Resources
This collection of free toolkits, reports, infographics and advocacy tools is designed to help you or your organization connect children, families and communities to nature. Please check back often. We add and update resources regularly!
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This paper reviews research on the relationship between a young person’s nature experiences and subsequent pro-environmental behavior as an adult. A literature search of an academic database is supplemented by discussions with experts in the field.
As preschoolers, my two young boys would hang longingly outside the fence of our neighborhood public school and ask if they could join the pickup soccer game....
The Madison Advisory Council has been crucial to the planning and development of our 2024 Nature Everywhere Conference. Composed of fourteen distinguished leaders from...
GROWING POWER: Urban Roots connects young people with natural spaces, food systems – and one another
"Being in nature - it's a luxury, right?" Paloma Cardoza, a child of immigrants, leveraged her educational background in habitat restoration to work with a major...
Watch the recording of our Babies, Toddlers and Preschoolers in Nature event featuring Alexis Burroughs, Jessica Carrillo Alatorre, and Gabriel Pickus. They discuss benefits of nature engagement for young children, tips on how to prepare for the elements, tangible tools for nature play, whole-child centered learning with nature as the teacher and more!
Women aren’t the only ones leading today’s environmental movement — girls are doing their part, as well. Fourth grader Thaaragai Aarathana has collected 1,000 kg (over 1.1 U.S. tons) of plastic during her dives off the coast of Chennai in India. On her very first dive, she discovered “many beautiful fish — and basically an equal amount of plastic.” So she decided to do something to help. Watch the video to meet Aarathana, her father and the rest of her allies working to clean up marine pollution in their community. DW.
Western Australian nonprofit Nature Play WA works to ensure that children have access to the time and space needed to freely play. In this piece, Nature Play WA CEO Kelsie Prabawa-Sear details the importance of unstructured independent play in the outdoors. Citing academic research on the topic, she notes that many of today’s children are suffering from over-supervision. “If you’re looking for a place to start, I suggest asking the kids what they’d like to do. Ask them what makes them feel free and happy,” she says. West Australian.
Author, ecologist and human-rights journalist Dr. Trish O’Kane found her way to birding and ornithology in an unlikely way: when returning to her home in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, she was struck by the resilience of the birds who’d survived the devastation. Now a senior lecturer in ornithology at the University of Vermont, she pairs her college students who have experience birding with elementary students as “bird buddies,” creating opportunities for community-building across age groups. “One of the main goals of my class is to build a flock,” she explains. Revelator.
This document is intended to provide guidance to City of Austin Parks & Recreation staff, contractors and vendors hired through the City of Austin, and other Partners (Austin ISD and other schools, Non-Profits, etc.) in the design, installation, maintenance, and management of nature play spaces. This document is intended to provide guidance to City of Austin Parks & Recreation staff, contractors and vendors hired through the City of Austin, and other Partners (Austin ISD and other schools, Non-Profits, etc.) in the design, installation, maintenance, and management of nature play spaces.
From virtual reality to the growing recognition of nature connection as a human right, a wide range of societal trends and factors influence the worldwide movement to...
Dudley Edmondson was a young kid when he learned about the power of nature. The writer and photographer experienced a lot of challenges while he was...
Children’s ability to engage with and learn from nature is directly impacted by public policy and funding decisions at all levels of government. Policies and advocacy efforts around the...
The Children & Nature Network strives to support and increase the leadership and diversity of young people benefiting from and contributing to meaningful connections to nature, outdoor...
This article, along with the powerful accompanying video, examines the barriers to winter sports that many Black participants can experience. Organizations like Hoods to Woods and Brown Girl Outdoor World offer supportive communities to help Black, Indigenous and other People of Color enjoy the benefits of outdoor winter recreation. Zeb Powell, the first Black snowboarder to win a gold medal in X Games history, reflects on the movement: “It’s a crazy energy I’ve never seen on the mountain. We are the community. And we can lean on each other to talk about how to grow the sport our way.” ABC News.
A recent review of existing research around the world has found that botanical gardens are the most effective type of green space to mitigate heat during heatwaves — an increasingly common occurrence in today’s global climate. Botanical gardens reduced air temperatures during city heatwaves by an average of 5 degrees Celsius, or 41 degrees Fahrenheit. Wetlands, parks, playgrounds and trees planted along streets also had drastic cooling effects. “By implementing just some of the measures we describe, cities can become more resilient, and their citizens can be healthier and happier too,” explained Prof Prashant Kumar, the lead author of the study. The Guardian.
