http://www.cnaturenet.org/news/ Movement News & Commentary en Children and Nature Network Copyright 2008 2008-12-01T03:09:00-08:00 http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/idaho_fish_and_game_announces_new_outdoor_campaign/ http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/idaho_fish_and_game_announces_new_outdoor_campaign/ Idaho Fish and Game, inspired by Richard Louv’s Last Child in the Woods, is starting a new campaign to address children’s current physical, mental, and emotional disconnect from the natural world. Idaho Fish and Game plans to officially launch the Be Outside campaign in January with community events, backyard activities, and a list of outdoor activities on the agency’s website. 2008-12-01T02:09:00-08:00 http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/bbc_children_playing_outside_laugh_more/ http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/bbc_children_playing_outside_laugh_more/ A study by a BBC child psychologist has found that the more children play outside away from TV and computers, the more they laugh. According to the author of the study, Dr. Tessa Livingstone, the children who played most laughed up to 20 times as much as the children who played less. 2008-12-01T02:07:00-08:00 http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/new_jersey_legislators_vote_for_recess_task_force/ http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/new_jersey_legislators_vote_for_recess_task_force/ The New Jersey state assembly voted overwhelmingly in favor of a bill that seeks to establish a task force to study the social and health benefits of student recess and to develop recommendations on whether to make recess mandatory in all New Jersey school districts. If the bill becomes law, the new task force will examine current research, programs, and initiatives related to the physical, social, emotional, and intellectual benefits achieved by young students as a result of participation in school recess. 2008-12-01T02:03:01-08:00 http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/sports_illustrated_americans_becoming_indoor_people/ http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/sports_illustrated_americans_becoming_indoor_people/ An article in the latest issue of Sports Illustrated magazine examining the decline in hunting in North America attributes the phenomenon in part to Americans, especially young Americans, becoming an “indoor people.” In the words of one expert quoted in the article, “What we're seeing among young people is, in a phrase, nature-deficit disorder. People are growing disconnected from the outdoors.” 2008-11-24T01:14:00-08:00 http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/visits_to_national_forests_declining/ http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/visits_to_national_forests_declining/ New figures from the federal government show a steep decline in the number of people visiting national forests over the last few years. Total forest visits dropped from 204.8 million in 2004 to 178.6 million in 2007, a 13 percent decline. The drop was most dramatic in the Northwest, where visits fell by 27 percent. 2008-11-24T01:12:00-08:00 http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/children_and_nature_forum_coming_to_british_columbia/ http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/children_and_nature_forum_coming_to_british_columbia/ The Children & Nature Network is co-sponsoring Get Outside! It’s in Our Nature, an international conference on children, families, and nature taking place next March in British Columbia. The forum will offer an opportunity for academics, educators, researchers, and youth to learn, share, and contribute to developing a strategy and action plan for British Columbia and its people. International, Event 2008-11-24T01:10:00-08:00 http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/study_finds_access_to_nature_increases_longevity/ http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/study_finds_access_to_nature_increases_longevity/ Researchers in the UK have found that living near parks and woodland boosts health, regardless of a person’s social class. It’s the first time anyone has systematically shown that the health gap between rich and poor can be decreased with the help of green spaces. The researchers hope their findings will influence planning authorities to consider making green spaces available on grounds of health and well-being. 2008-11-24T01:07:01-08:00 http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/students_push_for_new_school_playground/ http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/students_push_for_new_school_playground/ Students at Peter Woodbury Elementary School in New Hampshire are raising funds to build new outdoor play areas at their school. The students hope to raise $150,000 for grounds that will combine a traditional play structure, a natural landscape with trees, a functioning garden, and an outdoor classroom. Staff at the school was inspired to design a playground that would give children more interaction with the outdoors in a natural landscape after reading Richard Louv’s book Last Child in the Woods. 