Designing and implementing nature-based interventions in community settings: a scoping review

Childhood obesity is a pressing global health issue, particularly among children from newcomer families who often face challenges in accessing health-promoting resources. This scoping review, guided by the Arksey and O’Malley framework, investigates the design and implementation of nature-based interventions in community settings to foster healthy active living (HAL) among these children. We screened 4,010 articles, including 50 in this review. Our analysis revealed the theories and frameworks utilized to develop HAL interventions, the way in which nature was utilized by various communities, and how community members are connected to the current available HAL programming. This review underscores the importance of community engagement and addressing existing gaps in nature-based HAL interventions to enhance the health and well-being of children in newcomer families.