There are a huge variety of different types of natural environment in the world, including the sea, rivers, lakes, beaches, dunes, meadows, grassland and woodland, as well as a wide variety of other geographical features, including hills, mountains, valleys, caves and waterfalls.
Natural Humanists believe that it’s very important for all human beings to try to experience, connect with and celebrate these environments, just as nature intended, because this is where we live, these natural environments are our home, and these wild species are our neighbours.
They also believe it’s equally important to fully experience all natural types of weather, frequently, not just to view these through the windows of a climate-controlled house, car, bus, train or workplace. As naturists, many Natural Humanists also believe that, although not essential, it’s much more natural and beneficial to experience all of these environments, and all of these climatic conditions, while they themselves are in their own most natural, naked state, preferably with other members of their own natural species.
Natural Humanists believe that experiencing breezes, strong winds, light showers, torrential rain, dew, frost, snow, hail, mist, fog, thunder, lightning, and bright, warm sunshine of different intensities, and in different humidities, as well as experiencing the various phases of the moon, and every sunrise and sunset, all increases our connection with the natural world.
They believe that this can allow human beings to connect with the ‘real’ world, not just with the ‘human-made’ unnatural built environments that dominate their lives, and that this can be both invigorating and a source of true joy, whether they’re naked or not.
To Natural Humanists, it’s also very important to always be aware of the passing of the seasons, and of how these affect every species and every part of the natural world, and they value and take pleasure in everything that makes each of these seasons unique.
In countries with four distinct seasons, they celebrate the growth of new life in spring, nature in full bloom in summer, nature’s harvest in autumn and nature’s ‘resting’ phase in winter, and they may choose to have parties, festivals or ceremonies to mark and celebrate the start or middle of every one of these natural seasons.
Daily Connection with Nature
Natural Humanists recognise that all human beings are an integral part of the natural world, but they also recognise that, in recent years, they’ve gradually removed most, if not all human contact and connection with nature from their lives, living instead a totally artificial, unnatural existence, in completely human-made environments.
Natural Humanists believe that it’s extremely important to their humanity, and to their health and quality of life, that they have frequent, ideally daily, immersive contact with truly natural environments. This includes contact with natural woodland, wildflower meadows, hills, mountains, lakes, streams, rivers and the sea.
They also believe that they should have the opportunity, whenever possible, to immerse themselves fully into these environments, so that they can connect with and experience them, with all of their senses, allowing them to appreciate and gain joy from nature’s beauty, and from their connection with it, and from the fact that they, themselves, are an important and integral part of this natural environment and natural beauty.
They believe this is essential to allow them to fully appreciate that they, themselves, are ‘wildlife’, even though they may have lost this connection with their natural selves, and with the natural world, in most areas of their life (or may even have lost all understanding or appreciation of their own ‘human nature’).
Consequently, Natural Humanists try to experience wild, natural environments, and as wide a variety of these environments as possible, on a daily basis, either alone or, preferably, with other Natural Humanists, who value them just as much.
For some, in urban areas, it may only be possible to have this contact with artificial human-shaped modifications of nature that we have created in areas where we live, like parks and gardens, and, even in rural areas, this contact may only be by surrounding themselves with ‘human-made’ farmland, commercial forests or reservoirs, but, even then, Natural Humanists believe that this contact with ‘managed’ or ‘artificial’ nature and other species of living things, like trees and rivers, has the potential to improve their health and happiness, which is something that scientific research has clearly proven to be the case.
A Natural Humanists’ contact with nature might involve ‘wild-swimming’ in a river, a lake or in the sea, walking through natural woodland, sitting or lying on the Earth, rather than on concrete, tarmac or other unnatural human-made surfaces, or surrounding themselves with plants and trees that are wild, not owned, planted or controlled by humans, in the way that farmland is.
Natural Humanists believe in frequently connecting with all types of nature, in sun, rain, wind, snow, hail and ice, and believe in noticing, experiencing, valuing and celebrating all the subtle variations caused by the different seasons. In doing so, they further intensify their natural connection with, and experience of our planet, and of all the varieties of nature that consider it to be their home.
They believe it’s important not to rush any rural walk, but to always try to notice all the forms of nature that surround them, with all their senses and they share the view of the Welsh poet William Henry Davies, who wrote, “What is this life if, full of care, We have no time to stand and stare?” [i]
As naturists, they may believe that experiencing every natural environment, while they themselves, and anybody else they’re with, are in their own most natural naked state, is the best, the most natural, and the most beneficial way to have this frequent, meaningful connection with nature and with the elements, potentially significantly increasing the intensity of their connection, and increasing the sensual feedback that they experience.
Nudity undoubtedly increases the intensity of every type of connection with nature, and it’s also, in every way, more natural, as it results in both human beings, and every other form of nature, experiencing each other in their most natural of states.
Most tourists on a Safari would not consider they’d connected with nature if their only sighting of a lion or an elephant was with one almost wholly wrapped in fabric and, similarly, they wouldn’t consider they’d truly experienced the fierce winds and torrential rain of a storm, if they were covered from head to toe in waterproof Gore-Tex® and numerous layers of thermal clothing at the time, or were sat inside a heated car.
