A return to the land: What my daughter is learning from a childhood in nature
Grace and Pepper enjoying a fresh snowfall (Photo by Elke Meyfarth/NCC staff)
There’s been a lot of buzz in recent years about the importance of giving children the opportunity to connect with nature. I wholeheartedly agree, and I think we need to remember just how important that connection is for ourselves as well....
Makes me wonder: Nature firsts
Students from John Norquay Public School, Nature Days Vancouver (Photo by HSBC Bank Canada)
When it comes to the natural world, there is something remarkable about first times. On the doorstep of discovery is a story taking form, one that eventually settles into memory and becomes part of who we are and how we come to know the places...
Giving children a good night's sleep
Sleeping Children Around the World Canada (Photo courtesy of SCAW)
For many organizations, and here at the Nature Conservancy of Canada (well, until this year, when we changed our year-end by a month), December marks not only calendar year end but also end of Q2 and I bet you know what that means —...
Never too old or young to experience the wonders of nature
Child walking in the woods (Photo by Lisa Grilz)
Some say there’s a special bond between grandparents and grandchildren. Without a doubt, family plays an important role in the nurturing, upbringing and education of children. Through this familial interaction, wisdom and values get passed...
Gone swimming: There may be more behind water's magical allure than we think
Katie Redux (Paiting by Elizabeth Lennie, http://www.elizabethlennie.com)
Water compels me. There’s nothing like the sensations accompanying a dive into the deeps of a fresh water lake, wading out from the ocean’s shore into an unbroken horizon of blue or dunking off the dock’s edge into the dark...
My nature scavenger hunt with Invermere's Little Badgers
Little Badgers show off their scavenger hunt list (Photo by NCC)
Recently my colleague, Michael Curnes, made a presentation during Crazy Hair Day at Harry Anderson Elementary School in Richmond, British Columbia. The students at the school had raised funds for multiple charities, including the Nature...
Ol' Pop reflects on Father's Day and his family's respect for nature
Jeff and Mason Polakoff (Photo courtesy of Jeff Polakoff)
Anyone who knows me knows that my favourite place to be is surrounded by family at our cabin in Lake of the Woods; particularly with my wife Debbie, our daughter Jamie and her partner George, our son Mason and his wife Lindsay and our...
Why should we care about Nature Deficit Disorder?
Looking for wild things at the lake (Photo by Erica Thompson/NCC staff)
I’ve been spending time outdoors for as long as I can remember, but I can’t begin to imagine what this world would be like without nature. As I grew up I began to appreciate how good I had it — living in a great city like...
Of bugs and slugs: Pint-sized citizen scientist discovers a strange blue slug, far from home
Blue-grey taildropper (Photo courtesy of Habitat Acquisition Trust)
My seven-year-old son Malcolm was excited about going on the Slug & Snail Walk at Chase Woods. He loves hiking, and I hadn’t the heart to tell him that there likely wouldn’t be a lot of actual hiking on this field trip. Slugs and...
With deer in cedar: A call to get children back into nature
Looking for wild things at the lake (Photo by Erica Thompson/NCC staff)
To witness a deer in full flight is astounding. It’s particularly impressive when you are standing only a few feet from its flight path. I was walking with friends and their one-year-old son at the back of their farm on the Niagara...
