Connecting with Nature through Hands, Heart and Brain

This ethnographic study examines connecting with nature as a form of everyday engagement undertaken by ordinary people, using a group of environmental volunteers in Luxembourg as a case study. It addresses two questions: (1) Which perspectives do participants consider important for initiating and deepening connections with nature? (2) What views of nature and human-nature relationships are embedded in participants’ engagement with nature from these perspectives?

The study finds that three key dimensions are valued in developing meaningful connections with nature: embodied experiences, intellectual engagement and emotional resonance. Through these modes of connection, participants express an awareness of nature’s agency and embrace a notion of human-inclusive naturalness. These findings challenge instrumental views of nature and foreground a relational perspective, offering empirical insights into how reciprocal human–nature connections can be (re)established in everyday life.