Every child needs nature. Not just the ones with parents who appreciate nature. Not only those of a certain economic class or culture or set of abilities. Every child. If a child never sees the stars, never has meaningful encounters with other species, never experiences the richness of nature, what happens to that child? In [...]
I was raised in the deserts and high country of the American Southwest. An only child, I spent hours and hours on my own, or with friends, including my cousins, exploring arroyos, climbing trees, and experiencing the sense of being at home that comes from being connected to the place where you live. Some of [...]
“A movement moves.” — Rev. Gerald L. Durley All of us involved with the Children & Nature Network recognize the challenges ahead, the miles to go, the promises and deadlines to keep. But for the children and nature movement, 2011 has been a banner year. Here are a few of the achievements accomplished during the [...]
During the first week of November, members of the American Society of Landscape Architects and their colleagues from around the country – over 5,000 strong – met at the San Diego Convention Center. Saving the world was somewhere on the agenda. Could they be the group with the most influence on human habitat in the future, [...]
Despite some signs of progress, the impact of recession on public access to the natural world is a reality, and it could get worse. Take California, for instance. In coming months, as many as 70 parks, many of them in or near urban areas will close, according to California State Parks Director Ruth Coleman. This, she [...]
Want Your Kids to Get Into Harvard? Tell ‘em To Go Outside. I once met an instructor who trains young people to become the pilots of cruise ships. He described the two kinds of students he encounters. One kind grew up mainly indoors, spending hours playing video games and working on computers. These students are [...]
“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 [...]
Our Family just returned from an amazing trip to Europe. The trip marked our daughter Amelie’s fifth and sixth countries visited (Italy and France) before her first 15 months on planet earth. We know she may not be happy about that when she hits the adolescent years and we may not be able to take [...]
“We gain life by looking at life.” Those are the words of Dr. Mardie Townsend, a researcher and associate professor in the School of Health and Social Development at Deakin University in Victoria, Australia, and an important thinker about the importance of the natural world to human development. She added, in an interview with the [...]
“Vitamin N” and the American Academy of Pediatrics
A walk in the woods, climbing a tree or patiently watching a fish rise to a dry fly will not solve everything, but it could go a long way to bring things into a more positive, hopeful perspective. Richard Louv’s “Vitamin N” (the health benefits of time spent in nature) should find its place in [...]