Well-being and the Environment

If everyone in the world lived as people do in Europe, we would need three planets to support us. Beyond this broad sense in which the environment is fundamental to our lives, there is now an emerging body of evidence that suggests that the local environment, and particularly natural environments, meet a wide range of human needs and promote well-being.

In the first part of this paper we draw together some of this evidence looking at the relationship the broadest sense – including physical, resource and perceptual aspects to the relationship. In the second part of the paper, we turn to the question of how we can achieve ‘One Planet Living’ – where we all live within our environmental means – and yet maintain or increase our quality of life.