Exploring the co-benefits of environmental volunteering for human and planetary health promotion

Issue addressed: Health promotion has adopted the planetary health perspective to address the threats posed by climate change, environmental degradation and environmental deprivation. Nature is a setting for health promotion that can produce co-benefits for human health and the protection of the environment. This paper presents the findings of a New South Wales (NSW) study of peoples' motivations for, and co-benefits of, environmental volunteering.

Methods: This paper combines the findings of a literature review and qualitative data from a larger mixed-methods study of environmental volunteering (eg administration and co-ordination, bush regeneration, advocacy, tour guiding) in NSW. A review of international literature from 2005 yielded 100 documents for analysis. Maximum variation and stratified purposeful sampling strategies were applied to engage 12 environmental volunteers and 30 employees of environmental organisations in a series of focus groups (n = 2) and interviews (n = 22). Qualitative thematic analysis techniques were applied and data triangulated.

Results: Motivations for environmental volunteering include the following: personal, for example, new skills or knowledge, environmental, for example, improve the environment and social/community, for example, forming connections. Environmental volunteering offers a range of benefits for individuals, environmental organisations and the natural environment. These include enhanced mental and social health, and connection to place and learning about the environment.

Conclusions: Environmental volunteering has the potential to address key determinants of health - social inclusion, employment and education. From a planetary health perspective, there are multiple co-benefits of human-environmental interaction arising from environmental volunteering. Environmental volunteering is a planetary health strategy that could be incorporated into community-based health promotion. SO WHAT?: Health promotion has a mandate to act on ecological determinants of health. Environmental volunteering is an untapped resource for community-based health promotion and for achieving planetary health goals.