2008-11-17T16:24:00-08:00 http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/rehab_center_builds_mountain_nature_trail/ http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/rehab_center_builds_mountain_nature_trail/ In an effort to make nature more accessible to all, New Hampshire’s Crotched Mountain rehabilitation center is building a four-mile trail along the side of the mountain on which its facility rests. The trail will offer wheelchair-bound students at the Crotched Mountain school an opportunity to experience nature up close. The first one-mile stage of the trail is scheduled to be completed next spring. 2008-11-17T16:19:00-08:00 http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/outdoor_bill_of_rights_unveiled_at_chicago_event/ http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/outdoor_bill_of_rights_unveiled_at_chicago_event/ Children should have the right to camp under the stars, play in the mud, climb a tree, and plant flowers, according to a new Children’s Outdoor Bill of Rights announced at the Chicago Wilderness Congress. Part of a larger No Child Left Inside initiative aimed at creating a culture in which children are encouraged to connect with nature, the proclamation is similar to one endorsed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger of California in July 2007. 2008-11-17T16:13:00-08:00 http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/bike_group_introduces_gateway_trails/ http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/bike_group_introduces_gateway_trails/ The International Mountain Biking Association is launching a new initiative to build what it calls "gateway trails" to broaden the recreational options available to families in urban and suburban communities. The IMBA hopes the new trail systems will “inspire kids to explore the natural world and lead to positive associations with exercise.” International, Access, Campaign/Initiative 2008-11-10T00:06:00-08:00 http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/louv_to_address_national_trails_symposium/ http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/louv_to_address_national_trails_symposium/ The 19th National Trails Symposium will feature a keynote address by Richard Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods. The event, which will be taking place in Arkansas starting November 15, is a biennial conference hosted by American Trails, a nonprofit that works to protect America’s network of interconnected trails. The theme this year is “Innovative Trails: Transforming the American Way of Life.” 2008-11-10T00:04:00-08:00 http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/uk_parents_our_children_are_overscheduled/ http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/uk_parents_our_children_are_overscheduled/ A parenting survey of more than 2,000 British families has found that children’s play there is too structured and that children don’t have enough time to play by themselves. The survey, conducted by Persil’s Free Play Initiative, revealed that 71 per cent of respondents admitted that they always plan their children’s play and entertainment activities, rather than letting their children make up games such as “climbing trees, making mud pies, or simply having an imaginary friend.” International, Media & Culture 2008-11-03T15:51:01-08:00 http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/researchers_link_green_spaces_to_childrens_health/ http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/researchers_link_green_spaces_to_childrens_health/ A new study of nearly 4,000 inner-city children reveals that living in areas with green space has a long-term positive impact on children’s weight and, by consequence, their health. Researchers found that higher neighborhood greenness is associated with slower increases in body mass over a two-year period, regardless of population density. 2008-11-03T15:50:00-08:00 http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/wisconsin_mom_inspired_to_start_outdoor_club/ http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/wisconsin_mom_inspired_to_start_outdoor_club/ A Minnesota mother of two, inspired by Last Child in the Woods, has started an informal outdoor club for families called Happy Trails to get more families outdoors. Each free event features a short hike, some unstructured play, and a bonfire. The club is loosely based on a similar club in Virginia called the Kids in the Valley, Adventuring. SECTIONS 2008-11-03T15:43:00-08:00 http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/us_environmental_protection_agency_video_explores_the_value_of_urban_wetlan/ http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/us_environmental_protection_agency_video_explores_the_value_of_urban_wetlan/ Get the Flash Player to see this video. var so = new SWFObject('http://www.childrenandnature.org/mediaplayer/player.swf','mpl','403','248','9'); so.addParam('allowscriptaccess','always'); so.addParam('allowfullscreen','true'); so.addParam('flashvars','&file=http://www.childrenandnature.org/uploads/wetlands_wonder.flv&image=http://www.childrenandnature.org/uploads/wetlands_wonder_preview.jpg&fullscreen=true'); so.write('player'); The film focuses on urban and suburban wetlands as valuable resources to be restored, protected, and enjoyed. These