State News
Campaign/Initiative
Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources – July 16, 2008
Pennsylvania’s Outdoor Task Force Submits Report
The Pennsylvania task force created last year to find ways for reconnecting people with nature has submitted to the governor a report outlining its recommendations. The report proposes more than 40 action items, the most notable of which is the establishment of a Governor’s Commission on People and Outdoor Connections. [+]
Campaign/Initiative
(Huntington) Herald-Dispatch – June 01, 2008
Another Statewide Effort to Reconnect Kids with Nature
Ohio joins the ranks of states trying to reconnect children with nature. As part of its summer Explore the Outdoors challenge, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources recently distributed nearly 800,000 activity guides to public school students. The activities described in the guides include fishing and hiking, and students who complete eight or more of these activities before September 1 are eligible for prizes. [+]
Campaign/Initiative
News 14 Carolina – March 06, 2008
North Carolina Zoo Conference Urges Kids to Get Outside
By Ed Scannell
In March 2008, North Carolina Zoo was the site of a conference aimed at promoting outdoor play and reconnecting the state's children with nature. Organizers brought together teachers, health professionals and people from private industry and government; people they believe can help reverse the trend in North Carolina. "The results from this will be children who are healthier, children who can learn better and children who have a much [greater] sense of belonging in the world," said Kathy Bull of the N.C. Zoological Society.
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Campaign/Initiative
(San Luis Obispo) Tribune – March 30, 2008
Putting California’s Outdoor Bill of Rights into Action
By Bob Cuddy
A year after California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed the Children’s Outdoor Bill of Rights, various public and private agencies find themselves trying to incorporate the bill’s principles into their programs for young people. In San Luis Obispo, local park directors and others have been meeting in an effort to ensure that, as the bill states, each child between four and fourteen has an opportunity to explore nature and camp under the stars.
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Campaign/Initiative
Voices – March 29, 2008
Connecticut’s Great Park Pursuit Returns
The Great Park Pursuit, a central element of Connecticut’s No Child Left Inside initiative returns this spring for its third season. The contest takes Connecticut families to seven different state parks and forests over the course of two months, and at each location teams take part in activities such as hiking and fishing. Participating families then become eligible for prizes of outdoor equipment donated by local retailers.
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Event
(Minneapolis) Star Tribune – March 27, 2008
Minnesota Arboretum Hosts Children and Nature Conference
By Heron Marquez Estrada
Spurred by Richard Louv’s Last Child in the Woods, the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum is hosting a one-day conference the first week in April designed to provide participants with ways to increase children’s exposure to nature on a daily basis. Entitled Nature, Children, and Families: A Necessary Connection, the conference is expected to attract more than 200 professionals from around the state.
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Resource
Texas Parks & Wildlife – February 29, 2008
A Texas-Sized Effort to Promote Outdoor Play
By Dyanne Fry Cortez, Wendee Holtcamp, and Bernadette Noll
The March issue of Texas Parks & Wildlife magazine offers a helping hand to anyone interested in connecting children with nature. The cover story—“50 Ways to Get Kids Hooked on the Outdoors”—features suggestions for everything from building butterfly gardens to staging nature treasure hunts. The article also explains some of the benefits experiencing nature can have on childhood development.
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Access
The Pioneer Press – February 17, 2008
Ice Fishing Weekend Hooks Young Minnesotans
By Chris Niskanen
State and local officials in Minnesota are trying to determine how best to respond to a series of studies showing that an increasing number of the state’s young people have little or no interest in the outdoors. The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has taken the lead in trying to reverse this trend. Among its efforts are new mentoring and access programs to recruit young anglers and hunters, including the Take-A-Kid Ice Fishing Weekend in February.
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Campaign/Initiative
South Dakota Game, Fish & Parks
South Dakota Launches No Child Left Inside Campaign
South Dakota’s Game, Fish & Parks division is encouraging children to spend more time outside exploring the natural world through its No Child Left Inside program. The program’s website offers a list of ideas for seasonal outdoor activities, links to other nature resources, and information for groups interested in helping connect children with nature on applying for small No Child Left Inside grants. [+]
Campaign/Initiative
Washington State Parks – January 01, 2008
$1.5 Million Available for Outdoor Youth Programs in Washington
The Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission is encouraging public and private groups dedicated to connecting children with nature to apply for $1.5 million in grants. Participation in the program and support for it are critical to ensure future funds. The deadline for applications is February 27. [+]
Media & Culture | Resource
Rochester Democrat and Chronicle – December 19, 2007
New York Launches Outdoor Magazine for Kids
By Dan Osburn
Fourth-graders in New York State are the target of a new campaign to connect children with nature. As part of the state’s No Child Left Inside program, a magazine has been created that will eventually be distributed free to all of fourth-graders in public schools across the state. The premier issue, published this month, features an article on being a winter wildlife detective and a guide to animal tracks.
