Forest Therapy

Featured article in the January/February 2023 edition of Forest Landowner’s magazine

As a busy, stay-at-home mother of young children, Julie Sczerbinski once spent $35 to visit private forestland where she spent the day walking in the woods. At one point, she sat under a tree, read a book, and took a nap. She left the property feeling recharged and invigorated, as if a weight had lifted from her body.

Sczerbinski experienced the benefits of “forest bathing,” an American phrase translated from the Japanese practice called Shinrin-yoku. Coined by the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries in 1982, the word translates to “taking in the forest atmosphere” or “forest bathing.” It refers to soaking in a natural setting to promote physiological and psychological health.

To read the full article, please click here.