places, often the only remnants of the natural world in developed areas, can play a key role in connecting people to nearby nature—thereby improving the health of our children and our communities. National, Access, Resource 2008-10-29T00:42:00-08:00 http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/pioneering_teacher_wins_national_award_for_work/ http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/pioneering_teacher_wins_national_award_for_work/ The National Environmental Education Foundation recently presented Illinois high-school teacher Gary Swick with the second annual Bartlett Award for his ongoing efforts to interest students in the environment. Those efforts include a regional workshop every year to help other teachers learn how to incorporate environmental education across their curriculum. 2008-10-27T15:54:00-08:00 http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/acadia_park_chief_promoting_leave_no_child_inside/ http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/acadia_park_chief_promoting_leave_no_child_inside/ The superintendent of Acadia National Park, Sheridan Steele, will speak to Department of Interior employees on the compelling health, economic, and social reasons the park service and society in general should ensure that no child is left inside. Steele also recently addressed the issue at Maine Governor John Baldacci’s Conference on Youth and the Natural World. 2008-10-27T15:52:01-08:00 http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/sf_chronicle_fighting_nature_deficit_disorder/ http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/sf_chronicle_fighting_nature_deficit_disorder/ The key to connecting children with nature, writes the San Francisco Chronicle’s Tom Stienstra, is obliging school districts to put outdoor instruction into the elementary school curriculum. And doing so, he insists, will not require additional funding. “With a vast network of volunteers already available to serve, outdoors education can be provided at elementary schools throughout California.” 2008-10-27T15:48:00-08:00 http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/memphis_groups_focus_on_getting_kids_outside/ http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/memphis_groups_focus_on_getting_kids_outside/ The Conservation Through Art initiative in Memphis is hosting the series of events October 19-25 that share the mission of getting more kids outside to experience nature. A family day with fishing, art activities, outdoor conservation and recreation games, and duck-calling lessons is part of the festivities, and Richard Louv will be in Memphis to deliver the keynote address. Conservation Through Art was started three years ago by ArtsMemphis and Ducks Unlimited. Local, Event 2008-10-20T16:33:00-08:00 http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/study_nature_walks_help_kids_concentrate/ http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/study_nature_walks_help_kids_concentrate/ In a small but tightly controlled recent study, researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign found that a nature walk worked as well or better than a dose of medication on a child’s ability to concentrate. The participants—seventeen children with ADHD—were able to focus better after a walking in parks than they were after walking in residential neighborhoods or downtown areas. National, Health, Resource 2008-10-20T15:29:01-08:00 http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/earth_science_week_leads_kids_outdoors/ http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/earth_science_week_leads_kids_outdoors/ The American Geological Institute is boosting the effort to connect kids with nature by centering its Earth Science Week efforts this year on the theme of No Child Left Inside. Through local, national, and international events, as well as contests and even a special “toolkit” for educators, the AGI hopes to encourage young people to learn about the geosciences by getting away from the television, off the computer, and out of doors. Earth Science Week 2008 takes place October 12-18. 2008-10-16T16:21:00-08:00 http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/kids_need_much_more_vitamin_d_doctors_say/ http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/kids_need_much_more_vitamin_d_doctors_say/ The nation’s leading pediatrician group says children should get double the usually recommended amount of vitamin D because of evidence that it may help prevent serious diseases. Sunlight is widely considered the best source of vitamin D; the body produces it naturally when sunshine hits the skin. 2008-10-14T18:10:00-08:00 http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/canadian_report_sounds_alarm_on_kids/ http://www.childrenandnature.org/news/detail/canadian_report_sounds_alarm_on_kids/ The nonprofit Active Healthy Kids Canada estimates that 90 percent of Canadian children are not meeting the current physical activity guidelines set for them. Even more surprising to some observers, the nonprofit says that a major reason children are not active is that they have forgotten how to play—that parents, and society in general, don’t encourage free play. International, Health 2008-10-06T17:03:00-08:00