Connecting with nature in London

I feel connected to nature through the green spaces and river and canal-side walks close to where I live in Hackney as well as further afield. I enjoy working as a conservation volunteer in Lee Valley Park, helping the rangers to maintain the natural environment for the park's diverse flora and fauna. 

As other posters have said, nature is all around us in London. Everything we can do to improve, support and share our waterways and green spaces will be of benefit all Londoners.

Please stop wasting money on these consultations and just focus council resources on reducing crime in London - we can't enjoy natural spaces if this isn't dealt with first. 

I didn’t mention that I also feel closer to nature walking along the Thames, even on the Southbank because the river is a force of nature, with lots of seabirds to see and hear. Even with all the activity, loads of people and built up all along the banks the Thames has a big timeless presence as a moving body of water going from source to sea as it has done since none of the surrounding hubbub existed.

Old cemeteries are also great green spaces to unwind in and find out about lives and deaths long gone.

I also omitted to mention that I don’t remember ever having felt unsafe in any London Park, even when getting dark. I feel welcome in more or less anywhere park or green space I go- but am aware that I have the white middle class privilege to give me this confidence.

I feel safe and close to nature in green spaces, from my small garden to Hampstead Heath. This would be where I spend more time, in my local area. Other local (ish) parks like Regent’s Park, Caledonian Park, Priory Park, Hyde Park are all good for feeling to some extent close to nature, as there is bird watching and people watching to do, the occasional squirrel too (although they seem fewer in number this year). People, including me, behave a differently when outside walking  among trees, through long grass, up and down hills. It is easier to talk to someone when walking outdoors, our physical and mental health is improved in many different ways by having access to green spaces.

I love that london is one of the greenest cities in Europe but i really think a lot of the large parks need lights fitted or wardens to make them feel safer 

The more naturally greener areas by the river Thames away from the busy built up areas are one of the nicer places, as well as the wetland areas with good tree coverages and habitats for wildlife too - the air is markedly cleaner and less polluted, and is pleasanter than the crowded/busy/densely populated/built up areas. There seems many pockets of little green/grassy spaces (just left as sparse lawns) within inner London that are neglected and are avoided by many. These can be ideal for planting small native trees/shrubs, meadow plants as well as veggie planters, thereby making it a healthier alternative for the locals, and a more natural space that would be inviting for people to wander/stroll. Perhaps also organise/encourage school holiday events/activities for children (little growers!) during the summer months. 

I feel closest to nature in London in areas of woodland. This could be the vastness of Epping Forest or a small woodland area such as Gillespie Park Nature Reserve by the Emirates Stadium. Woodlands of any size surround you and act as a great solitary quiet barrier from the hustle and bustle which may be going on outside that environment. I don't need any encouragement to be out in nature. A bit of Green or Blue Therapy is vital to my overall well being - helping to clear the head, exercise the body and helps me to feel humbled and grounded as a part of this Earth. 

I’m most connected to nature in London in and around the river Thames. While I love walking by the river I’m also an open water tidal Thames swimmer and the main barrier to my enjoyment of this space is the overly frequent and unjustifiable sewage and other waste discharges into it. 
 

The river is like a lung for the city with a channel of fresher air sweeping through it. 

It should be properly looked after and the riverbank amenity protected. 

 

Woods and properly natural spaces, where one can connect with nature in peace and seclusion are the best. It is nice to get away from traffic and too many dogs and observe birds and animals, for example. Open, manicured, over-lit, over-mown, and over-crowded parks are not really much good for connecting with nature, they are often just glorified dog toilets.

• Where in London’s natural spaces do you feel most welcome? Where don’t you feel welcome, and why? This is mainly because it's local and I walk through it often but I feel most welcome in Richmond Park, Bishops Park and along the river. I much prefer the wilder, overgrown parts of the city than the manicured and 'tidy' parks which are often barren from a nature point of view. I don't feel welcome when it's tightly mowed lawns and neat rows of flower beds. I know many people like that but that's not nature
• What’s stopping you from spending more time in nature? There aren't many wild spaces within walking distance. 
• What would encourage you to spend more time in nature? Having more wild spaces nearby, especially within our public parks
• What, if anything, does spending time in nature in London do for your wellbeing? It relaxes me, i can de-stress, I feel relaxed, I breathe cleaner air and I can also sit and enjoy the buzz of life watching all the insects, pollinators and whatever else is passing through 

If we plant more fruit trees (please stop altering DNA to make fruits seedless) If we plant more fruit trees, apples for example, among other fruit trees, we will have more animals, we will have more birds, we will have more life!

