Passport to Texas

Nature Rocks Texas

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In 2009, the Texas Children and Nature program developed a website called Nature Rocks Texas.

10-It’s kind of a one-stop-shopping for families to find all of the nature centers, the zoos, the parks and green spaces that are near them, where they can take their families to get outdoors.

Jennifer Bristol coordinates the Texas Children and Nature program. Parents can use to site to find nearby scheduled nature-based activities for the family to
enjoy, or to the perfect spot to get outdoors and play.

21-Sometimes people think nature is a faraway place; it’s something that have you have to kind of really plan to go do, and spend a whole afternoon driving somewhere to have these larger experiences. We want people to know that nature is in their community. It’s nearby them. It’s in their neighborhood. It’s around the corner. And you don’t have to go far to find it.

Jennifer says before you think Nature Rocks Texas only focuses on Texas state parks and events organized by Texas parks and Wildlife–think again.

10-We also have our city parks, county parks, national parks, national wildlife refuges, nature centers. You name it; if there’s a nature component to it, it is listed on there.

Jennifer Bristol returns next time to tell us how technology isn’t the enemy to the outdoors as once believed.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

Families enjoying the outdoors together at Enchanted Rock State Natural Area.

Prescription for Nature Deficit Disorder Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

A generation ago, we noticed the beginning of what would become a decline in children’s contact with nature. Since the publication of Richard Louv’s book, Last Child in the Woods, in 2005, unlikely partners have joined forces to ensure future generations have a relationship with the outdoors.

13-People who usually don’t want to be in the same room will show up–and even get to the same table. Conservatives, liberals, developers, conservationists, pediatricians, educators… Nobody wants to be in that last generation.

Louv coined a phrase to describe this estrangement: Nature Deficit Disorder.

13- Parents felt it. Kids even felt it. Teachers certainly saw it happening. But, we really didn’t know what to call it. So Nature
Deficit Disorder is a phrase that is familiar enough to be memorable, and people know it when they see it.

Research reveals time spent outdoors makes children and adults happier, healthier and smarter. Nature is good medicine.

25-There are many pediatricians that are beginning to actually prescribe nature’or write a recommendation for it. There’s a pediatrician, Robert Zarr, in Washington DC, that’s organized pediatricians throughout the Nation’s Capital, and they’ve even done a database of the urban parks in DC, so that when the pediatricians write their prescriptions for nature, they can tell that family exactly which park that they can go to. Those kinds of things are happening all over the country.

Find ways to engage the outdoors on the Texas Parks and Wildlife website.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

Is Nature Deficit Disorder a Real Thing? Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

When journalist, Richard Louv, coined the phrase, Nature Deficit Disorder in his book Last Child in the Woods, he intended it to be “tongue-in-cheek. But it struck a nerve.

04-It has entered the language since then. Actually, several languages.

Louv was the keynote speaker at the annual Children in Nature Conference in in April.

21- To show you what I know about marketing, I argued with the publisher on whether that should be in the subtitle. But as I thought about it, I thought we’re not going to have a big conversation about this issue without that kind of approach. So, it’s not a known medical diagnosis; maybe it should be. It is, though, a metaphor for what we’ve known was going on for a long time.

What was going on for a long time was estrangement of youth from the natural world.

10-The activities that kids considered important–nature was sliding on that scale very quickly, and that started about 30-35
years ago. At an accelerating pace.

Since Last Child in the Woods publication in 2005, the Children in Nature movement has grown around it.

19-If children have less and less experience with nature, who will be the future stewards of the earth. Yes, there will always be environmentalists and conservationists, but increasingly–if we’re not careful–they will be carrying nature in their briefcases and not in their hearts. And that’s a very different relationship, and I don’t think it’s sustainable.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

Fishing: Gateway to outdoor obsession.

Health: Benefits of Time Spent in Nature Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

With more than a million acres of public parks and wild spaces in Texas, opportunities to get outside abound, and so do the health benefits of being active outdoors.

Adult men and women should carve out at least 30 minutes a day for some kind of physical activity. For children, that time grows to a full hour. Regular body-moving, heart-pumping movement builds muscle and develops balance and flexibility – among other benefits.

From daytime and guided night hikes, to star gazing, bike and equestrian trails, bird watching, to swimming, rock climbing, paddling, and geocaching – state and local parks offer a chance to get outside no matter your interest or ability. Your imagination is really the only
thing standing between you and what you can do outdoors.

Of course, you can always go to the gym to log your 30 minutes of activity a day, but when nature is your fitness center your workouts will all seem like play. Side stepping puddles, leaping up rocks, and traversing up and down hills exercise your balance and stability in
addition to the cardiovascular system…not to mention what being in the wide open spaces breathing fresh air can do for your peace of mind.

The outdoor alternative is also more affordable than the gym, as many state parks offer low-cost admission. So go ahead and get out, because life’s better outside. Find a park or scenic trail near you at texasstateparks.org.

That’s our show for today… Funding provided in part by Ram Trucks. Guts. Glory. Ram.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

Wise little owl.

Wildlife | Event: Learning from Owls Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Owls symbolize wisdom – and we can learn much from them when pick their… pellets.

09— It’s more dignified than digging through poo because you’ll be digging through vomit.

Amy Kocurek and I have different ideas about what’s dignified, but this interpretive ranger at Martin Dies Jr. State Park, in East TX does know how to keep visitors engaged.

10—The kids especially, they love it. Little furry, tin foiled wrapped up presents, that they get to unwrap and see what sort of mysterious surprises await inside.

Wrapped in foil? Yes, because you can order them online.

11— Most of them are from barn owls that people will collect from in their barns where owls just hack up these pellets; they’ll collect them and sanitize them and sell them for teachers, mostly.

Whether pellets are fresh or sanitized for your protection, those small, furry capsules have secrets to reveal.

33— Because it contains these almost perfectly preserved pieces of bones and beaks and different things the owl ate, researchers can see what their main food source is in the area that they’re living, if that food source is changing seasonally…. But also, if you’re doing population studies on small mammals, that will allow you to see how many different types of mammals are being eaten by owls. So, it can give you an all-round general idea of the population of animals in that ecosystem.

Dissect owl pellets with Amy Kocurek April 11at Martin Dies Jr. SP; details on the calendar at texasstateparks.org.

The Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration program supports our series.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.