Green Care: A Conceptual Framework - Frisk i naturen
Green Care: A Conceptual Framework - Frisk i naturen
Green Care: A Conceptual Framework - Frisk i naturen
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4<br />
A brief overview of ‘green care’<br />
approaches<br />
This section briefly explores and defines some specific green care<br />
approaches.<br />
4.1 <strong>Care</strong> farming<br />
<strong>Care</strong> farming (also called ‘social farming’ or ‘green care farming’) can be<br />
defined as the use of commercial farms and agricultural landscapes as a<br />
base for promoting mental and physical health, through normal farming<br />
activity (see: Hassink, 2003; Hassink and van Dijk, 2007; Hine et al, 2008 )<br />
and is a growing movement to provide health, social or educational benefits<br />
through farming for a wide range of people. These may include those with<br />
defined medical or social needs (e.g. psychiatric patients, those suffering<br />
from mild to moderate depression, people with learning disabilities, those<br />
with a drug history, disaffected youth or elderly people) as well as those<br />
suffering from the effects of work-related stress or ill-health arising from<br />
obesity. <strong>Care</strong> farming is therefore a partnership between farmers, health and<br />
social care providers and participants.<br />
All care farms offer some elements of ‘farming’ to varying degrees, be that<br />
crops, horticulture, livestock husbandry, use of machinery or woodland<br />
management. Similarly all care farms offer some element of ‘care’, be that<br />
health or social care or educational benefits. However, there is much variety<br />
in care farms, with differences in the extent of farming or care that they<br />
offer, the context, the client group and the type of farm. Many care farms<br />
offer therapeutic contact with farm livestock but some provide specific<br />
animal assisted therapy. Many farms offer participation in the growing of<br />
crops, salads or vegetables for example but some also offer horticultural<br />
therapy in addition or instead.<br />
The distinction between social and therapeutic horticulture projects and<br />
care farms is that horticultural therapy projects do not usually focus<br />
principally on commercial production activities whereas many care farms<br />
are primarily focused on production on a commercial level.<br />
37