The Drive to Thrive: Nurturing Growth, Facilitating Resilience, and Learning From Nature for the Wellbeing of Artists and Athletes

In recent years, global crises have included the COVID-19 pandemic, terrorism and war, climate change, species extinction, and challenging political decisions. Scientists have begun to ask which skills people need to find their way in this complex, rapidly changing world and to stay healthy while actively working towards solutions that include nurturing others. Participating in the arts, as well as in sports and exercise, have been found to foster resilience and contribute to human well-being. While arts-related activities have been found to support emotional health for the general public, artists have recently experienced increasingly adverse working conditions. Professionals in performance science and medicine are strategizing to address these problems. Nature has always been a key issue for an active, healthy lifestyle, and a major source of inspiration. Understanding and appreciating natural processes and wise management of resources are paramount for our well-being and future.

This Research Topic aims to facilitate an exchange of scientific findings and ideas for the future based upon research on the environment and human mental, physical, and creative activities: all topics at the Art in Motion 2025: The Drive to Thrive symposium (held in Bavaria, May 16th and 17th, 2025, at the University of Music & Theatre Munich and the Foundation Art and Nature in Nantesbuch). Bringing together theory, empirical and practice-based research from the arts, athletics, and environmental sciences will allow this collection to compare, contrast, and integrate the elements of growth, success, and livelihood across all of these fields. It will explore possible answers to the following questions:

• How can interactions with the natural environment contribute to our physiological and mental health, resilience, and creativity, while enabling us to thrive as human beings, whether as artists, athletes, scientists, doctors, therapists, or other professionals?

• How can the public's understanding of ecology and natural processes be increased in order to encourage more sustainable lifestyles, while contributing to positive environmental and sociopolitical developments in times of both peace and crisis?

• How can knowledge about – and understanding of – cognitive expertise in music, dance and sports help us individually and collectively meet upcoming challenges and develop health-promoting strategies?

This collection will include a broad range of topics and research methods, from theoretical models of thrive to practical strategies. Specific themes include (excerpt):

1. The interplay between success and well-being.

2. Factors that influence the ability of organisms to thrive, such as environmental conditions, personality traits, goal-setting, and social support.

3. The impact of stress and anxiety on the ability to thrive.

4. The relationship of goal-setting to learning and skill development that would enable individuals to thrive.

5. Current research in education, sports, and the workplace, on humans’ ability to thrive.

6. Theoretical concepts of thrive in the context of creativity, health, and well-being.

The following types of manuscripts will be considered:

Original research, systematic review, methods, mini-review, case report, clinical trial, perspective/opinion, theoretical papers, and other submissions that cover issues of curriculum, instruction, learning, and pedagogy.

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Conceptual Analysis
• Curriculum, Instruction, and Pedagogy
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• FAIR² DATA Direct Submission
• General Commentary
• ... View all formats

Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.

Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Conceptual Analysis
• Curriculum, Instruction, and Pedagogy
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• FAIR² DATA Direct Submission
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Registered Report
• Review
• Systematic Review
• Technology and Code

Keywords: Music, sports, dance, music psychology, musicians’ medicine, creativity, nature, environment, ecology, wellbeing, resilience, health

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.