But for that we need to learn to let nature follow its natural flow, trees with fruits with seeds will be food for birds and other animals, and the digestive system will make it so that, through feces, the animals will go out and plant more trees with more fruits in various places where they decide to shit, nature is intelligent in itself, but for it, we need to stop trying to control it.

I like London and the nature spaces I have seen. But the green spaces situated under the Canning Town bridge break my hart. Are there a lot of litter. 

I am passing there 4 mornings a week. I hope one day to do something .

My partner and I love Regent's Park - easily the best park, always beautiful to stroll through see the flowers etc., and love that we regularly see herons. St. Jame park is a pleasant restbite.That said, it is very much a park... Beyond this, Richmond seems the closest if you want something wilder, mayne Enfield, but we arr yet to make it there to see. Other than that, it feels like you need to ho outside of London to find proper natural spaces - ones without manicured lawns and a token scattering of trees for the space (looking at you Hyde Park that looked more like a building site the other day). Given that travel is necessary for something more robustly 'nature' accessibility is an issue. Time and especially money are at a premium and I can rarely afford the train costs with such hikes in prices, so cheaper travel to, and/or easier access to wilder spaces in Central London would be nice (maybe it can absorb some of the pollutants we are all breathing and making my tissue black everyday - especially when visitkng North London.  Nature allows worldly worries to melt away, my autonomic nervous system finds a state of peace amd creativity, my thinking is clear and productive, and my emotional and psychological gets space for a reset. I feel more connected to my self, the world, and others, and find myself better able to move through the world amd relationships in a more regulated way. There's plenty of research supporting how nature helps nourish a persons ANS. Supporting an individuals sense of safety and connectedness (suggested, for i.e. by polyvagal theory) can intern lead to decreased addiction, crime, and social dysintegration, instead helping to foster regulation and connectedness within and between individuals and their subjective world, i.e. an increasingly more functional, self and co regulated, connected, creative, productive society. 

I feel welcome in most natural spaces and try to get outside as much as possible. Lack of public toilet facilities is a problem - many green spaces around me have toilets but they are permanently closed. This means I have to plan around where I can get to toilets and also that I see people urinating in parks which makes me uncomfortable and is bad for the environment. 

Some parks are also suffering from a lack of maintenance, so boardwalks and bridges are out of use. This neglect seems to encourage fly tipping, which makes green spaces less appealing. 

Poor visibility due to overgrown foliage around paths and along waterways can make some places feel unsafe. The more people that use a green space, the safer it feels, but neglect puts people off.

As the amount of cars steadily reduces in London, the existing roads can be turned into park land so that the residents can enjoy the beauty of nature close to home. The one way red route system around Earls Court is a good example. Warwick Road, Finborough Road, Gunter Grove and Ashburnam Road was made bi-directional that would open up Earls Court Road to be pedestrianised and Edith Grove and Redcliff gardens to be turned into a Urban park.

This approach would turn roads that have some of the worst polution in Kensington and Chelsea into a safe and beautiful area.

Most welcome - bright, light, open spaces, which feel safe

Least welcome - dark woody areas where few people walk

I work during the week and do not always have time at weekends to go out - and when I do have time, the weather is not always nice.

I like seeing nature in all the different seasons.

hi! i think i speak for many londoners when i say my mood significantly worsens during the winter months. it becomes more difficult motivating myself to do anything when it’s dark and gloomy. 

i love our city best when it’s warm and sunny. this is probably why connecting with nature during these cold months is especially important. 

i go on daily walks, but this is generally limited to the high street in my borough (lambeth). i’m already involved with other social demonstrations, i’d love to know about other events in the community. both to explore nature and likeminded people!

maja (ma-ya)

I don't feel unwelcome in any natural spaces, but I don't feel safe unless there are a number of other people around

Only lack of time stops me from spending more time in nature

Better, more reliable weather would encourage me to spend more time in nature

As is generally recognised, spending time in nature always make me happier (unless it's raining and cold)