We didn't study our own Nature Wellness Walk. The students did.

When we installed a Nature Wellness Walk at Wageningen University & Research (WUR) in the Netherlands, a team from WUR’s Academic Consultancy Training program set out to understand what happened when students and staff actually used it.

Student led nature wellness walk pilot with evaluation

They interviewed staff and students, surveyed the wider campus community and conducted a before-and-after evaluation with people who walked the trail.

What they found was encouraging.

There was strong interest in the walk from both staff and students, and those who took part in the evaluation reported lower stress afterwards. Everyone who completed the evaluation said they would recommend the experience to others.

But for us, the most interesting finding wasn’t a number.

It was the language people used.

Before the walk, nature was described as “beautiful,” “relaxing” and a “source of balance.”

Afterwards, people spoke more about “wonder,” “awe,” “peace” and “mindfulness.”

Everyone who completed the walk would recommend to others.

These are subtle shifts, but meaningful ones. They speak to something beyond simply feeling less stressed to paying closer attention, experiencing wonder and developing a more personal relationship with the natural world.

That matters because nature connection is not only about being in nature. It is about how we notice, experience and relate to it.

The WUR team also identified some simple things that could help the walk become part of everyday campus life: making it visible through campus maps and activities, using clear signage so the app remains optional, and incorporating the walk into orientation and guided activities.

Turning campus green spaces into outdoor classrooms

For us, that points to a broader opportunity for universities.

The green spaces are often already there. The question is how we can help people experience them more meaningfully, as places to pause, notice, reconnect and perhaps see their surroundings differently.

We’re now working closely with a number of universities around the world, co-creating and co-designing ways to bring campus nature more meaningfully into university life. For us, the opportunity isn’t simply about putting a walk or program into a green space. It’s about asking a bigger question: what might change if nature became a more intentional part of university life?

We’re grateful to the universities we’ve had the opportunity to work alongside so far - Wageningen University & Research, the University of Edinburgh, Macquarie University, Charles Sturt University and The University of Queensland. It’s been encouraging to see this growing interest and to be part of a wider conversation about the role nature can play in university life.

If your campus already has green space, you can explore what a Nature Wellness Walk or Zone could look like at naturefix.life/at-university.