Reconnecting Children with Nature

Tuesday, April 15. 5:00pm-6:30pm. NW Room - Rainier Room.

Description (see attached flyer)

For millennia, children were raised in close contact with the earth. Those connections form deep and abiding roots in the soul. Children who experience nature’s wondrous abundance firsthand are far more likely to grow into nurturing adults. Today there is a groundswell of concern, research, and action regarding “the extinction of experience (with the natural world)” and how the loss of these encounters with nature affect children.

In this workshop we will hear from spiritual leaders and educators about the crucial role the natural world plays in fostering lifelong compassion. Personal storytelling and discussion will provide opportunities to learn and share ways to open the door for children, young people, and adults to nurture and teach us who we are in the great family of life.

Presenter Bios

Bishop Steven Charleston

Bishop Charleston is Dean and President Episcopal Divinity School, Cambridge, Massachusetts, former Bishop of Alaska, member of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma. He is the originator of "The Genesis Covenant," a national initiative for faith communities to halve their greenhouse gas emissions in one decade.

Karen Salsbury

Karen is a naturalist and day program coordinator of Islandwood, a unique 255-acre outdoor learning center on Bainbridge Island that provides learning experiences in a beautiful natural setting. Karen will discuss Nature Deficit Disorder and the ‘No Child Left Inside’ movement. 

Paul Brahce

Paul is director of The Little School in Bellevue, is an independent day school for children ages 3 through 12, located in the South Bridle Trails area of Bellevue/Kirkland. The mission of The Little School is to keep alive each child's natural curiosity and enthusiasm for learning. The school’s 10 acres of forest provide a rich component of the educational experience, offering generous free-play time in the woods and endless opportunities for discovery and learning about the natural world.