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SECTIONS | Event
The Union Leader - New Hampshire – November 09, 2007
New Hampshire takes a leading role in the nationwide effort to reconnect children with nature
By Rob Burbank
The national Children and Nature Network, the Sierra Club and the New Hampshire Children in Nature Initiative brought Richard Louv to New Hampshire on Tuesday, Nov. 27, for the New Hampshire Leave No Child Inside Forum. “New Hampshire is taking a leading role in this nationwide effort to make a difference in the lives of children, families and communities by reconnecting them with nature. From my own work with child health issues, I know how important it is for families to get outside, get moving and learn about the natural world, to lay a foundation for healthy, active lives.” stated New Hampshire First Lady, Dr. Susan Lynch, Honorary Chairperson for the forum.
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Campaign/Initiative
Competitor Magazine – July 06, 2007
Children’s Outdoor Bill of Rights Supported by Governator
This past week (Friday, July 6), Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a proclamation supporting the California Children's Outdoor Bill of Rights which includes ten easy and fun things that every child should have the opportunity to experience between the ages of four and 14, including to: discover California's past, splash in the water, play in a safe place, camp under the stars, explore nature, learn to swim, play on a team, follow a trail, catch a fish and celebrate their heritage.
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Education
(New Jersey) Daily Record – September 01, 2008
New Jersey Parks Commission Reaches Out to Infants
By Meghan Van Dyk
Proving that it’s never too early to start introducing children to nature, the Morris County Parks Commission hosts weekly Baby and Me hikes through different New Jersey parks. Other popular commission programs include the Nature’s Little Explorers series for children two to three years old and Woodland Adventures for children four to six.
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Built Environment | Education
(Greensboro) News & Record – August 23, 2008
North Carolina Zoo to Build Outdoor Classroom
By Jeri Rowe
The North Carolina Zoo will soon begin raising $2.8 million to help create a four-acre classroom for kids, complete with caves, gardens, and a stream. And in another example of North Carolinian efforts to reconnect kids with nature, every family with a child attending Greensboro Montessori School is being given a copy of Last Child in the Woods.
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Campaign/Initiative
Marshall News Messenger – July 06, 2008
Texas Parks Host Seminars for Parents
By Steve Bandy
The Texas Forest Service is launching a seminar series for parents that explores the importance of nature in children’s lives. The three-part Nature Realized: Connecting Your Children to the Land will cover topics such as the physical and emotional benefits of nature for children, the differences between free and structured play, and the dangers, real and perceived, of letting children roam outdoors. “If we can reach the influential adults in a child’s life, we can build a conservation ethic in today’s children and sustain their excitement for the outdoors,” says one organizer.
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Access | Campaign/Initiative
The Oregonian – June 12, 2008
Oregon Looks for Ways to Interest Youth in Fishing
By Catherine Trevison
The number of Oregon teenagers who fish has dropped by nearly half over the last three decades. The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife has been working to reverse this trend, and this year it proposed creating a series of special youth-only fisheries. Not all anglers, though, support the effort.
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Access | Campaign/Initiative
Florida Department of Environmental Protection – June 25, 2008
Florida Pushes Nature Connection with Free Parks
The Florida Department of Environmental Protection has launched a new campaign to reconnect children and families with nature. To promote the effort, the DEP is waiving admission to all 161 Florida state parks on Sunday, July 13. In the words of Florida State Parks Director Mike Bullock, “Establishing a healthy relationship with nature during childhood is a valuable habit that will benefit individuals and society as a whole for years.” [+]
Event
Texas Parks and Wildlife Department
Texas State Parks Host Outdoor Family Workshops
Recognizing that many Texans today lack the camping skills and experience of previous generations, the state’s parks and wildlife department is offering a new series of weekend workshops for families. The workshops, sponsored in part by Toyota, offer a supportive environment where families can learn how to pitch tents, cook outdoors, fish, kayak, and even geocache. [+]
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.
