Embedded Files
Vision
Nature for New Minnesotans envisions a world where all individuals, regardless of race, class, gender, religion, orientation, or citizen status, have equitable access to the outdoors.
Mission
Mission
Nature for New Minnesotans (NFNM) develops place-based, experiential natural history curriculum for adult English language learners in Minnesota. In partnership with adult English language learning organizations, environmental educators, and Minnesota Master Naturalist volunteers, NFNM's mission is to:
Increase the English language and natural history knowledge of Minnesota for adult EL learners and;
Reduce constraints of access to the outdoors in Minnesota.
What we do
To accomplish our mission, Nature for New Minnesotans collaborates across four key stakeholder groups to create a holistic, wrap-around model that creates student-centered adult EL subject material, strengthens connections between adult EL learners and outdoor spaces, and develops trainings for environmental and language educators that stress diverse ways of understanding and interpreting the natural places of Minnesota.
Natural History Modules
Natural History Modules
Nature for New Minnesotans collaborates directly with English language instructors to develop modules that build English skills through natural history content. Modules contain a balance of speaking, listening, dictating, reading, and writing activities, many of which are inspired by the English Unlocked curriculum. Lessons include both English language and natural history learning goals.
Culminating Experiences
Culminating Experiences
Each module is tied to a culminating experience related to the subject material. Learners paddle on local lakes, go fishing off public piers, camp in regional parks, identify edible and dangerous plants in their neighborhood, and visit the states natural history museum. Culminating experiences connect the classroom to the outside world, providing practical, hands-on opportunities for students to practice English.
Educator Trainings
Educator Trainings
Trainings for Adult English language instructors, environmental educators, and volunteers build effective teaching strategies to incorporate natural history education into adult EL instruction, and also encourage connections between environmental and English language educators to create more welcoming spaces for adult langauge learners in outdoor spaces in Minnesota.
Why it matters
Access to greenspace is a mental, physical, and spiritual benefit and a human right
Access to greenspace is a mental, physical, and spiritual benefit and a human right
'Green' spaces, be they urban parks or wilderness, provide significant mental, physical, and social health benefits. Individuals with more access to the outdoors report increases in physical activity, relief from stress, and connection to natural communities.
In immigrant communities, individuals who have access to natural spaces not only receive the mental and physical benefits of the outdoors, but also report developing a more positive 'sense of place' in their new home.
Positive outdoor experiences have been shown to correlate with increased awareness and use of sustainable environmental practices at the individual and community level.
Access to greenspace is inequitable in Minnesota
Access to greenspace is inequitable in Minnesota
Despite the benefits of access to the outdoors being clearly documented, immigrants and ethnic minority groups participate in outdoor recreation at lower rates than other members of the US population.
Constraints to outdoor spaces range from transportation; perceptions of safety in public parks; language and cultural differences; and time. Each one of these constraints leads to less time spent outdoors, less enjoyment of natural areas, and underappreciation of Minnesota’s natural resources, which in turn leads to less support for conservation, and a diminished sense of place for new immigrant communities.
Few programs exist that educate immigrants about the natural world of their newly adopted home
Few programs exist that educate immigrants about the natural world of their newly adopted home
Despite a growing population of immigrants, refugees, and asylees, there are few natural history programs that exist in Minnesota who work directly with immigrant communities. Adult education classrooms rarely cover natural history concepts, and even fewer discuss the customs and rules for engaging with the states natural resources. This is in spite of the fact that many new Minnesotans have rich environmental experiences from other countries and are eager to learn more about the states natural history. The resultant gap in services exacerbates inequalities of access to the outdoors for immigrants.
Acknowledging these constraints, Nature for New Minnesotans (NFNM) works directly with immigrant communities attending English language classes at community organizations across the Twin Cities Metro area.
In partnership with these organizations, NFNM develops interactive lessons about urban ecosystems for English language classrooms.
Ultimately, NFNM hopes to increase the environmental literacy of immigrant communities in the Twin Cities in a way that empowers their use of outdoor spaces and encourages conversations about increasing equity in the outdoors for all Minnesotans.
Page updated
Report abuse