Literature
Nature-Based Well-Being in Israel - An Applied Literature Review (2026)
This review provides a conceptual foundation for nature based well being for professionals in education, social services, and health who integrate or seek to integrate nature into their thinking, practice, and research, highlighting the significance of the human nature connection, its inherent therapeutic dimensions, and the appreciation of this connection as a resource for social and ecological resilience. The review is available in Hebrew. Link to review
Conscious Integration for Ecological Attentiveness in the Eco-Appreciation Perspective
The article, which focuses on human-nature relationships and increasing awareness and appreciation for nature, was written together with Nirit Keren, based on work with education teams in the north of the country together with the Eco-appreciation model. The model offers an eco-humanistic educational practice approach, in which teachers learn how to cultivate their conscious connection to nature, so that they can also instill this in their students. The article presents practical exercises for using the model, emphasizing an authentic experience of connection to nature and three main components: an authentic experience of eco-hokra, the dimensions of time and place, and the individual-collective scale. Link to the article in issue 1 of Spirit of the World 2025 (Hebrew)
Dreaming a new world from an eco-respect perspective (2025)
The chapter written for the book Women creating New Worlds... shows that dreaming of a better life reality still exists and is possible. The power of this dreaming lies in cultivating mutual relationships between us and nature, and in the ecological consciousness that develops thanks to these connections. From a deep connection and solidarity with the environment, the shared dream enables the creation of a new world based on resilience and well-being shared by the entire fabric of life.
Nevo, M., and Levin, L. (2025). Dreaming a New World from an Eco-Hocratic Perspective. In Shadmi, A. Women Creating New Worlds, (pp. 159-172), Niv Publishing.
The Eco-Appreciation Perspective: Expanding Experience through Appreciation as Consciousness Renewal in Educational Practice
The article focuses on human–nature relationships and the enhancement of awareness and appreciation of the natural world. Written in collaboration with Nirit Keren, it is based on work with educational teams in northern Israel, applying the pedagogy of the Eco-Appreciation model. The model offers an eco-humanistic educational approach in which teachers cultivate a reflective connection to nature and foster this capacity among their students. The article, published in Hebrew, presents practical exercises, emphasizing an authentic experience of Eco-Appreciation, the combined dimensions of time and place, and the individual-collective scale. Link to the article in issue 1 of Spirit of the World 2025 (Hebrew)
Julia the Hermit and the Sparrows by Janusz Korczak (June 2023)
A rare monk seal, which is still here as of 30.5.23, was discovered on the afternoon of Friday, May 12, 2023, on the shores of Jaffa; that is where our story, the general public, with the special monk seal – Julia, began. As I reflected on Julia in the context of Korczak, I thought of the sparrows that frequented Korczak’s room and about which he wrote. Korczak’s attitude towards sparrows and the writing he left us can teach us something significant about the human-animal bond, the attitude towards the other who is not human.
It is possible to discern that between Julia the hermit mermaid and Korczak's sparrows, a delicate thread of existence, transcendental, that concerns relationships in general, a thread that cultivates empathy for others in all their forms, the ability to cherish life, the desire to preserve and respect the well-being of the animals and plants around us, while aspiring to an existence in which there is a significant common well-being for humans, animals, and plants . See the full article (Hebrew)
The Eco-Appreciation Perspective: Implementing a practical approach in Nature Therapy
Eco-Appreciation Perspective (EAP) is a holistic framework that refers to an individual's self-ecosystem awareness, emotions, identity and actions. This perspective focuses on our ability to appreciate and value our relationships with nature in a deep positive ecological way. It is based on an Eco-Appreciation inquiry of these relationships and on proactively embracing a more positive view in human-nature relationships. This chapter aspires to broaden the existing ecotherapeutic view and to enrich the set of tools at the disposal of individuals and professionals such as ecopsychologists, ecotherapists and sustainability consultants. Specifically, it presents the EAP framework, its practical aspects and how it can be used in a Nature Therapy approach. I begin by describing the EAP concept, and then continue to elaborate on the Nature Therapy approach in light of EAP. Subsequently, I emphasize the ways in which nature therapists experience Eco-Appreciation, and implement the EAP concept in their practice. Additionally, I present three essential elements for developing and cultivating EAP. The first is an authentic Eco-Appreciation experience, the second is a combination of place and time and the third is the individual-collective scale. Finally, I offer guidelines for EAP activities.
