Sport for nature -the Cammino Del Po: wellness, outdoor education, inclusion, territory, tourism and economy

urpose: Bring students closer to the outdoor environment through the practice of physical activity in a natural environment in order to experience the resulting integral well-being of the person improve the man-nature relationship and make young people aware of issues related to the environment and sustainability create a new profes- sional figure that combines motor-sports and environmental skills verify, through the Connectedness To Nature Scale questionnaire, the variations in the approach to nature of students of the Catholic University and of a high school after some outings along a stretch of the Po river. Methods: • On February 17, a full-day conference ‘‘WALKING TOWARDS A NEW FRONTIER OF WELL-BEING’’ in which all the peculiarities of the practice of walking were presented, both in developmental and adult age, and the positive effects that arise • A university course ‘‘SPORT FOR NATURE COACH’’ was held in April with the aim of making students aware of environmental issues, with specific training on Æ climate change and its consequences Æ outdoor physical activity Æ benefitsderivingfromdirectcontactwiththeelementsofnature (green spaces, blue spaces, green activities). Next September, a residential university course SPORT FOR NATURE COACH—CAMMINO DEL PO—DISCESA DEL PO will take place in which students will attend a basic course in canoeing and rowing, they will be the protagonists of the descent of the Po by choosing from four different methods—swimming, by bicycle, by canoe, walking—they will experience moments of reflection and discussion which will focus on the defense of the Po River and the floodplain lands. A SPORT FOR NATURE advanced training course will be launched next academic year: holistic training of the person, physical and sporting activity in a natural environment and attention to sustainability. In september scientific research through the administration of the Connectedness To Nature Scale questionnaire to university students during the descent of the Po and to a class of high school students before and after some outings along the Cammino del Po. Results: Specific training on outdoor physical activity, slow and sustainable tourism, good environmental protection practices verifi- cation of changes in the approach to the natural environment and to sustainability after motor-sport experiences in contact with nature. Conclusions: Sport for nature—Cammino del Po is a project that uses physical activity in a natural environment as a tool to convey a series of messages in line with the action program for sustainable development of Agenda 2030 wants to train a new professional fig- ure with motor-sports, environmental and sustainability skills wants to verify the actual change in thinking after a course of physical activity in a natural environment.