GET OUTSIDE
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"I throw back my head, and, feeling free as the wind, breathe in the fresh mountain air. Although I am heavy-hearted, my spirits are rising. To walk in nature is always good medicine."
-Jean Craighead George, On the Far Side of the Mountain
“Ask nature questions, and you will get answers.”
- Jean Craighead George, Frightful's Mountain
Do It.
We hope we have inspired you to go outdoors, familiarize with your local plants and animals surroundings, and maybe look at some things differently.
The Natural World
The Peace of Wild Things:
When despair for the world grows in me
and I wake in the night at the least sound
in fear of what my life and my children’s lives may be,
I go and lie down where the wood drake
rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.
I come into the peace of wild things
who do not tax their lives with forethought
of grief. I come into the presence of still water.
And I feel above me the day-blind stars
waiting with their light. For a time
I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.
-Wendell Berry
Nurtured by Nature
“Fortunately, the sun has a wonderfully glorious habit of rising every morning. When the sky lightened, when the birds awoke, I knew I would never again see anything so splendid as the round red sun coming up over the earth.”
-Jean Craighead George, My Side of the Mountain
From a stroll through a city park to a day spent hiking in the wilderness, exposure to nature has been linked to a host of benefits, including improved attention, lower stress, better mood, reduced risk of psychiatric disorders and even upticks in empathy and cooperation. Most research so far has focused on green spaces such as parks and forests, and researchers are now also beginning to study the benefits of blue spaces, places with river and ocean views. But nature comes in all shapes and sizes, and psychological research is still fine-tuning our understanding of its potential benefits. In the process, scientists are charting a course for policymakers and the public to better tap into the healing powers of Mother Nature.
Key points:
Key points:
Spending time in nature is linked to both cognitive benefits and improvements in mood, mental health and emotional well-being.
Feeling connected to nature can produce similar benefits to well-being, regardless of how much time one spends outdoors.
Both green spaces and blue spaces (aquatic environments) produce well-being benefits. More remote and biodiverse spaces may be particularly helpful, though even urban parks and trees can lead to positive outcomes.
Natural Craft and things...
Non-toxic art supplies are just a step into your backyard. Natural materials—leaves, berries, bark, moss—are transformed into rich pigmented colors that are gentle enough for little hands. Be encouraged to explore outside, gather things, and concoct experiments with what you find.
Conservation
Children are still in love with the wonders of nature, and I am, too. So I write them stories in hopes that they will want to protect all the beautiful creatures and places.
-Jean Craighead George
The most obvious reason for conservation is to protect wildlife and promote biodiversity. Protecting wildlife and preserving it for future generations also means that the animals we love don't become a distant memory. And we can maintain a healthy and functional ecosystem.
You. Can. Make. A. Difference.
YOU can make a difference.
No person is too small to have an effect on the world around them. There is data to suggest that young people are taking the initiative to address climate change, from volunteering with organizations to donating to environmental initiatives. They must be encouraged to actively contribute to the current climate action framework and help build a green future.
Activists and advocates
ad·vo·cate
noun
/ˈadvəkət/
a person who publicly supports or recommends a particular cause or policy.
"he was an untiring advocate of economic reform"
verb
/ˈadvəˌkāt/
publicly recommend or support.
"they advocated an ethical foreign policy"
Advocacy is about influencing people and policies to bring about change. It is about influencing those in power to act more fairly. It is also about raising awareness of an issue by telling the public about a situation – the problem and the potential solution – so that they are encouraged to take action.
Greta Thunberg, Youth Activist
Greta Thunberg is a 16-year-old climate activist from Sweden. In August 2018, she became known around the world for starting a schools strike for climate outside the Swedish parliament. She demanded that the government reduce carbon emissions in accordance with the Paris Agreement, and she protested by sitting outside parliament every day during school hours. Within months, she had addressed the UN Climate Change Conference and had spoken at the World Economic Forum at Davos.
David Attenborough, Natural Historian
David Attenborough is a renowned English broadcaster, natural historian and environmental advocate. His programs highlight the impact of human society on the natural world. His documentary series Blue Planet II prompted a surge in public interest in plastic recycling and was considered a catalyst for the Environmental Audit Committee’s creation of ‘Plastic bottles: Turning back the Plastic Tide,’ a report on plastic litter. He has been hugely influential in a range of campaigns such as the World Wildlife Fund’s push to create a protected area in Borneo’s rainforest.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. US Congresswoman
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is an American politician and activist. In January 2019, she became the youngest ever US congresswoman, and in her short political career she has already made waves with her progressive platform and social media clout. She is the lead advocate for the Green New Deal, a proposed set of economic stimulus programs to address climate change and economic inequality, under which the US would transform its infrastructure with a rapid shift to clean energy.
Autumn Peltier, Clean Water Activist
Autumn Peltier, Clean Water Activist
Autumn Peltier is a thirteen year old activist from Manitoulin Island in Canada. In 2018, on World Water Day, she addressed the UN General Assembly demanding action to protect the environment and stop water pollution, as part of the launch of the International Decade for Action on Water for Sustainable Development. Prior to her speech, she had already established herself as a renowned advocate of safe drinking water for Indigenous communities. She attended the 2015 Children's Climate Conference in Sweden and was nominated for the 2017 Children’s International Peace Prize.
Jane Goodall, Conservationist
Dr. Jane Goodall was born on April 3rd, 1934, in London, England. At the young age of 26, she followed her passion for animals and Africa to Gombe, Tanzania, where she began her landmark study of chimpanzees in the wild, immersing herself in their habitat as a neighbor rather than a distant observer. Her discovery in 1960 that chimpanzees make and use tools rocked the scientific world and redefined the relationship between humans and animals.
In 1977, she established the Jane Goodall Institute (JGI) to advance her work around the world and for generations to come.
Haven Coleman, Isra Hirsi, Alexandria Villasenor
Haven Coleman, Isra Hirsi, Alexandria Villasenor
Co-Founders of the US Youth Climate Strike
Co-Founders of the US Youth Climate Strike
Haven Coleman, Isra Hirsi, Alexandria Villaseñor are youth climate activists responsible for organizing School Strike 4 Climate in the US, a youth walkout movement for climate change. The girls, all under the age of 17, skip school to participate in daily climate strikes to bring awareness to the movement. Tens of thousands of kids are expected to participate in School Strike 4 Climate, which will take place on March 15, 2021 and has the backing of some of the world’s biggest environmental groups. They are demanding that nations commit to cutting fossil fuels in half in the next ten years.
Conservation is hugely important. Don't think that just because you're young you can't help or affect change. Read here about more youth activists who are committed to making the world a better place.
https://unity.edu/hybrid-learning/16-young-environmentalists-changing-the-world/
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