House Approves No Child Left Inside Act
Sierra Club – September 18, 2008
Today the U.S. House of Representatives voted to expand and improve the opportunities for children and adolescents to learn about and experience the natural world. Hands-on outdoor environmental education offers an opportunity to improve academic performance in our schools and provides a solution for reversing the trends of childhood obesity and "nature deficit disorder" that are afflicting a generation.
"Today’s vote signifies a new national commitment to youth and the environment. Right now children are spending their days inside and their evenings and weekends plugged into electronic media," says Carl Pope, Executive Director of the Sierra Club. "They are missing out on the daily childhood joy of playing outside that their parents’ took for granted just twenty years ago."
Research shows that when children spend time outdoors, they are more physically active, engage in more creative forms of play and are better focused. Environmental education contributes to significant improvements in academic performance and motivation to learn. It also leads to student gains in problem-solving skills, conflict resolution abilities, and self-esteem. Opportunities for youth to get outdoors to exercise, play and experience their natural world are critical to help prevent obesity, alleviate symptoms of attention deficit disorders and address other related health problems.
The No Child Left Inside Act of 2008, HR 3036
The No Child Left Inside Act of 2008, sponsored by John P. Sarbanes (D-MD) along with sixty-four co-sponsors, would support local and statewide efforts to expand and improve environmental education for K-12 public schools. This legislation would provide needed support to States to develop scientifically sound curriculum, train teachers, and ensure students are environmentally literate upon high school graduation.
"Today’s youth will be asked to tackle severe environmental challenges as adults, yet American children are not being provided with the foundation needed to address these challenges," says Pope. "Environmental education today will provide the foundation necessary for tomorrow’s workforce to effectively address real world environmental challenges."
This site contains copyrighted material. Click here for more information on C&NN's Fair Use Policy. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.
C&NN has designated April "Children & Nature Awareness Month." As part of this effort, we invited network members (like you) to list their April programs and share their strategies for building public awareness. Find out what's happening in your community on the C&NN Movement Map.
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:
An annotated bibliography of 20 premier studies focusing on the children and nature connection.
