Now, More Than Ever, We Need Nature

Now, My Tree-climbing Days Long Behind Me, I Often Think About The Lasting Value Of Those Early, Deliciously Idle Days. I Have Come To Appreciate The Long View Afforded By Those Treetops. The Woods Were My Ritalin. Nature Calmed Me, Focused Me, And Yet Excited My Senses.

As The Nature Deficit Grows, Another Emerging Body Of Scientific Evidence Indicates That Direct Exposure To Nature Is Essential For Physical And Emotional Health. For Example, New Studies Suggest That Exposure To Nature May Reduce The Symptoms Of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (adhd), And That It Can Improve All Children's Cognitive Abilities And Resistance To Negative Stresses And Depression.

There's A Generation Now That Didn't Grow Up In Nature. Some Of These Adults Are Parents And They Know That Nature Is Good For Their Kids But They Don't Know Where To Start.

Reconnection To The Natural World Is Fundamental To Human Health, Well-being, Spirit, And Survival.

In Every Bio-region, One Of The Most Urgent Tasks Is To Rebuild The Community Of Naturalists - So Radically Depleted In Recent Years, As Young People Have Spent Less Time In Nature, And Higher Education Has Placed Less Value On Such Disciplines As Zoology……the Times Are Right For The Return Of The Amateur, Twenty-first-century, Citizen Naturalist. To Be A Citizen Naturalist Is To Take Personal Action, To Both Protect And Participate In Nature.