We spent the majority of Day 8- which we had affectionately dubbed “Big Thursday”- with Danish architect Helle Nebelong. Nebelong is a pioneer in designing adventure playgrounds, and is dedicated to bringing nature into Denmark’s bustling capital city, Copenhagen.

The first stop of the day was Murergaarden. Murergaarden is situated at the center of several apartment complexes. The current version of this large nature playground for this daycare was designed by Nebelong, and is open for members of the neighboring community. Nebelong explained that the playground used be zoned off with three distinct zones or fences. When she redesigned someone else's playground 20 years ago, one of the first things to come down was the fence.

Architect Helle and Director Bodil gave us a tour of the facility. Unlike many playgrounds we see in the US, this playground is more rugged and natural than sterile and geometric. By challenging children to be aware of the unevenness of their environment, they develop better motor skills. Bodil explained that when the children first saw the newly remodeled playground, they were overwhelmed and could not decide how they wanted to play with their strange new setup, but quickly fell in love with and conquered the design.

The Nature Playground in Valbyparken is one of many staffed parks. We were fortunate enough to have spent the afternoon with park expert Mikkel Nodentoft. Over cowboy coffee brewed over the fire, Nodentoft emphasized the importance of staffed parks, and discussed the continuous struggle between nature educators and pedagogues in the field, vs the politicians trying to cut funding. Nature playgrounds mean a lot for the children who spend more time at the parks and around the neighborhood than at their homes.

During our session, we learned of a strategy focused on getting children outdoors through school. More children are enrolled in a school than the school has enough buildings to support. This system ensures that a select portion of the children are always away pursuing some sort of outdoor education activity.

Strolling along Valbyparken's 1km long road that passes through the center of the park reveals seventeen small gardens. Opened in the year 2000, The Children's Millennium Garden is one of seventeen gardens. Nebelong brought this idea to life, which was originally created by a group of local third graders in a contest. They designed the entire garden by themselves, and wanted it to be a romantic place where people and their partners can take walks.