Deike Peters is Associate Professor and Director of Environmental Studies at Soka University of America. She holds master degrees in urban planning and international affairs from Columbia University and a Ph.D. in urban policy development from Rutgers University. Deike is convinced that any truly great city must have great parks and natural areas nearby that are accessible to all. After moving to Los Angeles from Berlin a decade ago, she very much missed taking her kids to all of the amazing natural playgrounds in her native Germany -- but she has since come to appreciate the many alternative opportunities for outdoor learning that Southern California offers. You can learn more about her academic interests and her research at http://sites.soka.edu/faculty/dpeters/

Growing up in Zurich I was privileged enough to have exposure to adventure playgrounds and overall more unconventional playgrounds then you find here in the U.S. After reading the description of the cluster I knew right away that the relationship between play, nature, and education was something I wanted to explore. Not only because of my childhood exposure to nature/adventure playgrounds but also because of my interest in the relationship between childhood education and environmental consciousness in the later years of one’s life. Overall this learning cluster combined different aspects of interest for me to spark an interest and passion, as well as hope that what we discovered in Sweden and Denmark can carry over beyond the end of learning cluster and hopefully onto the Soka campus.

Hi! I'm a third year student at Soka following my path along the Environmental Studies concentration. I'm always looking for ways to pursue my passions within and beyond Soka's campus. At Soka, I have served as a part of Sustainability Committee (2018-2019) and co-founded the school's only public environmental activist organization, Climate Reality Club in 2018. Outside of Soka, I am in my second-year internship with Earthroots Field School, an Orange County organization founded by Jodi Levine with the aim of reconnecting people with nature through outdoor learning. Through these experiences as both a student and a teacher, I have built a strong faith in the life changing power of education!

​As a human of this planet I try my best to keep environmental consciousness in everything that I do. At its heart, this Learning Cluster was all about keeping the environment in mind as well. It was truly inspiring to experience a culture where the environment is held in such high regard in both the public and governmental realms. Moving forward, it is my greatest hope that this reverence for nature can expand beyond borders as we share with you the adventures of being Moved by Nature.

Hello! I grew up in Hokkaido, which is Northern part of Japan. Where I grew up was full of nature, and I naturally made a special connection with nature growing up. I have been interested in education but never thought about outdoor education or nature education. The more I did research by myself, the more I realized that outdoor education is something that is deeply rooted in me. Also, I strongly believe that there are many similarities between Soka education and outdoor education. For example, the idea of student-centered environment, co-existence with nature and humanity, fostering contributive students for local society and the world, and etc. This learning cluster was perfect for me to gain more knowledge about education system and expand my perspective toward coexistence of nature and humanity.

Hello there! I’m Madeleine Kawanesicayuga, an Oregonian by birth and, as I live in California, in spirit. I think the reason I joined this Learning Cluster (Moved by Nature) and my primary interests in it have morphed overtime since October, when we first began our journey together. I was piqued by the topic of nature schools — that is, the topic of the learning cluster, as proposed several months ago — because of something from my home state (Oregon) called Outdoor School. While the idea itself is great in theory — once in their 6th grade year, kids get to experience the outdoors for a few nights in the academic context and learn more about biology and themselves — it’s inherently flawed in how its funded and supported privately and publicly. Thus, I wanted to learn from those who have perfected the art of outdoor education — that is, Scandinavia. Now, my goal has become to take what I’ve learned from this trip — and that’s certainly been a lot — and see how that has been, or could be, translated into the Oregon context, and how reconnecting children with such a natural place as Oregon has fallen short today, yet could be mended once again.

Hello! Ayekoo! I am Moses Addai, a native of Kumasi, Ghana. As a young kid growing up in Ghana, my grandmother taught me about trees and their uses whenever we went fishing in the lake in my hometown. The trees have a myriad of applications ranging from food to medicine. They are also treated as deities; hence it is a taboo to cut them down. My experience with trees sparked my interest in this learning cluster as I wanted to find out how children in outdoor schools in Northern Europe are educated about the environment. As a student concentrating in Social and Behavioral Sciences with an emphasis on economics, I also wanted to know out how outdoor education impacts children of whom some grow up to become policy makers. After experiencing this form of education first-hand, I have realized that outdoor education ingrains in children a solid love for the environment. And some of these children who grow up to become prominent people and make critical decisions for the country uphold environmental conservation. This gives an idea why Sweden, a developed economy, still has more than 60% of its land as forests.

I am interested in the relationship between environmental studies, urban planning, and economics. When reflecting on my childhood, I find it intriguing how environmental education was emphasized more in the super urbanized city of Houston compared to my hometown of Acapulco, Mexico (which is in the midst of nature). Especially in the rural area my family and I are from, the topics of sustainability and climate change are almost non-existent despite nature flourishing in our backyards. Unfortunately, this translates to pollution, littering, and environmental degradation in the area. Accordingly, I am interested in exploring the outdoor education pedagogy and see how this can be applied in countries in the Global South such as Mexico. I am also interested in the financial aspect of how these forest schools operate and link it to providing more equity for low-income communities regarding access to environmental education. This learning cluster has been enlightening when it came to learning about the empowerment that comes through nature, as well as the relationship between municipalities and nature schools to provide more access to outdoor education and nature for low-income families.

