Last Child in the Woods Author Richard Louv Coming to Upper Valley

SCA Part of Nonprofit Coalition Sponsoring May 30 Presentation
Hanover, NH. (April 28, 2006) – "I like to play indoors better 'cause that's where all the electrical outlets are," reports a fourth grader. Is there a direct link between the lack of nature in the lives of today's youthful wired generation and disturbing childhood trends, such as obesity, depression, and attention deficit disorder? And will today’s children be prepared to steward our natural resources as adults?

These are questions addressed by Richard Louv, noted child advocate and author of Last Child in the Woods: Saving our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder –“an absolute must-read for parents,” according to the Boston Globe. Louv will speak about the effects of alienation from nature on children, families, and communities on Tuesday, May 30, at 7 p.m., in Filene Auditorium, Moore Hall, Dartmouth College. The event is free and open to the public.

The presentation is cosponsored by the Upper Valley Land Trust, the Student Conservation Association, Vital Communities, the Upper Valley Trails Alliance and the Dartmouth Environmental Studies Program in recognition of the Land Trust’s 20^th anniversary, National Trails Day, and the sponsor organizations’ mutual mission of connecting people with the outdoors.

The statistics behind today’s disconnection with nature are staggering. When they were children, 70 percent of today’s American mothers played outside. Today, only 31 percent of their children play outside. According to Louv, there’s no doubt our connection with the world around us is strained, but the reason children have migrated away from discovering the outdoors is due to more than simply the exploding popularity of indoor pursuits like television, videogames and the Internet. Hands down, he says, the biggest factor keeping kids inside is fear—fear of traffic, crime, and strangers, and of nature itself—even in a rural area like the Upper Valley.

Louv, a columnist for the San Diego Union-Tribune, has written for national publications, including the New York Times, the Washington Post, and the Christian Science Monitor, and has appeared on Good Morning America, Today, and NPR's Fresh Air and Talk of the Nation. He is the author of seven books about family, nature, and community.

“Nature deficit disorder is not a medical condition,” Louv writes. “It is a description of the human costs of alienation from nature. This alienation damages children and shapes adults, families and communities. There are solutions, though, and they’re right in our own backyards.”

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