7 relaxing ways to have a break with the environment in mind

In the midst of life’s chaos and noise, finding a moment of peace can be hard. And when we spend so much time scrolling – and, often, shopping – online, it’s becoming ever more difficult to make conscious choices that tread more lightly on our planet.

In this article, we’re exploring some ways you can find a moment of tranquillity, disconnect, or bring a little positive impact to your community and your headspace. From twitching to stitching, these are all low-cost and high-kindness activities that will give you a break and help you feel good.

4–5 minutes

Forest bathing

This means taking a mindful walk through a forested area, which has been shown to reduce stress. A mindful walk means not listening to music or checking emails as you go, but paying attention to the sights, sounds and sensations you experience as you walk. What can you smell? What can you hear? How many shades of green can you see? Paying attention to these sensory alerts rather than the notifications on your phone is known to improve wellbeing.

Head out for a litter-picking walk

Getting some time outside in the fresh air while moving your body is brilliant for your physical and mental wellbeing – whether you go for a solo stroll or bring a friend along. And you can upgrade the benefits by doing your bit for the local environment (and your community) by picking up litter while you’re out.

Check for local clean-up projects, but there’s nothing to stop you donning some gloves, grabbing a litter picker and scooping up any rubbish you see on your walk and popping it into the recycling or rubbish bin once you’re home.

Making your own wildlife magnets

Want to turn your surroundings into a wildlife haven? Why not gather some materials that you have lying around at home and repurpose them to make your own mini pond or bird feeders? You don’t even need a garden – an old plastic bottle, some string, scissors and seeds will suffice for crafting a perfectly good bird feeder. Just hang it outside your window and watch out for visiting birds. There are plenty of instructions and tutorials online to help you get started.

Reuse your old T-shirts as shopping bags or quilts

While we’re on a little DIY jaunt, why not start to gather up some old T-shirts that either don’t fit you anymore, or are too worn or faded to repurpose as something else. Slogan T-shirts or band merchandise work great put together to create throws for cosy evenings, or you could reinvent them into a fabric shopping bag for a needle-free option (search “no-sew tote bag” for heaps of tutorials) and be the chicest shopper at the farmers’ market.

Birdwatching in your garden or outside your window

You might not think that you live in a hubbub of ornithological activity, but spending 10 minutes doing nothing but looking for birds will undoubtedly prove otherwise. The British Trust for Ornithology actively collects records of birds spotted in the local area in order to improve its understanding of bird movements and how to safeguard them in the UK, so if you live in the UK you could submit your findings online and help to ensure the birds stick around for future twitchers.

Create a little herb garden and live off your land (kind of)

OK, admittedly a modest herb garden doesn’t make you entirely self-sufficient, but it may help reduce trips to the shops. Homegrown herb gardens can provide a huge variety of seasonings, and you’ll get a fresher taste in your dishes alongside the added smugness that the herbs were cultivated by your own hands. Start by buying a packet of fresh herbs, putting them in water so they sprout roots and then planting them in a pot. Tending to and monitoring your herb babies can be a very soothing way to have a break. If you can water them with rainwater you’ve collected in a barrel or pot, even better.

Community gardening or allotment tending

Planting trees, flowers or vegetables not only helps to beautify and provide for the area where you live, but also contributes to a bigger improvement to the local environment while supporting your mental health. It’s a power move, really. While also providing habitats for wildlife, trees and plants are natural carbon sinks, absorbing carbon dioxide from the air as they release oxygen back into it.

Trees and plants are essential to help mitigate climate change, and working to plant or care for them in a non-judgmental, lightly social environment can help us to feel connected, useful and less isolated. It’s a winner.

If you live in the UK, the Royal Horticultural Society has a handy tool where you can find a community gardening project near you.

Breaks that help you focus on sustainability are possible, and they not only nurture our wellbeing but also help the world around us. From birdwatching to community gardening, every mindful activity counts.

Source:
Breaks For Good: From birdwatching to forest bathing: eight relaxing ways to have a break with the environment in mind by Kate Lucey | Guardian, June 2024 {alternative link}