As some of our species’ more recent direct ancestors used to live, sleep and hunt in trees, some Natural Humanists like to frequently connect with trees, perhaps climbing, sitting in, or even hugging a tree, or sitting under a tree, in the shade of its branches. Some people even consider connecting with trees, or with the intense beauty of nature in general, to be an erotic, or even orgasmic experience.
Natural Humanists believe that their (ideally daily) connection with nature can either be solitary, possibly as a way of quietly focusing on nature and meditating, or it can be communal, as a way of connecting both with other human beings’ natural selves, and with all other natural animal and plant species that surround us.
They believe it’s a powerful way of blocking out, or escaping, the noise and distractions of daily life, while concentrating on all the sights, sounds, smells, and the physical feel of nature, and also, if it’s possible to do so safely, it’s an opportunity, to pick and eat wild edible plants, or to drink water from unpolluted streams or rivers, or to sip the dew that’s collected on a leaf, in order to also experience the taste of nature as well.
Natural Humanists believe in valuing and respecting, as equals, every other species of living thing that shares our planet, and they believe that an important part of this, is to learn about which creatures, trees, plants, fungi and algae share their local area, as well as attempting, from time to time, to notice and observe these ‘natural neighbours’.
They may take pleasure in recognising, and teaching others to recognise, different species of living things, and understanding their connection to other species in their local environment, something that new technology can significantly help to achieve, such as mobile phone apps which automatically name any species of plant or other living thing which their phone’s camera is pointed at, instantly giving details of that species, or phone apps which recognise the sound of any birds’ song, which their phone’s built-in microphone can detect.
Health Benefits
Research suggests that forming a connection with nature, may help to improve our cognitive abilities[ii], attention, empathy, cooperation and mood, and may also improve our blood pressure, while reducing both stress levels and the risk of mental health problems, including anxiety and depression, so it may be highly beneficial in improving both our physical and our mental health[iii].
In fact, one of the United Nations’ sustainable development goals, includes the target of providing universal access to safe, inclusive and accessible green and public spaces by 2030, because contact with nature is potentially so beneficial to human beings.
It’s been suggested that, because our ancestors evolved in wild settings and relied so much on the environment for survival, we now have an innate drive to connect with nature[iv], and even the sounds of nature may be beneficial for our wellbeing[v].
Nature also seems to be able to make us nicer to other people, and to the planet [vi], and the feelings of awe, which can be experienced when we connect with nature, seem to be able to increase our generosity, possibly because this makes us feel part of a much bigger ‘whole’ [vii].
Even spending as little as two hours of recreation in nature per week, whether these 2 hours are in one go, or are spread out over the week, seems to lead to significantly greater health and well-being[viii] and people who feel more connected to nature, have more of a type of contentment that goes beyond just feeling good and includes having meaningful purpose in life[ix], and even people who’re lonely, seem to experience high levels of well-being if they have a lot of nature nearby[x].
The benefits of connecting with nature also seem to be greater if this connection is with rural and coastal locations, rather than with urban green spaces, and also, areas with high biodiversity seem to have greater benefits than those with low biodiversity[xi]. It’s also been suggested that contact with the sea, or freshwater environments, like rivers and lakes, may be even slightly more beneficial to our well-being than ‘green spaces’ [xii].
Contact with nature seems to be able to improve both our physical and psychological well-being and walking in nature seems to not only improve our mood while we’re connected with nature, but also when we’re back in the unnatural human-built environments where we live and work[xiii].
In children, contact with nature has been linked to improvements in their cognitive development, and an increased ability for them to control their own behaviour[xiv], and it may also reduce the risk that they’ll go on to develop various psychiatric disorders later in life, including depression, eating disorders, mood disorders, schizophrenia, and problems with substance misuse[xv].
Contact with nature seems to have various important cognitive, emotional and existential benefits for all human beings[xvi], and has been linked to significant improvements in happiness[xvii], improved attention, working memory, and cognitive flexibility in adults[xviii], as well as improving happiness, subjective well-being, and positive social interactions, and increasing feelings that life has meaning and purpose, while decreasing any mental distress[xix] and increasing our ability to reflect on life’s problems[xx].
To Natural Humanists, it’s also highly significant that, according to research, when people feel connected to nature, they seem to be more likely to be committed to caring for the Earth, including dealing with major problems like climate change[xxi].
Natural Humanists believe that not contacting with nature is the most unnatural thing on Earth. They believe that human beings are an integral part of nature, and that every effort should be made to remove every obstacle that prevents human beings from living as the fully natural creatures that they undoubtedly are, and always have been, and from connecting, fully, with nature, in all its forms.
Every ‘Natural Human’ considers themselves to be a “true nature’s child”, and so, without question, they believe they were “born to be wild”.[xxii]
References
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[i] Davies, William Henry “Leisure” (Poem). poetryarchive.org. 30 May 2025. https://poetryarchive.org/poet/w-h-davies/ (“What is this life if, full of care, We have no time to stand and stare.”).
