Nature-based solutions: democratising the outdoors to be a vaccine and a salve for a neoliberal and COVID-19 impacted society

Extant research reveals time in nature is causally associated with children’s health and well-being, including a child’s intra and interpersonal skills, socioemotional growth, physiological function, and cognitive development. In today’s neoliberal and COVID-19 era, nature-based solutions, alongside a broader outdoor and experiential learning ‘suite’ may be well placed as both a vaccine and a salve for our current societal challenges. However, contemporary school education is underpinned by an audit or performative culture evidenced by standardised national testing that may diminish access to outdoor or nature-immersive experiences. Looking forward, the authors contend that contemporary education, and more broadly society, requires nature-rich experiences for a flourishing sustainable future. Drawing upon Foucault, this paper highlights the need to critique education and society’s dominant ideologies and practices. These counter-narratives advocate for emancipatory change in contemporary education—especially infusing different voices such as Indigenous knowledges—offered in and through a democratised access to the outdoors.