Jon Christensen in CityLab: Longing for the Great Outdoors? Think Smaller.

Though the “great outdoors” may be more distant than ever right now due to COVID-19, small and mediated exposure to nature can still give us a lift, said Jon Christensen, a professor of environmental studies at UCLA’s Institute of Environment and Sustainability. Even photos of tree-lined mountains and wildlife documentaries can yield a health payoff; so can sitting in a park for 20 minutes. “There does seem to be a dose-response curve,” he said.