[Towards nature based social prescription to alleviate loneliness: a co-creative experience from Ecuador].

Abstract

The present contribution is part of the project "Reimagining Environments for Connection and Engagement: Testing Actions for Social Prescribing in Natural Spaces" (RECETAS). It aims to test and evaluate nature-based social prescriptions (NBSP) for the alleviation of loneliness in Europe, Latin America, and Oceania. In contrast to the northern countries, the study of loneliness and NBSP are emerging in the Latin American countries, and particularly in Ecuador. Therefore, this contribution can be considered a pioneering research in this regard, centered on the co-creation a NBSP menu to alleviate loneliness in older adults. The article pursues a double objective: (i) to establish guidelines for a methodological process of co-creation of a NBSP menu for its replication adapted to other contexts, and (ii) to disseminate the activities identified to alleviate the loneliness of older adults. Methodologically, the study adoped a participatory approach with and for older adults, developed in Cuenca, Ecuador, between October 2021 and May 2023, that resulted in a co-created NBSP menu appropriate to the context and population group under study.