Theses and Dissertations from UMD

Permanent URI for this communityhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/2

New submissions to the thesis/dissertation collections are added automatically as they are received from the Graduate School. Currently, the Graduate School deposits all theses and dissertations from a given semester after the official graduation date. This means that there may be up to a 4 month delay in the appearance of a give thesis/dissertation in DRUM

More information is available at Theses and Dissertations at University of Maryland Libraries.

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Subject: search.filters.subject.Nature Rx

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    CREATING SPACE FOR NATURE RX AT HISTORICALLY BLACK COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES
    (2023) Smith, Marci-Ann; Sachs, Naomi A; Plant Science and Landscape Architecture (PSLA); Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
    With the rising trend of mental health issues among young adults, many colleges are trying to establish an approach to combat those issues for the well-being of their students. One such approach is Nature Rx. Nature Rx is a program that encourages people, sometimes with an actual prescription, to spend time in nature in order to relieve stress and improve overall health. Nature Rx is a holistic way of addressing mental issues such as stress, anxiety, and depression that are prevalent among college students. The evidence is strong that time spent in and engaging with nature can improve mental and physical health. Colleges like Cornell University and University of Maryland College Park are taking advantage of their existing beautiful landscape as part of their Nature Rx program to help their students. Other schools are implementing this program and providing spaces for their students to find reprieve from the stresses of studies. However, there is a gap in the presence of Nature Rx programs at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). To date, no HBCU has a nature Rx program. This project seeks to fill that gap by using the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, an HBCU, as a case study to answer the following thesis question: “How could a Nature Rx design at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, a Historically Black College and University, benefit the health and well-being of its students?”
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    A DESIGN FOR NATURE RX ON THE UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND CAMPUS
    (2020) Wallace, Sarah Harlan; Sachs, Dr. Naomi A.; Plant Science and Landscape Architecture (PSLA); Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
    There has been a rising trend of mental health issues among college students. Studies have shown that time spent engaged in nature activities such as forest bathing can improve physical and mental health. Shinrin-yoku, or forest bathing, originated in Japan and is the practice of walking through the forest and processing all of its elements through sensory observation. As a designated arboretum, the University of Maryland (UMD) College Park campus possesses an untapped resource that can increase greenspace exposure for UMD students and open the doors to forest bathing opportunities. Through a literature review and site inventory and analysis, I have developed a design that centers around forest bathing practices and infuses the principles of Nature Rx@UMD, an initiative that prioritizes the natural environmental benefits of UMD campus. The Campus Creek Nature Rx@UMD site invites users to slow down, notice elements of the forest for mindful awareness and be restored.