On Monday, September 29, Nalini Nadkarni, National Geographic Explorer at Large, met and interacted with more than 100 Bucknell University students through the Residential College Common Hour program. She met with students from the Discovery Res College, Society and Technology Res College, and Nature and Innovation Res College.
Nalini will present her multimedia presentation “From Roots to Canopy” at the Weis Center on Tuesday, Sept. 30 at 7:30 p.m. at the Weis Center. Professor Chris Martine will introduce Nalini and facilitate a post-show Q&A.
Nalini talked about growing up in Bethesda, MD and climbing the eight trees lining her parents’ driveway, then realizing as she got older that she could study trees – and climb trees – for a living.
She also discussed why she feels compelled to conduct outreach within faith-based communities and in non-traditional settings like prisons. She talked about the positive benefits of exposure to nature, even within the confines of the prison system.
After her 30-minute talk, Bucknell professors facilitated an interactive jigsaw activity where students discussed and proposed solutions for nature-deficit communities like hospitals, assisted living communities, and prisons.
In the first part, the students worked to define stakeholders (beneficiaries, casualties, key personnel and key influencers) and context (time and place, history, belief systems, and narratives) for the problem, then rotated with other groups to collect more ideas.
In part two, they proposed solutions to their given problem.
At the end of the session, each small group presented their slide deck of issues and solutions to the entire group.
Nature-Deficit Communities Defined
The groups focused on assisted living facilities suggested a variety of ways to enhance the environment within care facilities such as adding potted plants and outdoor gardens and greenhouses to expose immobile residents to nature, which can reduce stress. Another idea was to incorporate hypoallergenic plants within the facility itself. Yet another suggested a community garden to increase nature exposure and social interaction.
The groups focused on hospitals suggested creating floors with different levels of greenery. Another suggested a central atrium with live plants. Yet another idea was a greenhouse and green murals in rooms to provide mental health benefits without allergens. Lastly, a group suggested outdoor field trips in the sunshine for patients to boost morale and mental health.
The groups focused on prisons had the most difficult task – improving the conditions within the confines and constraints of prisons. One group suggested organized secure hiking trips for low-risk prisoners to engage with nature and learn conservation methods, and another suggested a gardening program where inmates could cultivate produce for use in the facility. Another group suggested communal gardens to promote personal responsibility and social interaction with nature. One group provided a “real life” example: a past successful program where juveniles participated in intensive backpacking excursions to learn practical survival skills.
Nalini was impressed with the breadth and depth of results after just one hour of brainstorming.
Don’t miss Nat Geo Live on Tuesday, Sept. 30 at 7:30 pm.
