URBAN GROWTH
A PLAYFUL RETURN TO THE GREAT OUTDOORS
When it comes to kids and the great outdoors, it is worse than we had thought. Some discouraging data:
Kids recognize the logos of over 1,000 brands, but they know virtually no native plant species by name, according to a study by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management
Thirty years ago, 7 per cent of kids were classified as obese. Today the number is closer to 17 per cent, according to the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
When mothers and their young daughters were recently introduced to skipping and hopscotch, the moms could skip and hopscotch much better than their offspring, found the U.S. non-profit child activity organization, Come Alive Outside.
The life expectancy of children today is five years shorter than their parents’, according to the New England Journal of Medicine.
We were delighted to learn about Come Alive Outside, an organization with a program designed to get kids out of doors and engaged in unrestricted play. While the idea originated in the state of Vermont, it is led in Canada by Scott Wentworth, a landscape architect in Picton, Ont.
Wentworth is on a mission: “We are attempting to create an environment where kids will experience sustained behavioural change,” he says. He’d like nothing better than to see kids willingly going outdoors and leave their screens and electronics inside.
Green Street Challenge: One public event that demonstrates his commitment to this endeavour for change - and that of a host of volunteers in the “green” profession - is the Green Street Challenge. This year, 13 communities across Canada will take part. In downtown Toronto, Bloor and Yonge Sts. will be paved with living, green grass on Sunday, Aug. 19. A total of 8,000 square feet of sod will be laid out on the lanes normally meant for vehicles. For four hours, it will be car-free, carefree and free for anyone who wants to participate.
Hard to beat that, no? Wentworth explains further: “We will encourage kids and adults alike to play on this living carpet of green. They can throw a ball, do yoga, roll on it, sit and eat a sandwich - whatever you please, as long as you don’t interfere with others enjoying the green experience.”
The “challenge” of this one-day event is to encourage all of us to think of our nongreen space differently. Do we really need all the concrete and asphalt?
Just asking.
Changing behaviour: To help change behaviour permanently, we need ongoing activities that remind us just how lacking we are as a society in nature-engagement.
The founder of Come Alive Outside, Andy Paluch, was inspired by his father’s commitment to the cause. Paluch notes: “Our five principles say it all.”
1. Grow to eat
2. Encourage hands in the soil
3. Outside play
4. To play unplugged
5. To connect kids with nature Through an extensive network of volunteer professionals linked through Landscape Ontario, Wentworth has recently succeeded in having green space projects designed for school yards by engaging the landscape profession in the design and construction.
Wentworth has brought designers together with Grade 3 clients to consult on the outcomes of schoolyard designs. You read that right: a landscape professional sits down with a group of 8- and 9-year-olds to find out what they imagine their green spaces could look like. With that information and vision in hand, the landscaper executes a plan that reflects the youngsters’ wishes.
There is logic in this approach, since most of our outdoor space is engineered for purposes other than play. It is an exercise in thinking about our spaces from the perspective of a child. Much like the way we approach garden design from the perspective of a bird, insect or butterfly to create biodiversity, viewing a place through the eyes of children is the best way to create a space where they feel safe and their creative powers can flourish.
As a generation of adults, we must recommit ourselves to getting kids out of doors - and re-engaged in experiences with nature - to forge a lifetime of healthy habits. To this end, we think that Wentworth and Paluch are on the right track.