When a Generation Stays Inside: Civic Consequences of Our Digital World A new survey reveals that Gen Z spends, on average, less than an hour outdoors on weekdays and many can go days without leaving their homes. By contrast, members of Gen X average more than an hour outside, with time outdoors still part of daily life. Nearly 70 percent of young adults say they regularly spend multiple days entirely indoors, citing bad weather, lack of time, and discomfort with being alone. At first glance, this might seem like a lifestyle quirk. In reality, it signals how profoundly our patterns of movement, socialization, and engagement with the world have changed with serious implications for civic life. Time outdoors has always been about more than exercise or fresh air. Parks, sidewalks, and playgrounds have historically been places where neighbors meet, children play, and civic bonds form. Athletic fields and the front porch were once shared spaces where democratic habits were practiced. When younger generations spend less time in these settings, we lose more than recreation. We lose arenas where trust, norms, and community are built. The new report highlights that this disconnect is felt culturally as well as physically. Nearly half of respondents say there is a “nature deficit” in the media and entertainment they consume. People may stream endless content about the natural world, yet rarely experience it firsthand. Gen Z, in particular, reports a desire to disconnect from screens, but their actual time in nature is lower than previous generations. This gap between aspiration and behavior shows that younger adults are not rejecting nature outright, but face barriers—social, physical, and cultural—that make engagement harder.
