C&NN Home | (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) | Sponsors | Partners
RSS Feed GO Children & Nature Network Archive About C&NN Who We Are Join the Network

Top Stories


Media & Culture | Resource

Popularity of Camping Rises as Economy Falters

San Francisco Chronicle – January 25, 2009

In the current tough economic times, outdoor pursuits like camping will become more popular as families search for cheaper recreation options. The San Francisco Chronicle’s Tom Stienstra examines the prospects this year for camping, hiking, biking, wildlife watching, and backpacking in the Bay Area and beyond.

Taking Play Seriously

Taking Play Seriously

The New York Times – February 17, 2008

On a drizzly Tuesday night in late January, 200 people came out to hear a psychiatrist talk rhapsodically about play — not just the intense, joyous play of children, but play for all people, at all ages, at all times. (All species too; the lecture featured touching photos of a polar bear and a husky engaging playfully at a snowy outpost in northern Canada.) Stuart Brown, president of the National Institute for Play, was speaking at the New York Public Library’s main branch on 42nd Street. He created the institute in 1996, after more than 20 years of psychiatric practice and research persuaded him of the dangerous long-term consequences of play deprivation. In a sold-out talk at the library, he and Krista Tippett, host of the public-radio program ‘‘Speaking of Faith,’’ discussed the biological and spiritual underpinnings of play. Brown called play part of the ‘‘developmental sequencing of becoming a human primate. If you look at what produces learning and memory and well-being, play is as fundamental as any other aspect of life, including sleep and dreams.’’

Resource

52-page special edition of Fish & Wildlife News dedicated to children and nature

USFWS news
Download Now (4M)

The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, a leader in the children and nature movement, has formed a Children and Nature Working Group to identify ways to inform communities about the benefits of “nature play,” which is good for both children and adults. A recently published special edition of Fish & Wildlife News is a wonderful resource; it offers an in-depth report on what USFWS employees, from coast to coast, are doing to reconnect children with nature.

"Connecting people with nature should not be just another box to check off on a performance plan," writes Director Dale Hall in the introduction. "It should be something we want to do, something that is a part of us."

Download the Fish & Wildlife News Special Edition (4M)

Campaign/Initiative

Take a Child Outside Week Starts September 24

North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences – September 10, 2009

Access

Housing Complex Bans Unsupervised Outdoor Play

(Boulder County) Daily Camera – August 03, 2009

Education | Health | Resource

Fact Sheet Summarizes Benefits of Gardening for Children

Children, Youth and Environments Center for Research and Design – July 28, 2009

Event

Charles Stresses Children and Nature at Texas Summit

National League of Cities – May 27, 2009

Education

Outdoor Preschools Gain Notice in UK

Sunday Times (London) – April 26, 2009

Health

New York Times: The Case for Natural Happiness

New York Times – April 15, 2009

Legislation/Policy

Quinn Reverses Blago Decision, Reopens Seven State Parks

WREX - Rockford Illinois – February 26, 2009

Access

A Call for More Open Spaces for Kids in India

LiveMint – December 11, 2008

Media & Culture | Leadership

BassPro Video Game Trade-in; 15% off to Get Kids Out

Top Stories

Nature Essential for the Brain, Scientists Report

For the first time in history, the majority of the world’s people live in cities.… [+]

American Public Health Association features a front page article on the movement

The October Issue of The Nation’s Health, The official newspaper of the American Public Health… [+]

How children lost the right to roam in four generations

Report warns that the mental health of 21st-century children is at risk because they are… [+]

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) says free and unstructured play is healthy and essential

This report offers guidelines on how pediatricians can advocate for children by helping families, school… [+] [PDF]

Kids Picking TV Over Trees

The Nature Conservancy-funded study reveals more evidence of a growing trend; children spending more time… [+]

We’re mapping the Children & Nature movement.

NEW - Nature Clubs for Families Tool Kit

image
Download the Tool Kit [>]
The Tool Kit includes a Quick Start Guide with simple instructions on how to start a local Nature Club for Families.

C&NN Publications

As part of our ongoing efforts to build the movement, the Children & Nature Network has published two new resources for leaders, organizers, and participants at the local, national, and international levels:
Children and Nature 2009: A Report on the Movement to Reconnect Children to the Natural World
[>] Download PDF [1.1MB]
C&NN Community Action Guide: Building the Children & Nature Movement from the Ground Up
[>] Download PDF [1.4MB]