The Urban Time Warp
The Urban Time Warp:
Can Nature Slow Time? Where does the time go?
If you’ve felt as if time is speeding up, you’re not alone. Studies show an increasing number of people report feeling short on time. Exacerbated in urban settings, our fast-paced lives and modern use of technology eat up hours. This is what we call the Urban Time Warp: the palpable sense that time has quickened. However, a recent study by Dr. Ricardo A. Correia proposes that spending time in nature can actually expand our perception of time, mitigating the pervasive sense of time scarcity.
How do we perceive time?
Time perception is subjective and shaped by cognitive processes. Unlike sight or hearing, we don’t have a sensory organ for time, leading to varying experiences.
It involves three key aspects:
- Temporal Succession: Sequence of events
- Temporal Duration: Estimation of durations
- Temporal Perspective: Navigating past, present, and future
Time perception can shift with our emotions, and external factors like stimuli. For example, time feels different when we're engaged in an activity versus feeling anxious or bored.
Can nature really slow time?
Studies suggest that nature can slow our sense of time by altering our temporal perspective, shifting our focus to the present. In one study participants overestimated the duration of a walk in nature compared to an urban one. A similar effect was observed for people simply viewing videos of nature. People who spent just six and a half minutes in silence outdoors reported feeling more connected to the present.
Being in nature can also help reduce rumination and encourage a balanced view of past, present, and future. This growing research highlights the potential of nature in helping us reconnect with a healthier, more expansive sense of time.
We understand the importance of integrating nature back into our cities.
But can restoring native forests in urban areas also help us restore a healthier relationship with time? The answer is: Yes! Time plays a fundamental role in our health and wellbeing, and our mission is to create cities that connect us to a healthier rhythm, in sync with the living world around us.
This research highlights the crucial ways that nature can regulate our sense of time, emphasizing the importance of urban greening initiatives, such as our urban Pocket Forests, in helping us reconnect with a healthier and slower rhythm of life.
London, England
Southbank Centre - Natura Nostra Forest
Giving nature a chance to thrive within the brutalist architecture of London's Southbank Centre.
A green oasis nestled into the heart of London’s brutalist architecture for inner city dwellers to slow down the hours.
“Living in cities and everything it entails puts a strain on the processes that influence how we perceive time. In contrast, nature is known to have a restorative effect for humans and may help us to recover a more balanced sense of time.”
— Dr. Ricardo A. Correia
References:
Correia, R. A. (2024). Acknowledging and understanding the contributions of nature to human sense of time. People and Nature, 6(2), 358-366.
