Covid-19 and outdoor recreation management: Increased participation, connection to nature, and a look to climate adaptation

Abstract Outdoor recreation management perspectives were investigated based on the general perception of increased public outdoor recreation participation during the Covid-19 pandemic and supported by survey research at local, regional, and national levels in Sweden. There is an interest in how outdoor recreation professionals perceived outdoor recreation by the public during the pandemic and whether professionals could identify specific implications from the Covid-19/outdoor recreation experience. Climate adaptation literature supports the idea that current global challenge coupled with projections for ongoing challenge requires a pro-active approach; this turn to climate adaptation for potential consideration or guidance is based on characteristics that the Covid-19 pandemic shares with climate change. Outdoor recreational professionals' review of a recent public survey and subsequent semi-structured interviews with this group were conducted to obtain outdoor recreation professionals' detailed perceptions on survey outcomes. Results show that the professionals confirm a rapid and significant increase in outdoor recreation participation. Further, professionals identified critical trends in the increase of new or inexperienced outdoor recreation participants. A positive and proactive list of implications emerged as themes of the interviews. A review and synthesis of the themes support the national goals for outdoor recreation in Sweden. Further, results indicate a current opportunity for outdoor recreation to address concerns for diminishing nature experience and support connectedness to nature. The connectedness to nature outcome further strengthens the comparison with climate adaptation strategy given the potential relationship between connectedness to nature and pro-environmental behavior.