IN-PLACE

Addressing the growing mental health burden globally is an urgent grand challenge of our time. Mental health remains one of the leading contributors to disability and loss of productivity. An estimated 80% of individuals globally who are experiencing mental health concerns do not receive care. Though service gaps are even higher in low-income countries, disparities also exist across the U.S., including on our campus and within our local communities. Research studies have demonstrated how experiences in nature can improve mental health and well-being. Yet, nature exposure has historically been inadequately integrated with evidence-based mental health care. Further, disparities exist in who can easily and safely access nature. Place-based disparities mirror the disparities in mental health access and treatment. Research has also shown that time spent in nature can increase pro-environmental behaviors. As global environmental sustainability crises contribute to mental health challenges, particularly among people in climate-impacted communities, efforts to invest in nature-based experiences will impact multiple societal grand challenges, including mental health, health equity, and environmental health.

The Interdisciplinary Network for Place-Based Learning, Action, & Community-Engaged EnvironMental Health (IN-PLACE) will bring together diverse interdisciplinary perspectives and community partnerships to address three grand challenges—global mental health, health equity, and environmental health— that are inextricably linked. IN-PLACE will focus on nature-based experiences, environments, and interventions as the mechanisms for targeting these synergistic grand challenges. The core goals of IN-PLACE are to: generate high-impact interdisciplinary research to support mental health; create new innovative, collaborative campus-based programming to support student, faculty, and staff well-being; lead impactful, community-engaged research and programming to promote equity in access to nature-based mental health benefits in marginalized communities; and promote novel nature-based experiential learning opportunities to equip the next generation of scholars and practitioners to address global mental and environmental health, centered on community-engaged principles.

IN-PLACE aims to generate new research collaborations, reach students, faculty and staff through campus-based programming, and provide mental health training in underserved communities. The team will develop new community partnerships, including sustained collaboration with tribal, rural, and environmental justice partners. Community-engaged programming will impact Maryland residents' nature access, and K–12 students and educators through place-based initiatives. IN-PLACE will also create new experiential learning offerings and develop new courses with service-learning components. IN-PLACE is committed to improving the lives of millions of people, locally and globally, through increased access to both nature and mental health support.