas others benefit more from the support and facilitation of a guide. The list below is meant as an introduction, but is far from exhaustive:

Forest Bathing/Sylvotherapy

Forest bathing and sylvotherapy describe immersing one’s self in a forest environment with specific therapeutic intent, really slowing down and being present with the sensory experience of physically being among the trees - the smells of plants and soil, the sounds of rustling leaves in the wind and the birds singing, the dappled light filtering down through the canopy, the texture of the forest floor beneath one’s feet. Noticing without judgment how one’s body responds to these sensory experiences - perhaps a loosening of tension, perhaps a welling up of emotion, perhaps relief at a moment of solitude or even a wave of loneliness.

The difference between these two terms is that forest bathing is typically undertaken alone, and without any particular structure to the experience. In contrast, sylvotherapy refers to a somewhat more structured experience, facilitated by a trained mental health professional and often involving a small group of participants. The therapist may guide the participants through mindfulness meditation in the forest, focusing in on specific sensory details and their effects, or may introduce the participants to the safe and mindful harvesting of certain edible or medicinal herbs, encouraging them to contemplate the intimacy inherent in accepting and ingesting these gifts from the Earth. A formal sylvotherapy session may conclude with a tea circle, in which the tea is brewed from foraged herbs, and participants are given space to discuss their subjective experiences of nourishing their relationships with the woodland environment.

This is a fairly generalized example of what a sylvotherapy experience may look like, noting that they can vary from one setting to another, and from one practitioner to the next. The author of this article is not only a registered counsellor, but also certified in sylvotherapy and related ecotherapeutic modalities, and I welcome all inquiries from readers curious about exploring these types of therapies.

Horticulture Therapy

Horticulture refers broadly to the practice of gardening and tending to plants, which, regardless of intent, has inherently therapeutic qualities. Nurturing the growth and vitality of plants is deeply calming to the nervous system, allows us to experience the tenderness of caring for other life, exposes us to sunlight and fresh air, and to the microbiome of the soil, which offers significant benefits to our immune and general physiological health. When the practice of horticulture is facilitated by a trained therapist who is also knowledgeable about working with plants, it becomes an opportunity for the recipient to not only receive the benefits described above, but also to become more fully embodied.

This is a unique benefit of ecotherapy in general. Most traditional therapies are very head-centered, very cognitive, and lack attention to our somatic (body-based) experiences. Interacting with plants, animals and natural ecosystems allows us to tune into all aspects of our being - the physical, mental, emotional, spiritual - in a profoundly holistic way, and for this reason can provide us with deeper and more enduring benefits than many other therapeutic approaches.

Care Farming

Care farming is very similar to horticulture therapy, offering roughly the same benefits, with the key difference being that it is carried out in a more agricultural environment. Whereas horticulture therapy tends to happen in a private or community garden space (or even on an apartment balcony or windowsill, offering accessibility for those with limited mobility) care farming brings participants onto established or growing farms, facilitating access to greenhouses, crop fields, animals, orchards and processing facilities, so that the participants can experience guided activities such as sowing seeds, transplanting starts, harvesting and processing crops, as well as learning about the ebb and flow of life on a farm, which is a foreign environment to so many members of modern society.

As with sylvotherapy and many other forms of ecotherapy, horticulture therapy and care farming are typically carried out in small groups, and an added benefit to this is not only the cultivation of social connections, but also the opportunity to discuss the experiences involved in these activities, and to bond through shared growth.

Adventure/Recreation/Wilderness Therapy

These terms are often used interchangeably, and though there are slight differences between them, I will describe them as a single category.

In adventure therapy, small groups of people are guided on typically multi-day trips into the wilderness by one or more professionals with formal training in both mental health care and wilderness guiding, safety and first-aid. In this form of therapy, it goes without saying that ensuring safety is of particular concern, and that facilitation by a reputable practitioner is ensured.

Adventure therapy can take several forms. It may look like an overnight hiking and camping trip in the mountains, or a canoeing or kayaking expedition. Participants are encouraged to place awareness on the strength they find in being able to use their physical bodies to navigate the natural world, on the resilience needed to endure and appreciate the discomfort that is often inherently part of these experiences, and the camaraderie of sharing in challenges with a group of others. They will also be supported in noticing that the uncomfortable elements of backcountry adventures can exist at the same time as experiences of beauty, wonder and joy elicited by the landscapes and the peace and quiet of the wilderness - an experience which is all too rare for many in modern life. When we recognize our ability to hold space for both pleasant and unpleasant sensations within ourselves simultaneously, it provides us with tangible evidence of our capacity to feel joy and gratitude in life, even while also feeling more difficult pieces. Life is not black or white, although the traumatized brain can make it feel that way.