I am from Bend, Oregon concentrating in Environmental Studies. I have many interests, including environmental science, policy, and education. This learning cluster topic was perfect for me because I have been involved extensively in Outdoor School in my home state of Oregon. Outdoor education has had such a profoundly positive impact on my life, both as a young student and a leader in high school, that I wanted to see what it looked like in other parts of the world. This experience really opened my eyes to how outdoor learning can (and should) be incorporated in any environment, from rural to urban. Being from a relatively rural area myself, it was really illuminating to see how green spaces for play and learning had been introduced to big cities. This learning cluster has changed my thinking about a lot of things and encouraged me to keep pursuing questions of how best to educate our youth and address inequalities when it comes to educational opportunities.

Hi friends! Call me Yoyo. I feel like I'm in the minority when I say that I actually didn't grow up in nature like many of my peers. My little sister and I were raised in La Habra- a tiny city in SoCal. After almost two decades of yearning, Nintendo, and fantasy, I'm elated to have finally had the opportunity to embark upon my own real-life adventure full of stories, people, and nature!

I'm passionate about dogs, frogs, bats, bears, and hogs, biology, ecology, storytelling, musical theatre, folk punk, animation, worldbuilding, history, roller derby, D&D, laughter, and magic.

Throughout our studies, I've been curious about how engagement with nature leads to empowerment and expression, and about how a love of nature is reflected in the beliefs- both moral and folkloric- of individuals and societies.

I grew up in a nature-filled town of Tobetsu in Hokkaido, Japan, which has a sister city in Sweden (Leksand). My family and I lived in a village (inside the town) called "Sweden Hills." I was able to attend a recently established forest kindergarten where I would often spend time surrounded by nature, climbing trees, collecting insects and plants, and sometimes interacting with Skogsmulle, an imaginary character famous in Swedish outdoor education. I graduated the outdoor kindergarten and continued into junior high, where I encountered SUA alum Nitesh Sil who had recently founded an English language school in Sapporo, Hokkaido. Becoming a student at his school transformed the way I thought about life, and the encounter with him was an encounter with Soka education. My dream attending Soka University has been to create research that combines my love of nature and Soka education. This dream came true through SUA’s Learning Cluster program, when I co-initiated “Moved by Nature” in Sweden and Denmark. I am grateful for this opportunity, for my friends and professor who supported me so much, and everyone who has given me support and encouragement.

Hi! My name is Celine Fawaz, and I am a first year at Soka University. For as long as I can remember, I have always worked with kids. I have been a babysitter, a taekwondo instructor, and a camp counselor for the past two summers! I honestly feel happiest and most myself when I'm working with children. This is why the Moved By Nature learning cluster was perfect for me, and I enjoyed every minute of it, especially playing with the children at the nature schools. I hope you enjoy my video of our trip!

I was excited to hear about the outdoor education and nature school learning cluster as environmental education is a deeply personal topic to me. I was born in the Philippines but mostly grew up in Joshua Tree, California, right next to the national park. From sunrise and sunset hikes with friends to being able to stargaze in a vast cholla landscape, Joshua Tree National Park became a home to me. I wanted to share that essence of connection and a love for nature, as that love for nature translates to wanting to care for it, and thus into political action. I am deeply inspired by young leaders such as Greta Thunberg and the profound change the youth and education are capable of, as I too am interested in a career in law and policymaking. Sustainability has grown to be a hollow word, and I firmly believe that each and every one of us is in a privileged position to drive that change needed. Researchers, teachers, parents, and policymakers have a responsibility to acknowledge the contribution of young children. What better way to study the topic than from countries with rich histories of outdoor education where people believe in valuing children’s voices and their enthusiasm for action?

Hi, my name is Saanika, and I am from Virginia. Growing up, I distinctly remember spending as much time as I could outside with my brothers and friends. We would ride our bikes all over the neighborhood, making up adventures, and basking in the summer sun from morning till the street lights came on in the evening. As I got older, I forgot how much I loved being outside. Cramming for exams and tests distracted me from how schools were slowly taking away more and more of our outdoor time. In my senior year, I had the opportunity to do research on how schools in America are lacking an incorporation of nature into education at the expense of student health. My dream is to become a doctor, and seeing how nature could be our next step in preventative care was intriguing. Getting the opportunity to learn about outdoor education and nature schools was perfect as I could better understand pediatric health issues prevalent in the US, like obesity, learning disability, anxiety, and depression, and how nature is alleviating them. Also, I am an avid photographer, and I had an amazing time photographing the interactions and experiences we had with educators in Sweden and Denmark. Enjoy!!