5.1 Nature-Based Health Interventions (NBHI) in the Nordic–Baltic region
This report maps nature-based health interventions (NBHIs) status in the Nordic-Baltic region as well as identifies challenges and provides policy recommendations. The report is based on a desktop search for the mapping of nature-based health interventions in combination with interviews with experts and practitioners. In addition, a practitioner-oriented booklet has been developed.
Nature-based health interventions are activities aimed at supporting individual’s health and well-being through exposure to and contact with nature, for example on small scale farms and horticultural production sites. The report indicates that NBHIs have the potential to supplement public health and social care systems in rural areas, contribute to community-building and be an additional source of income on farms. NBHIs can complement conventional health services by addressing mental health issues, stress, chronic diseases, and social isolation through structured activities involving nature, animals, or outdoor environments.
Despite growing interest, NBHIs remain insufficiently supported by institutions. Their development is uneven: Countries like Norway, Sweden, and Finland have established networks (Inn på Tunet, Grön Arena, Green Care Finland), while Baltic countries show fragmented or small-scale initiatives. Across the region, practitioners struggle with financial predictability, lack of long-term contracts, scepticism from healthcare providers, and inconsistent legislative frameworks. Public awareness remains limited, and medical communities often lack knowledge about NBHIs’ benefits.
Interviewees emphasised pressing needs for stronger national strategies, harmonised definitions and regulations, improved knowledge of NBHI effectiveness, and sustained communication efforts. The report concludes that NBHIs possess both economic and public health potential but require structural reforms to realise this potential.
5.2 Recommendations
To support the development of nature-based health interventions and fully realize their potential, the report summarizes three recommendations. These include the development of evidence-based studies, the promotion of national strategies, and the communication and promotion of the benefits of NBHI’s.
Out of these, the steering group recommends that the Nordic council of ministers focuses on the following:
The development of evidence-based studies is essential for both health authorities and practitioners to increase public awareness of nature-based health interventions and their benefits, including their economic potential, and their capacity to complement other health treatments and educational programs.
Activities could include the establishment of a Nordic–Baltic NBHI task force to coordinate a regional research project, as well as funding evidence-based studies on the economic potential of NBHIs for public institutions and rural areas, and studies identifying public service sectors where the inclusion of NBHIs could help alleviate overload.
Communication and promotion of NBHI benefits, combined with evidence-based research, could support wider adoption by raising awareness and disseminating findings on their economic and societal value to relevant institutions.