Animal-Assisted Therapy

Animal-assisted therapy, as one might imagine, involves different kinds of interactions with animals who have usually been specifically trained with therapeutic intent. This type of treatment has a broad range of applications, being particularly effective in supporting the well-being and recovery of members of populations who may struggle with communication, or whose traumas make it difficult for them to trust or receive treatment directly from humans. Examples of this are autistic children, those with developmental delays or neurological disorders, the elderly (particularly those in palliative care) and even people troubled by depression and anxiety.

Common forms of animal-assisted therapy include equine therapy, in which patients are guided in the riding and care of horses, and therapy dogs and cats being introduced into medical care settings, where patients can very often struggle with loneliness, isolation, and a lack of physical touch. This illustrates the great value to be found in therapy employing animals, which can help patients to build essential social skills, relieve stress and depressive symptoms, as well as offering physical health benefits such as the improvement of motor skills.

Herbal Medicine

Herbal Medicine may or may not be considered a form of ecotherapy, depending who you ask, but it certainly fits within the discussion. A complementary form of medicine with broad applications, it is most valuable as a means of maintaining optimal health and preventing disease, although it can also be useful in treating a range of mental and physical ailments (there are those who consider this to be a functional and even superior alternative to modern western - or allopathic - medicine, but as noted, this author considers herbal medicine to be best when used in a complementary manner, noting that allopathic medicine is often more appropriate in crisis management).

The practice of herbalism has arisen in virtually all cultures of the world, using the plants found in their native environments to treat most ailments known to humanity. The vast range of organic compounds found in herbaceous plants and fungi have been used for millenia to treat everything from viral infections and cardiovascular conditions to heartbreak and psychosis, from fractured bones and skin rashes to insomnia and depression.

After a couple centuries of these “folk remedies” being dismissed as illegitimate and ineffectual by the modern medical establishment, we are seeing a modest but encouraging revival in herbal medicine, which has great potential to help us all live more holistically healthy lives and deepen our relationships with our environments.

Aromatherapy

Again, this is not always specifically considered a form of ecotherapy, but aromatherapy can have significant psychological and physiological effects. Our sense of smell is perhaps our most emotionally evocative, being strongly tied to memory and somatic sensation. In this form of treatment, oils are extracted and distilled from plant materials (leaves, shoots, roots, seeds, bark, etc) in order for their volatile organic compounds (VOCs, chemicals produced within the plants to perform various biological functions such as deterring insect predators, healing wounds and communicating with other plants) to be used most effectively. As in the wider realm of herbal medicine, the applications of aromatherapy are broad, but include relaxation, stimulation, relief of depression and anxiety, support for concentration and more.

Because of the wide commercial availability of essential oils, it is worth noting that many are dangerous to place directly on the skin without a carrier oil, and most are not to be ingested orally, given their high levels of concentration.

Natural Building

This author has never personally encountered the framing of natural building as a therapeutic tool, but I believe that it has incredible potential to be developed as such. Natural building involves the use of natural (often local) materials for the construction of buildings and other structures such as garden walls and ovens. Materials commonly used for these projects include cob (made of clay, sand and straw or hemp) strawbales, milled or unmilled wood, fired mud bricks, stones, lime plasters and more. Far from being primitive and outdated, modern builders are demonstrating that natural structures can in many cases exceed mainstream building safety and efficiency standards.

The experience of resourcing, blending and manipulating natural materials to construct unique, functional and beautiful buildings is among the most satisfying available to us as humans, as it seamlessly integrates our creative, somatic, cognitive and utilitarian faculties, ultimately producing wondrous and inviting structures which can endure as sources of shelter, pride and inspiration for generations, while eventually being reabsorbed into the Earth without any negative ecological impact whatsoever.

If I were asked to conceive of the most perfectly holistic and broadly effective therapeutic aid possible, I would seriously consider bestowing that distinction upon natural building. As mentioned, I’m not aware of it having been developed or marketed in this way, but it is an area I aspire to expand into with my own therapeutic practice, Soul and Soil Counselling.

