The beginning of a new year has us all looking to better our lives and our employees’ lives in some way. How can we live healthier, more fulfilled lives in the new year? How can we improve the physical and mental well-being of our employees? And can it be a simple solution?

The science is in: Go outdoors and volunteer.

Don’t worry, we aren’t suggesting that you sign up your team for a charity polar plunge. It can be a great team experience in your local community, but that is not what we are talking about. The efficacy of ice baths for physical and mental health across all demographics is still an evolving field. You can google that on your own time.

No, what we are talking about is combining two things that are proven to improve physical, mental, and team health.

Get outside - The power of “forest bathing”

In the 1980’s, the nation of Japan was facing a national physical and mental health crisis. Stress related health cases were hitting a level that was unsustainable for the nation’s economy. Dozens of studies were launched and one group was found to be getting through life with far fewer mental and physcial ailments than anyone else. People who rspent at least 30 minutes of recreational time outside engaging with wildlife and in hands-on learning about the outdoors were ahead of everyone else in nearly every positive metric.

The term for this hands-on/full present practice is “hinrin-yoku”, which literally translates to “forest bathing”. Japan’s investment for forest therapy outdoor spaces in urban areas showed near immediate positive results across every single demographic.

In the 40 years since, hundreds of peer-reviewed studies have been done on this practice. It is proven to be one of the easiest things one can do to improve mental and physical health outcomes. It makes significant enough of an impact that many post-op centers and rehab facilities around the world now use it as a regular part of therapy. Have you noticed the sudden uptick in non-profits that provide this experience for veterans of war and traumatic service?

Businesses see the benefit too and have started investing in walking paths instead of ping-pong tables and indoor gyms for their employees. Here in the Bozeman area, several 2% Certified brands (of all sizes) partner with our local Gallatin Valley Land Trust to manage the Main Street to Mountains trail network. They have seen the benefit of the trail network for the quality of life and productivity of their employees, so they invest both dollars and time to the resource.

Getting outside works. And you don’t have to jump in an ice bath to get the same benefits.

Volunteer - Anchor yourself

Similar to getting outside, the science of the simple yet profound benefits of volunteering is robustly reviewed and proven.

For businesses and individuals, volunteering provides deeper connections to:

• The place you live. You know, the real world around you. In “The Hobbit”, Gandalf tells Bilbo, “The world is not in your books and maps. It’s out there.” We say, the world is not in your spreadsheets or social media feed. It’s out there.

• Your local community. Around the world, modern culture has lost our “third place.” Home and work are your first and second places. As social creatures, we need connection to our community, and that comes from a third place. A place to connect with the people you share your place with. Folks may argue that social media, churches, and local watering holes provide that, it doesn’t take much looking to see how segregating and even stressful those things can be. A universal “third place” is your local outdoor space. Your local parks, trails, wildlife areas, waterways, beaches, and even community gardens. Businesses that volunteer in their local outdoor spaces develop an authentic connection between their brand and the local community. You cannot buy that authenticity. You have to show up and earn it.

• The physical dynamic of your body connecting to the land. This goes back to forest therapy. Heading outdoors, even for half an our to pick up trash or invasive weeds on the trail, has a profound grounding effect for your mind. As an employer, providing paid volunteer time to your employees is a direct investment in not only your shared local space, but also in their health and ultimately their relationship with your business. Our business members that utilize this connection for their employees have great employee retention rates. It is dead simple and just works.

A caveat: It is possible to have too much of a good thing. We have written up a few blogs on volunteer burnout and the general apathy towards one’s personal well-being that can come from overdoing it, volunteering for a cause that doesn’t love you back, and engaging too heavily in combative advocacy work as a volunteer.

We recommend that when it is on company time, employers only set up volunteer opportunities that are actually outdoors or at a limited number of public fundraising/advocacy events. It is all too easy to have employees feel burned out or overworked with extra events or the hundreds of hours often required by board/committee positions. If an employee wants to pursue higher roles with conservation non-profits on their own time, that should be praised. Let them be leaders for your brand on your dime, and leaders in the community on their own time. They will bring more value for your business and the organization they are passionate about when those lines are not blurred.

Instead of burning your team out with a lot of events, do a few events very well. Bozeman, MT’s Stone Glacier hosts an annual party at the end of summer to benefit local non-profits and conservation programs. Their team puts on one heck of a party, all while connecting their customers, the community, and wildlife conservation. They also (and this is key) provide their team with ample time to use at their own discretion in the outdoors.

We will leave the final word on volunteer burnout to the prolific conservationist/author Edward Abbey:

“One final paragraph of advice: do not burn yourselves out. Be as I am - a reluctant enthusiast....a part-time crusader, a half-hearted fanatic. Save the other half of yourselves and your lives for pleasure and adventure. It is not enough to fight for the land; it is even more important to enjoy it. While you can. While it’s still here. So get out there and hunt and fish and mess around with your friends, ramble out yonder and explore the forests, climb the mountains, bag the peaks, run the rivers, breathe deep of that yet sweet and lucid air, sit quietly for a while and contemplate the precious stillness, the lovely, mysterious, and awesome space. Enjoy yourselves, keep your brain in your head and your head firmly attached to the body, the body active and alive, and I promise you this much; I promise you this one sweet victory over our enemies, over those desk-bound men and women with their hearts in a safe deposit box, and their eyes hypnotized by desk calculators. I promise you this; You will outlive the bastards.”

If you would like help finding outdoor volunteer opportunities for your team, we have two tools for our 2% Certified business members:

1. Use our (still growing) conservation group directory to find a cause near you to connect with that is already supported by 2% Certified brands.

2. Hop on a call with us! We love helping our business members develop great outdoor volunteer programs for their teams. We have helped dozens of our business members build internal programs and can quickly help you develop something for your team that works best for you, your industry, your community, and your team.