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The New Nature Movement

Field Notes from the Future: Tracking the Movement to Connect People and Nature

Last Child in the Woods & The Nature Principle

"Last Child in the Woods" introduces the concept of nature-deficit disorder, offering practical actions for families and communities. "The Nature Principle" extends the issue to adults and reports the restorative power of the natural world.

Author Archive for Richard Louv

Richard Louv is Co-Founder and Chairman Emeritus of the Children and Nature Network. He is the author of "Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder"and "The Nature Principle: Human Restoration and the End of Nature-Deficit Disorder."

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By Richard Louv on July 26th, 2011

THE “VITAMIN N” PRESCRIPTION – Some Health Professionals Now Recommending Nature Time for Children and Adults

In 2009, Janet Ady of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service stood before a crowd of grassroots leaders gathered by the Children & Nature Network. She held up an outsized pharmacy bottle. Within the bottle was a physician’s prescription – one that would be as appropriate for adults as it would be for children. The [...]

Columns by Richard Louv • uncategorized

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By Richard Louv on July 21st, 2011

The Eye in the Tree

In a recent feature on Orion magazine’s Web site, the editors asked me this question: “Does technology merely distract us from the natural world—or can it help us gaze more intently at its varied forms?” My article, answering that question, is here. In it, I described how I spend more time carrying a camera than a [...]

Columns by Richard Louv • Featured Columns • uncategorized

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By Richard Louv on July 4th, 2011

Ten Reasons Children & Adults Need Vitamin N

“I recall my father’s dark tanned neck, creased with lines of dust, as he tilled our garden. I ran ahead of him, pulling rocks and bones and toys from his path.” — The Nature Principle In “Last Child in the Woods,” I focused on why children need nature. In my new book, “The Nature Principle,” [...]

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By Richard Louv on June 28th, 2011

A Boost to Education and an Antidote to Teacher Burnout?

“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 [...]

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By Richard Louv on June 20th, 2011

SEVEN REASONS FOR A NEW NATURE MOVEMENT

Martin Luther King Jr. taught us, by word and example, that any movement — any culture —will fail if it cannot paint a picture of a world that people will want to go to. As others have said, his speech was not called “I Have a Nightmare.” For decades, our culture has struggled with two [...]

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By Richard Louv on June 12th, 2011

The Monster of Mystery Valley

One day, my older son, Jason, announced that there was one more thing he wanted to do before school started. This was a long time ago. As we left the dock, we felt the cool air coming up from the water. Fishing air feels and smells like no other air. It cools your face and gets in under your shirt, and everything is left behindâ€”all work, all worries, all the static of the city.

“Remember last time?” asked Jason, as he let his line out behind the boat. I did. Here, we had seen the strangest sight: at the very end of the lake, violet hills and green pastures and scattered cattle and a little river running through the willows, a valley that seemed to recede from view as we approached. “The closer we get, the farther away it seems,” I had said to him. His eyes had grown wide. The light had turned red and begun to fade. We had turned back.

Columns by Richard Louv

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By Richard Louv on May 23rd, 2011

THE WONDER BOWL: Ten Spring and Summer Nature Activities for Kids and Adults

Got dirt? “In South Carolina, a truckload of dirt is the same price as a video game!” reports Norman McGee, a father in that state who bought a small pickup-load of dirt for his daughter and friends. As McGee’s photo shows, the dirt was a great success. I told his story a couple years ago in [...]

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By Richard Louv on May 4th, 2011

CINCO de MAYO: A DAY TO CELEBRATE OUR MULTICULTURAL CONNECTIONS TO NATURE

Particularly in the United States, Cinco de Mayo, the fifth of May, is a celebration of Mexican heritage and pride. Part of that heritage is a natural cultural capacity. A few weeks ago, I wrote about my friend and colleague Juan Martinez, who was raised in South Central Los Angeles. He was changed forever by [...]

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By Richard Louv on April 3rd, 2011

LET’S G.O.! WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM FRIENDS LIKE REI

Several years ago, Sally Jewell, president and CEO of REI, asked me to come to Seattle to speak at the annual gathering of the nationwide REI community. Sally and I sat on stage and talked for an hour about the importance of connecting children to nature. I already admired Sally, but as she wrapped up the [...]

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By Richard Louv on March 21st, 2011

THE REALITY OF NATURE IN DIFFICULT TIMES

For the past couple of days, my younger son and I have been trying to cure our nature-deficit disorder. Right now, I’m sitting in bed in a Bishop, California motel that, well, isn’t the Ritz. Matthew, who is 23, is still asleep, and deeply. A few hours ago we staggered across the clumped grass and [...]

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By Richard Louv on March 2nd, 2011

HOW LIBRARIES CAN CONNECT CHILDREN AND ADULTS TO NATURE, AND BUILD SUPPORT FOR LIBRARIES

Can libraries connect children to nature? You bet. “Today, via a library’s outdoor learning space, librarians are participating in the growing movement to connect children with the environment,” write Tracy Delgado-LaStella and Sandra Feinberg in this month’s issue of American Libraries magazine. The excellent piece describes the efforts of Middle Country Public Library in Centereach, New York, which [...]

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By Richard Louv on December 22nd, 2010

JOIN US AS A “FRIEND OF CHILDREN AND NATURE”

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 [...]

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By Richard Louv on October 4th, 2010

GROW OUTSIDE! Keynote Address to the American Academy of Pediatrics National Conference

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 [...]

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By Richard Louv on September 20th, 2010

“HUMMINGBIRD PARENTS”: Seven Actions Parents Can Take To Reduce Risk And Still Get Their Kids Outside

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 [...]

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By Richard Louv on August 20th, 2010

A Tree Grows in South Central

Let me introduce you to a hero of mine. Juan Martinez. He’s also my friend. Last week, I sat down with him at the Children & Nature Network Grassroots Gathering in Princeton, New Jersey and he told me a bit more about his life. Juan, now 26, was raised in South Central Los Angeles, and he grew up [...]

Columns by Richard Louv • Featured Columns • uncategorized

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