Late January saw the 12th World Environmental Education Congress in Abu Dhabi, which connects thousands of experts from around the world to share advances in environmental education and education for sustainable development. The International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Commission on Education and Communication held a workshop on Greening School Grounds and Outdoor Learning, with Children & Nature Network staff Jaime Zaplatosch Ehrenberg and Brenda Kessler helping to lead the presentation. IUCN.
Chinese researchers observed fourth-grade students over a semester, during which they participated in weekly activities in a campus garden. The study found that more than 60% of the students had a greater interest in nature after just four months. The garden also helped alleviate their study-related stress. China.org. Read more (Interested in more of the latest research relating to children and nature? Check out our Research Library — with lots of studies coming from China! — and subscribe to our monthly Research Digest.)
In North Carolina, the Woodson Branch Nature School has steadily expanded its programs to include weeklong projects in eco-arts, outdoor regenerative agriculture, outdoor education and forest time. School founder Debbie DeLisle was influenced by Richard Louv’s book “Last Child in the Woods,” and his term “nature-deficit disorder.” “He touched my heart, back in a very important time in my life when my kids were little,” DeLisle said. “They were getting stuck inside too long in front of screens, and it was having a profound effect on the development of the human brain.” Asheville Citizen Times.
Near Yosemite, an art and environmental education camp in Mariposa County, California, draws upon the area’s scenic beauty, abundant riparian species and local Indigenous culture to offer place-based education to TK-6 students. “Our cultural arts are deeply tied to our natural environment,” said Clay Muwin River, a teaching artist at the camp and member of the Northeastern Passamaquoddy and Mi’kmaq nations. Thanks to a collaboration among the local school district, arts council and conservancy, students at the camp make dye from carefully harvested native plants, collect willow stems for basket-weaving and build pottery from clay unearthed from the creek. EdSource.
In this short video, leaders from the Nkwejong Nature Everywhere community team in Lansing, Michigan discuss their participation in the Nature Everywhere Communities initiative. The team plans to expand its network and explore strategies for bringing its programming to scale in Michigan through community mapping, policy advocacy and action planning. The Nkwejong/Lansing team is just one of 19 U.S. communities selected to participate in Nature Everywhere, a roster which includes Sonoma County in California – also featured in a recent local news story of their own. WILX.
On May 28, 2024, hundreds will gather on the shores of Lake Monona for the largest international gathering of children and nature advocates worldwide. The Children &...
A visual design studio and a magazine in Bengaluru, India have joined forces to educate youth on subjects related to nature, climate change and ecological conservation through art workshops. During these sessions, students engage in activities like zine-making, where they explore ecological functions and best practices for engaging with the environment. This approach not only enhances understanding of these concepts but also allows children to practice storytelling and create educational products to share with their peers. Mint Lounge.
Members of Wisconsin’s Ho-Chunk Nation are creating and strengthening a community of environmental stewards through a Master Naturalist program. Run by the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Office of Extension, the 40-hour immersion program integrates Hoocąk language with lessons on sustainability and foraging. Participants learn how to identify native plants and gain insights from tribal members on local restoration efforts, all while emphasizing generational knowledge and Ho-Chunk culture. NPR.
Since its inception in 2012, the Indigenous Youth Mountain Bike Program has helped build relationships, encourage reconciliation and heal intergenerational trauma for thousands of participants across British Columbia. Now, the inspiring documentary “Dirt Relations: The Story of British Columbia’s Indigenous Youth Mountain Bike Program” is highlighting the nonprofit’s three founders. “It gives you a warm feeling to know, this is so much more than just riding a bike,” an alumni of the program reports. You can find the official trailer for the documentary here. North Shore News.
Bring nature inside with Native Plant Party, a new card game created by Central Ohio Naturalist Jared Goodykoontz. Invite different “party animals” into your yard with various native plants from the Eastern US. Planting wild bergamot will swarm your yard with pollinators, while cultivating wasp-friendly plants will earn you a bonus! Make sure to keep the deer and bunnies from eating all your work, and steer clear of pesticide companies! Check out this free, printable version of the card game made exclusively available for the Children & Nature Network.
Across Canada, Black scientists, researchers and environmental advocates are leading initiatives to increase nature connection, protect the environment and fight environmental racism. Though the scope of their work varies, the stories from these advocates are similar in many ways — including the inspiration they draw from each other, the power of mentorship in their work and their shared commitment to building connections that strengthen their communities. The Narwhal.
This Digest provides practice-relevant recommendations for integrating technology and nature to enhance health, well-being, academic succession, and connection to nature.
This resource aims to support a visioning is a process through which community partners develop a vision statement that sets the course for the local children and nature initiative. Through public engagement, the community defines its purpose, core values, and ambitions for the future.
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