[ii] Weir, Kirsten. “Nurtured by nature”. April 1 2020. Updated 8 April 2025. www.apa.org. 3 June 2025. https://www.apa.org/monitor/2020/04/nurtured-nature [Print version: Vol. 51, No. 3, page 50].
[iii] Weir, Kirsten. “Nurtured by nature”. April 1 2020. Updated 8 April 2025. www.apa.org. 3 June 2025. https://www.apa.org/monitor/2020/04/nurtured-nature [Print version: Vol. 51, No. 3, page 50].
[iv] Nisbet and colleagues. Cited in Capaldi, C. A, et al, International Journal of Wellbeing, Vol. 5, No. 4 2015, both of which were cited on: “Nurtured by nature” at: https://www.apa.org/monitor/2020/04/nurtured-nature
[v] Van Hedger, S. C, et. al. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review. Vol. 26, No. 2 (2019). https://doi.org/10.3758/s13423-018-1539-1. Cited on: “Nurtured by nature” at:
[vi] Zelenski, John PhD. Journal of Environmental Psychology. Vol. 42, No. 1 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2015.01.005. Cited on: “Nurtured by nature” at: https://www.apa.org/monitor/2020/04/nurtured-nature
[vii] Dopko, R. L, et al. Journal of Environmental Psychology, Vol. 63, No. 1 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2019.05.002 Cited on: “Nurtured by nature” at: https://www.apa.org/monitor/2020/04/nurtured-nature
[viii] White et al. Scientific Reports, Vol. 9, No. 1 (2019). https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-44097-3. Cited on: “Nurtured by nature” at: https://www.apa.org/monitor/2020/04/nurtured-nature
[ix] Alison Pritchard, PhD, ABPP (University of Derby, England) in: Journal of Happiness Studies, Vol. 21, No. 3 2020. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-019-00118-6. Cited on: “Nurtured by nature” at: https://www.apa.org/monitor/2020/04/nurtured-nature
[x] Cartwright, B. D. S., et al. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, Vol. 15, No. 6 (2018). https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15061238. Cited on: “Nurtured by nature” at: https://www.apa.org/monitor/2020/04/nurtured-nature
[xi] Wyles, K. J, White, M. P, Hattam, C, Pahl, C, King H, Austen, M. Environment and Behavior, Vol. 51, No. 2 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1177/0013916517738312. Cited on: “Nurtured by nature” at: https://www.apa.org/monitor/2020/04/nurtured-nature
[xii] Gascon, M, et al. International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health. Vol. 220, No. 8 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijheh.2017.08.004. Cited on: “Nurtured by nature” at: https://www.apa.org/monitor/2020/04/nurtured-nature
[xiii] Nisbet, Lisa PhD, Psychologist at Trent University, Ontario, Canada. Cited on: “Nurtured by nature” at: https://www.apa.org/monitor/2020/04/nurtured-nature
[xiv] Berman, Marc PhD, and Schertz, Kathryn. Current Directions in Psychological Science, Vol. 28, No. 5 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1177/0963721419854100. Cited on: “Nurtured by nature” at: https://www.apa.org/monitor/2020/04/nurtured-nature
[xv] Engemann, K, et al. PNAS. Vol. 116, No. 11 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1807504116. Cited on: “Nurtured by nature” at: https://www.apa.org/monitor/2020/04/nurtured-nature
[xvi] Frantz, Cynthia PhD. (Professor of Psychology and Environmental Studies, Oberlin College, Ohio). https://doi.org/10.1177/0013916508319745. Cited on: “Nurtured by nature” at: https://www.apa.org/monitor/2020/04/nurtured-nature
[xvii] Zelenski and Nisbet. Environment and Behavior. Vol. 46, No. 1 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1177/0013916512451901. Cited on: “Nurtured by nature” at: https://www.apa.org/monitor/2020/04/nurtured-nature
[xviii] Berman, Marc PhD, and Schertz, Kathryn. Current Directions in Psychological Science, Vol. 28, No. 5 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1177/0963721419854100. Cited on: “Nurtured by nature” at: https://www.apa.org/monitor/2020/04/nurtured-nature.
[xix] Bratman, Gregory PhD, Assistant Professor, University of Washington, and his colleagues. Science Advances. Vol. 5, No. 7 (2019). https://advances.sciencemag.org/content/5/7/eaax0903. Cited on: “Nurtured by nature” at: https://www.apa.org/monitor/2020/04/nurtured-nature
[xx] Frantz, Cynthia PhD, Professor of Psychology and Environmental Studies, Oberlin College, Ohio in: Mayer, F.S, et al. Environment and Behavior, Vol. 41, No. 5 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1177/0013916508319745. Cited on: “Nurtured by nature” at: https://www.apa.org/monitor/2020/04/nurtured-nature
[xxi] Caroline M.L. Mackay, Michael T. Schmitt. “Do people who feel connected to nature do more to protect it? A meta-analysis”. Journal of Environmental Psychology. Volume 65 (2019): 101323, ISSN 0272-4944, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2019.101323. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0272494418308557
[xxii] Steppenwolf. “Born to be Wild” (Song). 1969 (“Like a true nature’s child…born to be wild).