Nature-Based Welfare in Older Adulthood: An Eco-Appreciation Perspective
This study examined the reciprocal relationship between older adults' well-being and their accounts of human-nature relations (HNR). Guided by the tenets of the Eco-Appreciation Perspective, the question addressed was: What can be learned from older adults' relationships with nature about reciprocal nature-based welfare in older adulthood?
Person, People, Planet: Eco-Systematic Analysis of Older Adults' Experiences of Engagement with Nature and Discourse About Nature
This study combined ecological, environmental, nature-based, and epistemic interpretations of older adulthood to gain a previously unresearched look at how older adults feel that their relationships with nature are treated by others. Sixty older adults were interviewed in-depth, and data was analyzed using the Eco-Appreciation framework and Thematic Content Analysis. The results indicate the concurrence of processes of withdrawal of older adults from spaces of nature and discourse about nature. These processes obstruct older adults' well-being; entail the infliction of existential epistemic injustices and "eco-ageism" toward them; and emphasize the crucial role social work can play in responding thereto.
Link
Levin, L., & Nevo, M. (2024). Person, People, Planet: Eco-Systematic Analysis of Older Adults' Experiences of Engagement with Nature and Discourse About Nature. Journal of Gerontological Social Work, 1-17.
Giving Nature a Place”: Implementing EAP (Eco-appreciation Perspective) While Focusing on Children-Nature Relations (CNR)—The Need for a New Kind of Organizations
This chapter addresses the pivotal role of children's nature relations in shaping caring perspectives and fostering eco-social sustainability. Through the lens of the eco-appreciation perspective (EAP) and the concept of "Giving nature a place," we delve into the cultivation of children-nature relations (CNR) and propose new directions for organizations committed to Earth's sustainability.
Nevo, M. (2024). "Giving Nature a Place": Implementing EAP (Eco-appreciation Perspective) While Focusing on Children-Nature Relations (CNR)—The Need for a New Kind of Organizations. In Place Based Approaches to Sustainability Volume I: Ethical and Spiritual Foundations of Sustainability (pp. 221-231). Cham: Springer Nature Switzerland.
The Nature of Social Work: An Ecocentered Analysis of Key Social Work Statements
This article addresses references to people's natural environments in some of the central declarative statements that shape social work worldwide. Four types of documents were analyzed, including statements associated with the Global Definition of Social Work, the Global Standards for Social Work Education and Training, the Global Social Work Statement of Ethical Principles, and the Grand Challenges for Social Work initiative. The analysis was driven by a critical-interpretive approach, seeking explicit and possibly implied references to nature and the environment across documents, with special attention to themes concerning the relationship between micro and macro perspectives, disciplinarity and inter- or transdisciplinarity, and relationships between mankind and nature. In general, direct references to social work's possible intersections with issues related to nature and the natural environment were scarce in the materials examined. That having been said, our analysis did find that ecocentered interpretations enable locating prospective "bridges" for the incorporation of deeper ecological perceptions of social work into statements. Such findings constitute a call to action, and the possible implications of continuing to broadly disregard ecological aspects of social work in core materials published by influential professional institutions are discussed.
Link Link
Levin, L., & Nevo, M. (2022). The Nature of Social Work: An Ecocentered Analysis of Key Social Work Statements. Social Work, 67(4), 371-380.
"Yes, please - in my back yard!" - An Eco-Appreciation Perspective (EAP) towards sustainable eco-social welfare policies
The conceptual and theoretical development of the concept of sustainable welfare in recent years, reflecting the need for eco-social welfare policies that are adapted to non-linear changes in eco-social reality. Transformations that are eco-social by core, involve multidimensional aspects of human welfare, the thriving of communities, and the resilience of ecosystems. In this presentation we introduce one of the venues towards such transformations, invites scholars concerned with eco-social facets of welfare policy to "walk the blooming path" - and consider a welfare that conjoins Self and the Earth, as an antecedent of imagining new directions for the formation of eco-social policy. Specifically, we demonstrate how this can be done by employing an Eco-Appreciation Perspective (EAP) (Nevo, 2019). Link to the presentation
Giving nature a place with Eco-appreciation perspective (EAP) (2019)
This presentation addresses the important role of nature for children and the contribution of the EAP approach.
Nevo, M. (2019, December). Giving nature a place with Eco-Appreciation Perspective (EAP). Presented The School of Life in the 21st Century, the 9th International Conference On the Educational Legacy of Janusz Korczak Conference, Tel Aviv University, Israel. Link
