“I think we’re collectively remembering what we’ve always known deep down—that being outside helps us feel better,” says Terri LeRoux, Interim Chief Administrative Officer of Credit Valley Conservation. She’s speaking to a growing shift across Canada, where more people—and more health professionals—are embracing time in nature as a vital part of personal wellness.
Today, that movement takes a significant step forward as Credit Valley Conservation (CVC) announces a new partnership with PaRx, Canada’s national nature prescription program. The initiative empowers healthcare professionals to prescribe time in nature as part of a healthy lifestyle. Starting today, patients who receive a PaRx prescription will be eligible for up to ten free visits to CVC’s conservation areas—inviting more people to experience the healing power of the Credit River Watershed.
“Prescribing nature is really about bringing those benefits into the mainstream of healthcare,” LeRoux continues. “It’s a reminder that wellness isn’t always high-tech or complicated. Sometimes, it starts with stepping outside and reconnecting with the world around us.”
LeRoux’s understanding of nature’s role in wellness is powerfully rooted in her personal lived experience. In 2020, she inspired thousands when she shared the story of her son Luke, who was diagnosed with epilepsy as an infant and experienced up to 16 seizures a day. Though medication helped manage his condition, it also affected his language processing, dexterity, cognitive abilities, coordination and confidence.
That year, Terri and Luke set out to complete 100 hikes across Ontario. With medical support, Luke began the process of reducing his medication. During this challenging transition, time in nature became a powerful tool for managing stress—one of the key triggers for his seizures—and helped them both navigate the journey together.
“The decision to wean Luke off his medication became clearer with each hike we conquered together,” LeRoux wrote. “After our 100th hike at beautiful Upper Credit Conservation Area on November 9, we revealed to our friends and family that Luke was no longer dependent on his medication to manage his condition. We were overjoyed—and it wouldn’t have been possible without access to beautiful natural spaces, so close to home.”
Luke’s experience highlights the kind of meaningful support time in nature can offer, especially for those managing stress-related or chronic health conditions.
“Time in nature has real, measurable benefits, not just for our physical health, but especially for mental wellbeing,” says Jennie McCaffrey, Vice President of Health and Education at BC Parks Foundation. “We’ve seen how grounding and healing it can be for kids and families navigating things like anxiety, neurodivergence, or chronic conditions. When children feel more calm, more confident, more connected—it ripples out into every part of their lives. This partnership is about making those moments of peace and possibility easier to access, right here in our own communities.”
Dr. Deepika Lobo, Medical Officer of Health for Halton Region, agrees. “Halton Region Public Health is happy to support Credit Valley Conservation as they join the PaRx: A Prescription for Nature program,” she says. “Research continues to show that time in nature can reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression, lower blood pressure, and increase physical activity. It also helps people feel more connected to themselves, to their communities, and to the environment. Nature prescribing is one way to reduce barriers to health-promoting resources.”
“My biggest hope is that this partnership helps build a culture where nature is seen as a pillar of public health—not just something nice to do if you have time, but something essential to our wellbeing,” says LeRoux. “I hope it helps break down barriers to access, especially for those who haven’t always felt welcome in outdoor spaces. And I hope it inspires lasting collaboration between healthcare and conservation—because together, we can create healthier people and a healthier planet.”
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Caption: Terri LeRoux with son, Luke, as they complete their 100th hike at Upper Credit Conservation Area in Alton in 2020
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About PaRx
PaRx is Canada’s national nature prescription program, led by the BC Parks Foundation in collaboration with healthcare professionals, parks organizations, and nature groups across the country. With the support of over 18,000 prescribers, PaRx makes it easy for licensed health professionals to prescribe nature as part of their patients’ health plans.
Learn more at parkprescriptions.ca.
About BC Parks Foundation
BC Parks Foundation is on a mission to create the best parks system in the world, connecting people to the life-changing power of nature and inspiring personal, community, and planetary well-being. Through initiatives like PaRx, the Foundation works with partners across the country to support access to nature, conservation, and healthy communities.
Learn more at bcparksfoundation.ca.
About Credit Valley Conservation (CVC)
Credit Valley Conservation (CVC) is a local conservation authority established by the Ontario government in 1954 to protect, restore and enhance the natural environment of the Credit River Watershed. That watershed is the area of land where all rainfall, snowmelt and runoff drains (”sheds”) into lands and waters flowing into the Credit River. CVC creates connections between people and nature, knowledge and action. It inspires a deep appreciation for the role of nature in keeping people connected, healthy and happy. CVC is a member of Conservation Ontario.
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Media Contact, BC Parks Foundation
Chelsea Rooney
Senior Manager, Communications
604-343-3975 x130
Email
Media Contact, Credit Valley Conservation
Jamie Williams
Marketing and Communications Specialist
905-431-5772
Email