THE STATE OF ECOTHERAPY

In the current year of 2025, ecotherapy remains a relatively fringe area of treatment for both mental and physical health, unfamiliar to most of the greater public and even to many in the world of health and wellness. It would be remiss of me not to note that within the economic context of a capitalist society, people suffering with their mental health are all too often coerced into paying for expensive traditional therapies and addictive, often dangerous psychiatric medications whose costs frequently outweigh their benefits. Many treatments such as those described above, with countless centuries of history and validation to draw upon, can be accessed at relatively low cost, or even for free, but are often dismissed by the modern medical establishment for being unscientific, when the lack of formal scientific evidence for their effectiveness and safety is often simply the result of monied interests having little to gain by funding the research needed to procure that evidence. When the end-goal of research is profit, freely accessible resources will remain unappreciated, if not repressed.

That being said, it is worth noting that certain of these modalities, such as adventure therapy, animal-assisted therapy, herbal medicine and aromatherapy come with modest but real risks. This is hardly a criticism, given that virtually all medical and therapeutic interventions involve more or less acceptable levels of risk, and this reality simply underscores the importance of continued research and development of these interventions, as well as the observance of standards of training and ethics for practitioners, for the optimization of benefit and minimization of risk. Fortunately, there are significant efforts to advance these aims within the health and wellness and scientific communities, but prudence will forever be wise.

It has been noted in this article already that ecotherapy in its various forms can provide value to many kinds of people. But it is also worth recalling that, as of the past couple decades, the majority of humans now live in cities, and for many urbanites, wild natural spaces are not easily accessible - if they are accessible at all. Many in large cities do not have access to cars, to public transit reaching truly natural places, nor even city parks that offer anything more than a crowded, grassy field, potentially littered with syringes, cigarette butts, broken glass and dog feces. Hardly inviting spaces, and certainly not therapeutic. Furthermore, established ecotherapy services do not exist in many areas, because of the aforementioned fringey nature of these practices.

However, even if most of the therapies described in this article are unavailable in a given area, there are some ways of accessing the healing benefits of nature, in one way or another. Essential oils, for instance, are available in most urban areas, and are relatively affordable. Also, for anyone who has access to a balcony or a window that sometimes gets sun, there are opportunities to grow and nurture plants that can contribute to clean air, beautify a space, potentially be edible, medicinal or fragrant, provide the experience of caring for another living being, be a basis for social connection, and be fairly affordable.

Another wonderful possibility available (or potentially available, with some community organizing) in many areas is that of community gardens. Many do lack yards and even balconies (and for those in rental situations, building a garden at home is often impracticable anyway) so if one is able to secure a spot in a community garden space, or even time when one is able to volunteer service in such a garden, this can provide not only therapeutic benefits, but also opportunities for positive social connection and, as a bonus, fresh fruits and vegetables. Unfortunately, a problem with this is that demand for community garden plots very often outstrips supply, and waiting lists for these plots can stretch over months or years, but the benefits are such that it is absolutely worth seeing what opportunities may be available, if this is of interest to you.

On that note, the topic of guerrilla gardening is also relevant. In some cases where personal and community garden spaces are unavailable, people take it upon themselves to establish gardens - or even plant shrubs and trees - on disused land that they do not own. Possible locations can include abandoned lots, untended public properties, and even highway medians (provided, in the last case, that safety is ensured and the plants grown there are not intended for consumption, as roadsides are heavily polluted spaces). It goes without saying that guerrilla gardening is illegal, and there is always a risk of these gardens being destroyed by vandals or unhappy property owners, but for some people, this may be the only means of gardening, and furthermore, it can serve as a potent, beautiful, and thoroughly peaceful form of resistance against the captivity so many of us experience within toxic, ugly and dehumanizing urban environments.

As noted earlier, this is hardly an exhaustive discussion of ecotherapy, but I hope this will provide inspiration and food for thought for those who read it. At the time of writing, my therapeutic practice with Soul and Soil Counselling is in its early stages, and because I currently live a nomadic, van-based lifestyle and am only able to offer counselling and coaching online, my ability to consistently offer ecotherapy treatments in person is limited. However, as time goes on, my intention is to establish the conditions in my own life to be able to offer more and more of these types of services. I believe that, as our society becomes increasingly urbanized and technologically sophisticated, the importance of and need for nature-based healing practices will grow exponentially, and my goal is to do what I can to facilitate the proliferation and practice of these therapies.

With this, my final note is an encouragement to contemplate your relationship with the natural world, and specifically your local ecosystem. Who are you when you’re alone in nature? Where does the food you eat come from? How does it affect you? What benefits do you enjoy because of nature, and what responsibilities might you bear towards your natural environment? What measures do you take to integrate elements of nature into your life, and what obstacles prevent you from deepening your relationship with the natural world?

And I will simply encourage you to step outside more. It’s in your nature!