Want to make a decent living and a better life? Here’s one way. Get a job – a nature-smart job. Or better yet, be a nature-smart entrepreneur. By that, I don’t mean a career devoted only to energy efficiency. That’s important, but there’s a whole new category of green jobs coming. These careers and avocations will [...]
Adapted from keynote address, American Camp Association National Conference, Feb. 22, 2012 When I was a teenager, I resented camp. Because I never went to camp. Every summer, my buddy Pete would disappear for weeks. He’d leave Kansas and head to Sanborn Western Camp in the mountains west of Colorado Springs. For me, the hot, [...]
“Connected and honored, natural teachers could inspire other teachers; they could become a galvanizing force within their schools. In the process, they would contribute to their own psychological, physical, and spiritual health.” — The Nature Principle Not long ago, I was speaking with a middle school principal in Austin who was sympathetic to the cause, but [...]
Many of us still remember a time when playing in nature was considered normal and expected. Here’s a question: Will we leave this earth and take that memory with us? Or will we do what it takes to connect all children, in every kind of neighborhood, to nature? The Children & Nature Network needs your [...]
A new report from the National Wildlife Federation, Back to School: Back Outside, shows how outdoor education and time is connected with wide-ranging academic benefits including: Improved classroom behavior Increased student motivation and enthusiasm to learn Better performance in math, science, reading and social studies Reduced Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) Higher scores on standardized [...]
Adapted excerpts from Richard Louv’s plenary keynote address to the American Academy of Pediatrics National Conference, Oct. 2, 2010 in San Francisco. On Oct. 1, Louv made similar remarks at the UCSF Conference, Children First: Promoting Ecological Health for the Whole Child. More than three decades ago, when Dr. Mary Brown’s children were growing up [...]
Parenting advice can go to extremes. Regarding outdoor play, some experts sternly warn parents about all the dangers, real or assumed — from strangers to noxious weeds – lurking outside the front door. At the same time, parents sometimes find themselves shamed for their fear. “With all of the talk about giving kids leverage and freedom [...]
The National Wildlife Federation is ramping up its Certified Wildlife Habitat program. Thousands of home and school gardeners already participate in the program, which allows families, students and others an opportunity for deeper enjoyment of nearby nature, as well as the education and satisfaction that comes from knowing that their spaces are helping local wildlife [...]
Many states around the U.S. are working to get children into nature. Maryland’s Governor recently announced that state’s Children in Nature Action Plan for 2010. California passed a Children’s Outdoor Bill of Rights, which includes 10 easy and fun things the state recommends children experience from age 4-14.
There’s more good news. In Colorado, “Colorado Kids Outdoors Program†legislation is making its way through the statehouse. The Kansas Coalition for Children in Nature was formed to work with state agencies to create opporturnities for children to experience nature. Connecticut’s Commissioner of the Department of Environmental Protection vowed to maintain a commitment to state parks and to the state’s existing “No Child Left Inside” initiative.
