She extols urban planners who design a green canopy and then work to achieve it, even in some of the world’s most metropolitan areas. Rather than telling readers to quit cutting down trees, Williams encourages people to plant them. Backed by research, she reports on 'Why Nature Makes Us Happier, Healthier and More Creative' (the book’s subtitle). She also does not present time in nature as a ubiquitous cure, but instead shows how it can be an incremental aid in many instances.

Refreshingly, Williams does not fall into the tired, cliche-ridden ease of telling readers that if they would just get off the couch or away from electronic screens and go for walk their negative health issues would flee. She reports research about the positive biometric, psychological and cognitive impacts of spending time in nature that are pouring in from around the world (bee stings, sunburns and poison ivy notwithstanding). Williams takes readers on a worldwide romp explaining the concepts behind such things as the original kindergarten, forest therapy in Japan, artificial oases in congested Singapore and the healing (not necessarily curative) effects of Idaho river runs and getaways to the Utah desert.

Also, post-traumatic stress disorder is on the rise and depression diagnoses are skyrocketing, as is attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. and British children spend half of the time outdoors that their parents did and vast amounts of leisure time is spent looking at screens and not partaking of nature (26 minutes more each day if one uses an iPhone rather than Android). More than a milestone, more than a benchmark, this pivot point comes with its indicative pathology: U.S. In 2008, the world reached a pivot point when it became more urban than rural, according to the book. A journalist and contributing editor for Outside magazine, Williams’ book is well-written, insightful and thought-provoking. In her book, 'The Nature Fix,' Florence Williams examines research from the United States, Japan, South Korea, Finland, Scotland, Singapore and elsewhere that confirms the value of spending time in nature and natural surroundings.

' THE NATURE FIX : Why Nature Makes Us Happier, Healthier and More Creative,' by Florence Williams, W.W.

The nature fix book review