VOLUME 4 | ISSUE 4 | OCTOBER 2026 |
|
|
|
|---|
|
|
Connection and Ecological Medicine | | |
| Having just returned from the Ecological Medicine Convening at UCLA, I have been giving lots of thought to the word “connection“. During my three-minute “lightning talk” for the convening, I shared my thoughts on the word “connection” and its opposite, “disconnection”. I have become further convinced that not just connection but conscious connection is an essential ingredient to human and planetary health.
The meaning of connection could be further categorized as connection: 1. to self, 2. to other humans, and 3. to the non-human or more-than-human world. This conscious connection is developed through reciprocity and relationality – how we relate to ourselves, to others, and to the non-human world. What we give and receive make up the element of reciprocity. |  | For example, planting and tending tree saplings (as we are doing at El Centro de Corazón Community Health Center in Houston, Texas as part of our “Reciprocal Human and Ecological Restoration” project) is good for both humans and for the environment/trees. Our preliminary results show improvements in human health (including well-being/self-care, nature relatedness, and attitude toward employer/workplace). There are also improvements in ecological health through the planting and tending of 24 trees, 3 shrubs, and many indoor potted trees and plants – filtering air pollutants and sequestering carbon dioxide. We humans receive the benefits of improved health and well-being while the saplings flourish. This is reciprocity in action!
Given the wide variance of our respective fields of focus, Ecological Medicine provides us with a framework and a taxonomy (or shared language) within which we can communicate better and collaborate. But, Ecological Medicine is not just a concept; it is also a practice, defined broadly as any health promoting practice that positively impacts both human and planetary health. To take a deeper dive into the concept and practice of Ecological Medicine, please read the recently published consensus statement.
After having participated at this convening with 38 colleagues from across Canada and the United States, I’m truly excited to be part of this Ecological Medicine community, and encourage you to learn more, and explore its relevance to your work and passion. Please visit here to learn more! | | |
|
|
|
|---|
|
|
| Deborah A. Cohen, MD, MPH | | |
| Research Scientist, Kaiser Permanente Research and Evaluation | | |
| Deborah A. Cohen, MD, MPH, is an international expert on the health benefits of parks, and a scientist at the Department of Research & Evaluation at Kaiser Permanente Southern California. |
|
|
|---|
|
|
Dr. Cohen recently served as Principal Investigator on an NIH Park Rx clinical trial (with Dr. Zarr) and recently published The Park RX RCT: Impact on Physical Activity Among Youth in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine. She previously worked as a senior physician policy researcher at the RAND Corporation. She has served on panels for the National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Dr. Cohen studies how environmental factors influence the health of communities and affect health disparities. Her work has focused on improving the food environment and how the management and design of neighborhood parks can support more people to be physically active.
Dr. Cohen is the author of two books:Prescription for a Healthy Nation, A New Approach to Improving Our Lives by Fixing Our Everyday World, and A Big Fat Crisis, the Hidden Forces Behind the Obesity Epidemic and How We Can End It.
In her free time, Dr. Cohen tends her small organic orchard in Ventura County of more than 600 fruit trees, including Valencia oranges, figs, mulberries, persimmons, plums, pluots, apples, and pears. She spends most weekends at the farm irrigating, riding a 25-horsepower tractor to mow the weeds, and trapping gophers. Spring is her favorite season and delights in the smell of the orange blossoms and seeing the fruit set and mature on the trees. |
| | |
|
|---|
|
|
| Dr. Zarr recently spoke at Casey Trees and Montgomery County Parks 2026 Urban Tree Summit in Washington, DC. Recorded sessions available here.
Dr. Zarr was recently featured on a podcast by the Climate Psychiatry Alliance, which will be available soon here. |
|
|
|---|
|
| Dr. Beller Stryer recently spoke at the Osher Symposium for the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute on “How Nature Improves Health and Well Being.” |
|
|
|---|
|
November 9, 2026
HERO Think Tank, Winter Park, Florida
Dr. Beller Stryer will be speaking at the HERO (Health Enhancement Research Organization) think tank on November 9th in Winter Park, Florida. The topic of the meeting is "Is Nature the Missing Ingredient in Your Workforce Well-Being Strategy?" Stacy will focus on recent research on and strategies to use nature prescriptions to improve the health and well being of employees.
| | | November 19, 2026
HRSA Webinar, Virtual
Dr. Zarr will speak to our nation’s community health centers via HRSA webinar - Prescribing Nature: A Practical Approach to Supporting Patient Health; the primary audience is intended for HRSA-supported health centers. Join HRSA for a webinar exploring Park Rx, an approach that enables health care providers to create individualized nature prescriptions. Learn about research examining connections between nature and health, findings from a randomized controlled trial of park prescriptions among children and youth, and practical strategies for putting Park Rx into practice. Participants will also see how Park Rx America can help providers identify nearby parks and create prescriptions based on place, activity, frequency, and duration.
| | | Dr. Zarr will be featured in a podcast of Stories of Trees, hosted by filmmaker Stacy Whittle and produced by Corazón Latino, explores urban and community forestry through personal stories and conversations about how trees affect our health and the places we live. | |
|
|
|---|
| | |
|
Connect with PRA! | With over 2,260 registered providers across the country, we know there are a lot of stories out there of prescribing nature for the first time and patient successes. |
|
|
|
|---|
|
|
| | PRA is grateful for your donation to help us keep our website and platform accessible to all! |
| | Park Rx America is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.
All donations are tax deductible.
Our EIN is 82-0856734. |
| | |
|
|
|---|
|
|
Keeping in mind the secondary trauma of caring for others, please take the time you need to recover and consider a dose of nature for yourself.
Robert Zarr, MD, MPH
Founder & Chief Executive Officer | Stacy Beller Stryer, MD
Chief Health Officer |
| Keeping in mind the secondary trauma of caring for others, please take the time you need to recover and consider a dose of nature for yourself.
Robert Zarr, MD, MPH
Founder & Chief Executive Officer | Stacy Beller Stryer, MD
Chief Health Officer |
|
| | | |
|
|
|---|
|
|
|
