Nature & Health Center Programs

Student and Youth Programs

• The Nature Prescription Rx Program encourages students, faculty, and staff to connect with the natural world as a pathway to improved mental, physical, and emotional health. Rooted in the growing national movement to “prescribe nature,” the program leverages UNF’s unique campus ecosystems—such as the Sawmill Slough Preserve—to promote time outdoors through guided trips, on-campus events, and indoor nature experiences. Whether paddling on Lake Oneida, walking campus trails, or exploring local beaches, Nature Rx empowers the Osprey community to recharge, reflect, and build resilience through nature-based experiences.
  
  
• The Youth Environmental Leadership Program (YELP) offers a competitive, year-long pre-college experience for high school students. Participants explore environmental science and stewardship while developing leadership skills and designing capstone projects that increase access to nature. This interdisciplinary approach connects public health, urban planning, and conservation, preparing students to lead initiatives that promote equitable access to parks, green spaces, and the natural world.
  
  YELP Past Students and Projects
  
  
• The Environmental Leadership Program (ELP) is a merit-based, two-semester scholarship program open to undergraduate UNF students from all majors. Through academic enrichment, hands-on projects, and professional mentorship, students develop the skills to lead environmental initiatives. Past projects (hyperlink to ELP past projects - not specific) have included transforming gardens into on-campus enterprises, exploring the mental health benefits of plant propagation, and promoting urban tree planting as a public health strategy.
  
  ELP Past Students and Projects