Quote

We are telling our kids that nature is in the past and it probably doesn't count anymore, the future is in electronics, the boogeyman is in the woods, and playing outdoors is probably illicit and possibly illegal.

Richard Louv

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Richard Louv
Age: 75
Born: 1949
Born: January 1
Author
Journalist
Writer
Past
Anymore
Telling
Illicit
Playing
Electronics
Probably
Outdoors
Future
Illegal
Doesn
Count
Nature
Possibly
Kids
Woods

More quotes by Richard Louv

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What if a tree fell in the forest and no one knew it's biological name? Did it exist?
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Nature does not steal time, it amplifies it.
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All spiritual life begins with a sense of wonder, and nature is a window into that wonder.
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If war occurs, that positive adult contact in every shape is needed more than ever. It will be a matter of emotional life and death. There's not a handy one-minute way of talking to your kid about war.
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As one scientist puts it, we can now assume that just as children need good nutrition and adequate sleep, they may very well need contact with nature.
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American family life has never been particularly idyllic. In the nineteenth century, nearly a quarter of all children experienced the death of one of their parents.... Not until the sixties did the chief cause of separation of parents shift from death to divorce.
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Another British study discovered that average eight-year-olds were better able to identify characters from the Japanese card trading game Pokemon than native species in the community where they lived: Pikachu, Metapod, and Wigglytuff were names more familiar to them than otter, beetle, and oak tree.
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How can our kids really understand the moral complexities of being alive if they are not allowed to engage in those complexities outdoors?
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An indoor (or backseat) childhood does reduce some dangers to children but other risks are heightened, including risks to physical and psychological health, risk to children's concept and perception of community, risk to self-confidence and the ability to discern true danger
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Time in nature is not leisure time it's an essential investment in our chidlren's health (and also, by the way, in our own).
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The times I spent with my children in nature are among my most meaningful memories-and I hope theirs.
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If we desire a kinder nation, seeing it through the eyes of children is an eminently sensible endeavor: A city that is pro-child,for example, is also a more humane place for adults.
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Nature introduces children to the idea—to the knowing—that they are not alone in this world, and that realities and dimensions exist alongside their own.
Richard Louv
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Progress does not have to be patented to be worthwhile. Progress can also be measured by our interactions with nature and its preservation. Can we teach children to look at a flower and see all the things it represents: beauty, the health of an ecosystem, and the potential for healing?
Richard Louv
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From 1997 to 2003, there was a decline of 50 percent in the proportion of children nine to twelve who spent time in such outside activities as hiking, walking, fishing, beach play, and gardening, according to a study by Sandra Hofferth at the University of Maryland.
Richard Louv
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Natural playgrounds may decrease bullying.
Richard Louv
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The woods were my Ritalin. Nature calmed me, focused me, and yet excited my senses.
Richard Louv
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Reconnection to the natural world is fundamental to human health, well-being, spirit, and survival.
Richard Louv
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Time spent in nature is the most cost-effective and powerful way to counteract the burnout and sort of depression that we feel when we sit in front of a computer all day.
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What if more and more parents, grandparents and kids around the country band together to create outdoor adventure clubs, family nature networks, family outdoor clubs, or green gyms? What if this approach becomes the norm in every community?
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