argued that the notion of ecosystem services is insufficient and urged a broader approach to human–nature connections with a discourse tending to “environmental and sustainability challenges across different socio-cultural contexts”. It emphasizes the benefits of nature to people and quantifies various values of ecosystem services. The most common theory involves the concept of ecosystem services derived from the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment. The concept of human–nature connections stems from multiple viewpoints. Although structural changes are constantly producing public natural landscapes, residents seldom have opportunity to voice their reflections on connections with nature-even if they are commonly saturated by natural settings in their daily lives. Moreover, natural settings such as landscapes provide opportunities for interpersonal interaction and strengthening connections within communities. In general, human–nature connections over the long-term affect social value.Īlthough socio-ecological systems are complex, reconnecting people with nature can help move society towards sustainability. It can be described as the perceived, nonmarket values, public ascribes, and assessable for various groups. The social value can be realized as the benefits created for society and accruing to society as a whole. In this sense, reconnecting to nature benefits to society and people’s social value. Contact with nature may also prevent mental illness.

For example, being connected with nature helps people exercise better, promote the physical health, increase the local knowledge, have a heightened sense of place and cultivate an intuitive respect for ecological conservation. People are increasingly recognizing that reconnecting to nature positively contributes to individual and social health and well-being, particularly with regard to psychological and physiological benefits.

The results deepen the general understanding of system leverage points for creating inner connections to nature which can aid sustainability transformation. The results demonstrated the role of landscape socialization in how people connect with nature, and the landscape socialization as a result of long-term policy interventions may exert substantial effects on residents’ social values across various spatial scales. Using a questionnaire measuring sense of community and the Social Values for Ecosystem Services application as analytical tools, the study assessed how residents with varying educational attainment, sense of community, and grounded occupation differ in identifying with conservation- and recreation-oriented policy interventions. The study assumed that social values, as perceived by residents, facilitates their landscape socialization. This study aimed to understand people’s connections with nature through landscape socialization under different land use policies. Reconnecting to nature is increasingly recognized as positively contributing to health and well-being.

Understanding the landscape socialization underpinning the human–nature relationship is essential because it can contribute to assisting us to reconnect with nature.

Natural landscape