Environmental wellness involves the ability to recognize one’s responsibility to improve, protect, or preserve the quality of life in a community by being respectful of the surroundings.
A significant wellness consideration often overlooked is the effect of the physical environment on the occupants of the space. Optimizing physical spaces can decrease poor attention, absenteeism and stress, and increase cognitive abilities and performance (Araya León et al., 2022).
For more information to share with students, feel free to use this slide set: Environmental Wellness PowerPoint
Teaching tips to support and enhance environmental wellness:
- For on campus classes, re-think the classroom layout to improve student engagement in active learning. Involve students in executing a setup for small group discussions. If a classroom does not have modular furniture or flexible seating, consider moving through the classroom (rather than standing at the front) to deliver instruction.
- Ask online students to consider how their environment might influence their learning. Lighting, noise, and environmental temperatures can all affect academic performance (Realyvásquez-Vargas et al., 2020). Encourage students to create a space that they enjoy. Best practices specific to the built environment include nature as part of the design, a process called biophilia. Discuss with students that biophilic design principles include having access to and views of nature, improved air quality, natural lighting, good acoustics, and calming colors (Colenberg et al., 2021). Allow students to preserve their private, personal space for learning through use of virtual or blurred backgrounds during synchronous sessions.
- In clinical settings, encourage environmental wellness and sustainability by being mindful of managing resources and supplies.
- Ensure student safety and security within all environments, online, on campus, and in clinical settings. The NIH provides an Environmental Wellness Toolkit that can be shared with students
ADDITIONAL REFERENCES and RESOURCES
- Araya León, M. J., Guasch, R., Estévez, A. T., & Peña, J. (2022). Interaction between the interior built environment and the human being. An integrative review in relation to perception, health, and well-being. Theoretical Issues in Ergonomics Science, 1-31. https://doi.org/10.1080/1463922X.2022.2134940
- Colenberg, S., Jylhä, T., & Arkesteijn, M. (2021). The relationship between interior office space and employee health and well-being–a literature review. Building Research & Information, 49(3), 352-366. https://doi.org/10.1080/09613218.2019.1710098
- Realyvásquez-Vargas, A., Maldonado-Macías, A. A., Arredondo-Soto, K. C., Baez-Lopez, Y., Carrillo-Gutiérrez, T., & Hernández-Escobedo, G. (2020). The impact of environmental factors on academic performance of university students taking online classes during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Mexico. Sustainability, 12(21), 9194. https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/12/21/9194