Nature in the Feed: Exploring digital expressions of value and action for the environment

Social media (SM) is changing the ways in which people value and care for nature. This study investigates how SM can be a space of opportunity and risk to mobilize values for environmental stewardship. We propose that SM offers complementary pathways for environmental stewardship by fostering care, knowledge and agency. Yet, the potential is limited by socio-environmental, political and technological affordances. We analyze the occurrence of relational values and stewardship action across three major SM platforms (X, YouTube and Weibo) and three major languages (English, Spanish and Chinese). Our findings show that even though nature appears often in the feed, and in over half of the posts includes an expression of value, stewardship action is reported slightly. Aesthetic and hedonic value typologies dominate in the digital sphere and are less likely to co-occur with stewardship action, whereas values related to stewardship principle, ecological literacy and kinship are more likely to co-occur with reported stewardship action. By challenging the widespread notion that SM leads only to nature disconnection and a decline in environmental stewardship, we hope to inspire discussions and raise new questions on the role of SM in advancing the socio-ecological transition.