International News
Media & Culture | Campaign/Initiative
Canwest News Service – August 10, 2008
Canada Launches “Get Out” TV Campaign
By Misty Harris
In an effort to combat nature-deficit disorder in children, Canada’s popular Hinterland Who’s Who television spots will soon feature a new message for kids and their parents. “The message is just to get out and see wildlife. It’s all around us,” says the Hinterland Who’s Who program manager. “We’re trying to get people to understand that it’s not that complicated.”
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Media & Culture | Resource
YouTube – December 06, 2007
Film Captures Last Children in the Woods
By Enting Films
A sobering short film from the Netherlands shows noted environmentalist and author Thomas van Slobbe on the trail of an endangered species: children playing outdoors. Shot in the style of a traditional nature documentary, this darkly comic piece imagines a not-too-distant future when children never venture outdoors. The film can be viewed in its entirety on YouTube.
Health
Sunday Herald – December 02, 2007
Children in Scotland Not So Different from Their US Counterparts
By Kate Smith
Scottish society, like ours, has become more urbanized and sedentary, and encouraging children to explore nature and the outdoors, according to journalist Kate Smith, will be necessary if the Scottish want to assure that their young are “happier, healthier, and more savvy.”
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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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Education
Ross-shire Journal – June 05, 2008
Free Play Gets a Boost in Scotland
Advocates for unstructured play are celebrating the opening of a new play area in the Scottish Highlands. Funded in part by the local government, the play area, which is part of a primary school, was designed to encourage children to use their imaginations. In addition to a set of extra-large dominoes, an obstacle course that children can build themselves, and a special area for water play, there is a quiet area where children can sit on oversized outdoor cushions surrounded by flower and vegetable tubs. [+]
Campaign/Initiative
24dash.com – January 15, 2008
Children’s Nature Week in England
By Sheila Murray
Further evidence of the children and nature movement’s international reach can be found in southeastern England, where the Three Rivers Local Council is organizing activities for Children’s Nature Week. Now in its fourth year, the event will be held February 11-15 and include a guided wildlife tour and outdoor arts and crafts.
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Health
Daily News & Analysis, Mumbai – October 24, 2007
Do not starve the children of nature
By Leonie Maistre
According to writer Leonie Maistre, children in India are losing their ability to appreciate nature. Maistre observed her pupils during a recent nature-park outing, and clearly sees the link between daily bombardments of commercialism and a declining sense of imagination in the children. There's no longer room in their lives for animals, calm and silence.
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Access | Resource
Vancouver Free Press – September 20, 2007
A dose of nature is good for body and soul
By Jack Christie
British Columbia offers two unique resources for combatting nature-deficit disorder. The recently opened Brae Island that provides a safe place for family camping in an urban environment, and pediatrician Joseph Lin's Green Club, which brings a natural dose of prevention to the Asian-Canadian community.
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Resource
Get to Know – February 01, 2007
Attention Young Writers and Painters
Wildlife artist Robert Bateman’s "Get to Know" Contest aims to encourage young Canadians to spend more time outdoors.
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.
