Nature engagement has a positive impact on Latinx children’s and youths’ physical and mental health, including increasing physical activity, enhancing resilience, promoting mental health, and making them feel heard and connected to their community. Factors that may enhance positive physical and mental health outcomes include adding age-appropriate toys to outdoor activities, focusing on the fun in outdoor activities, involving family and friends in outdoor activities, establishing park-based programs, and integrating culturally relevant artistic expression opportunities.

More age-appropriate toys and more limits on media usage are associated with higher levels of young children’s active play in Latino farmworker families

Interviews with 221 Latino mothers of 2- to 4-year-olds over the course of two years in North Carolina assessed the children’s outdoor playtime, media time, and the environments in which they lived. Findings indicated that for these farmworker families, adding more toys to outdoor playtime and limiting media usage could increase the children’s physical activity.
Arcury et al. 2017. Residential environment for outdoor play among children in Latino farmworker families.
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‘‘Fun’’ identified by Hispanic immigrant children as primary driver of physical activity

Observations of 14 first- and second-generation Hispanic children from an afterschool program for low-income children in Pennsylvania found that children identified “fun” as a key driver of physical activity. Some children characterized outdoor play as being more fun because they could do more things outside such as climb trees, play tag, and use playground equipment. In addition, companions or partners including friends, parents, or other family were also facilitators of physical activity, especially for visits to the park.
Taverno Ross & Francis, 2016. Physical activity perceptions, context, barriers, and facilitators from a Hispanic child’s perspective. 
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Mental health and youth development program in parks with a large Hispanic population may have the potential to prevent violence among at-risk youths

In 2015, several community groups in Florida neighborhoods, composed of 60% Hispanic members, worked together to establish an afterschool park-based mental health program for at-risk youth. Follow-up research showed a greater reduction in arrest rates in areas where the program was offered than in areas where it was not offered, thus indicating the program’s potential to promote mental health and resilience and prevent violence.
D’Agostino et al. 2019. Two-year changes in neighborhood juvenile arrests after implementation of an afterschool park-based mental health promotion program in Miami-Dade County, Florida, 2015-2017. 
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Nature-related and culturally-relevant art activities in cities with a large Latino population provide an avenue for children’s active participation in their urban communities

Focusing on lower income Latino populations in two contrasting U.S. cities, this study found that nature-based art projects gave young people a culturally relevant way to express their ideas about local environmental issues affecting their lives and provided a way to heal from trauma that they may have experienced.
Derr, 2017. Participation as a supportive framework for cultural inclusion and environmental justice. 
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Studies of the impact of nature on the science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) outcomes of Latinx students suggest that programs that involve children’s culture, engage them in experiential learning, and provide them nature-based opportunities and environmental education may be helpful in supporting their STEM interest and academic performance. 

An experiential science education program for low-income African American and Latinx children, with a focus on cultural relevance and eco-justice, increased urban children’s knowledge and engagement in science

Researchers used work samples, interview responses, journal entries, and pre/post-test results to examine the impact of a science camp experience on low-income African American and Latinx children in Colorado. The Latinx children were all English language learners. The camp was intentionally designed to be culturally relevant and to focus on eco-justice concerns. Results suggested that the program had a positive impact on children’s learning, engagement, and interest in science especially through activities that the children were less likely to experience in school.
Djonko-Moore et al. 2018. Using culturally-relevant experiential education to enhance urban children’s knowledge and engagement in science.
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Hispanic and Black youth showed improved academic performance after participating in an environmental and science education program using a head-heart-hands approach

This study evaluates a nature-based science intervention program serving disadvantaged Black and Hispanic students in New Brunswick, New Jersey. The goal of the program was to improve the students’ academic performance and increase their interest in STEM careers. Positive changes in academic results for math and science grades were found for at least half of the six cohorts. Results show significantly higher gains in science knowledge for all six cohorts compared to the control groups.
Jagannathan, Camasso & Delacalle, 2018. The effectiveness of a head-heart-hands model for natural and environmental science learning in urban schools.
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Nature-based environmental education programs may improve health-related quality of life and STEM capacity in low-income Black and Hispanic youth

Black and Hispanic youth participating in a nature-based education intervention program in St. Louis, Missouri showed significant improvements in all health-related quality of life and STEM capacity domains. Evaluation results also showed that the program provided an engaging learning environment, promoted pro-environment decisions, engaged families, promoted healthy behaviors, and helped students develop leadership and team-building skills.
Sprague, Berrigan & Ekenga, 2020. An analysis of the educational and health-related benefits of nature-based environmental education in low-income Black and Hispanic children. 
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Similar to other communities of color, Latinx communities experience disparities in mental and physical health and face barriers to accessing quality green spaces and nature programming. When more equitable access to quality natural environments and nature-based activities can be provided, such as through greening of urban schoolyards and removing barriers to park use, there is the potential for effective promotion of health equity, however, more research is needed, specifically with the Latinx community.

Green schoolyards may be “particularly powerful drivers of health equity by promoting well‐being at the level of the individual, school, and community” especially for urban low-income communities 

Observations and surveys completed before and after the greening of schoolyards in two urban Chicago, Illinois schools with a majority Latinx/Hispanic population indicate that green schoolyards can provide a safe space for children and adults to engage in social, outdoor activities and thus benefit from increased access to nature. These benefits may promote health equity for people living in urban low-income communities.
Bohnert et al. 2021. Green schoolyard renovations in low‐income urban neighborhoods: Benefits to students, schools, and the surrounding community.
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Increasing awareness of park-related health benefits and removing specific park use barriers among Black, Hispanic, and immigrant communities may be helpful in reducing some health disparities

Findings from 568 in-home surveys of adults in Minneapolis, Minnesota found that foreign-born residents, Blacks, and Hispanics perceive greater and unique barriers to park use in terms of not feeling welcome, cultural and language restrictions, program schedule and pricing concerns. This highlights the need for policy makers to address these barriers, as such barriers may also impact health disparities in the community.
Das, Fan & French, 2017. Park-use behavior and perceptions by race, Hispanic origin, and immigrant status in Minneapolis, MN: Implications on park strategies for addressing health disparities.
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Examining family-based nature activities among Latinx students: Contexts for reinforcing family relationships and cultural heritage

Findings from 134 questionnaires completed by undergraduate Latinx students in a West Coast U.S. university showed the respondents engaged in various outdoor activities with family. The most frequent activities were walking and biking as well as family backyard activities. The respondents reported that natural environments reduce stress and promote relaxation.
Izenstark, Crossman & Middaugh, 2021. Examining family-based nature activities among Latinx students: Contexts for reinforcing family relationships and cultural heritage. 
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Multidisciplinary research on the relationship of social, cultural, and economic factors to nature contact and outcomes in U.S. Latinos is urgently needed

This systematic review analyzed 108 publications to assess the state of knowledge relating to nature-based participation by Latinos in the United States and to identify related research gaps. Approximately one-third of the studies measured physical health outcomes of nature contact. Other outcomes were rarely measured. Less than 7% of the studies investigated nature-related interventions to improve health outcomes for this population.
Tandon, Kuehne & Olden, 2018. Trends and knowledge gaps in the study of nature-based participation by Latinos in the United States.
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