International News
Research & Studies | Health
Reuters Life – January 07, 2010
“Nature Starvation” Worries British Royal Society
By Paul Casciato
The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, Europe's largest wildlife conservation charity, says it has uncovered a worrying trend of "nature starvation" among young Britons. The society surveyed 1,000 people, and found that only a third of those under 35 feel connected to the natural world, compared with more than half of those over 35.
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Media & Culture | Resource
Times of London – July 14, 2009
Louv Introduces British Readers to Children and Nature Movement
By Richard Louv
In a lengthy article for the Times of London, Richard Louv introduces readers of the paper, as well as those of its affiliates across the globe, to the children and nature movement and summarizes some of the recent efforts within the UK and elsewhere to raise awareness of nature-deficit disorder. These include the just-released survey of 3,000 British parents by the National Trust, last year’s Report to Natural England on Childhood and Nature, and a BBC Wildlife Magazine survey that found many children in the UK cannot identify common species like bluebells and frogs. Louv’s article coincides with the British publication of his Last Child in the Woods this month.
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Resource
Daily Telegraph – June 21, 2009
Publication of Book Raises Awareness of Nature Deficit in UK
By Julia Llewelyn Smith
The UK publication of Richard Louv’s Last Child in the Woods is helping to raise awareness of nature-deficit disorder there. Scheduled to appear on shelves July 1, the book has already prompted at least one journalist to predict that it will increase the pressure that parents feel to give their children more access to nature.
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Education
Sunday Times (London) – April 26, 2009
Outdoor Preschools Gain Notice in UK
By Lucy Denyer
The Sunday Times of London recently reported on the Farley Outdoor Learning nursery in Wiltshire, one of a handful of preschools springing up in the UK that emphasize getting children outdoors. The report describes parents who send their children to the school as part of a “global movement of people who are starting to realize that keeping children cooped up indoors all day simply isn’t healthy.”
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Access
LiveMint – December 11, 2008
A Call for More Open Spaces for Kids in India
By Himanshu Burte
In a recent article, the architect and writer Himanshu Burte laments the lack of public spaces in India where children can play. “Our cities are expanding, filling up, going higher, and digging down,” he notes. “But have we left our kids behind in the rush?”
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Media & Culture | Campaign/Initiative
Persil – July 18, 2008
Persil Promotes Free Play in UK Campaign
Persil, a well-known maker of laundry detergents in the UK, is touting the benefits of unstructured outdoor play in a new national campaign aimed at parents. The company surveyed mothers, a majority of whom agreed that society had lost sight of the importance of play in a child’s learning process. The “every child has the right” campaign includes a television commercial in which a robot becomes a boy when it ventures outdoors and a website with tips to help families make free play a priority once again.
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Feature | Campaign/Initiative
The Irish Times – August 17, 2010
Recently in Ireland: Wild Child Day
By Sheila Wayman
Ireland's Wild Child Day drew children into the bogs and forests.
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Press Release | Regional Updates
– August 04, 2010
Nature Deficit Disorder inspires Wild Kids Cornwall Club
UK's Bosinver Farm Cottages inspired by Nature Deficit Issue to launch nature club. [+] [PDF]
Health
The Globe and Mail – July 23, 2010
Attack of the giant hogweed? Hogwash.
By Tralee Pearce
Dramatic stories about run-ins with this plant’s toxic sap have parents running scared, but all that’s needed is a little common sense.
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Access | Campaign/Initiative | Legislation/Policy
Herald Scotland – June 29, 2010
Helping Kids to Play Outdoors
By Vicki Allan
Scotland's Children & Nature movement is gaining support from government, parents and schools.
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Regional Updates | Research & Studies | Health
– May 17, 2010
Active Healthy Kids Canada Releases Report
Active Healthy Kids Canada has released its report card on physical activity for children and youth.
Feature | Media & Culture
– June 01, 2010
New Paperback Edition of Last Child in the Woods Published in UK
A new paperback edition of Richard Louv's New York Times bestseller, Last Child in the Woods was recently published in the UK. [+]
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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:
