A high biological diversity in our immediate vicinity is as important for life satisfaction as our income. These are the findings that scientists from Senckenberg, the German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv), and the University of Kiel recently published in the journal Ecological Economics. For the first time, the researchers were able to show that all across Europe, the individual enjoyment of life is correlated to the number of bird species in one’s surroundings. An additional ten percent of bird species in the vicinity therefore increases the life satisfaction of Europeans at least as much as a comparable increase in income. Nature conservation thus constitutes an investment in human well-being, according to the researchers.
Under the current pandemic conditions, activities out in nature are a popular pastime. The beneficial effects of a diverse nature on people’s mental health have already been documented by studies on a smaller scale. Scientists of the Senckenberg Gesellschaft für Naturforschung, the iDiv, and the University of Kiel now examined for the first time whether a diverse nature also increases human well-being on a Europe- wide scale.
Does biodiversity evoke happiness? – Inside Ecology
Under the current pandemic conditions, activities out in nature are a popular pastime. The beneficial effects of a diverse nature on people’s mental health have already been documented by studies on a smaller scale. Scientists of the Senckenberg Gesellschaft für Naturforschung, the iDiv, and the University of Kiel now examined for the first time whether a diverse nature also increases human well-being on a Europe- wide scale.
Does biodiversity evoke happiness? – Inside Ecology