Identifying synergies and co-benefits at the intersection of nature recovery and the creative and cultural sector in rural region

Creativity, culture and nature are inseparable from humanity and from each other. Social structures have deep connections to ecologies of place, manifested and strengthened through creative and cultural practice. This is especially true of the economies of rural regions. Yet, in regional social and economic policy, these deep and powerful connections that have for eons bound people with nature are lost.

At a time of ecological and climate breakdown, supporting nature’s recovery through creative and cultural practice becomes not only imperative, but an opportunity for sustainable regional development.

This paper illuminates the relationship between nature recovery and the creative and cultural sector by exploring three case studies in Cornwall, identifying key policy considerations and levers that could be scaled and transposed across other rural regions to stimulate co-benefits as part of an integrative regional development path. It argues that the creative and cultural sectors are often an untapped source of sustainable economic growth in rural regions, as well as being critical for, and deeply connected with, successful nature recovery.

Key themes

Nature recovery, creative industries, cultural sector, regional development

Dr Georgina Treloar is a Postdoctoral Research Associate on the ESRC-funded Nature Recovery and Regional Development (NaRReD) project at the University of Exeter and is affiliated with the Environment and Sustainability Institute (ESI) at the Penryn campus in Cornwall. She completed her PhD in Environmental Social Science at the University of Kent in 2024, which explored framing in radical environmentalism. Georgina’s research interests span social movements, nature recovery and environmental politics.