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Two other ideas to consider: (1)children's camps that permit electronic devices and take the kids to malls and amusement parks undermine the nature experience that children used to have, and (2)with the advent of portable music plugged in our ears, we don't hear the nature all around us (including in NYC). Yesterday I heard the rat a tat tat of a young woodpecker overhead as I walked my dog in Morningside Park. If I had been listening to electronic music, I would have missed that natural music(and not seen his beautiful black and white plummage).

I work at the Brooklyn Children's Museum and we are in the midst of a $50 million expansion to our building and also we are presenting 4 brand new permanent exhibits.Of the 2 biggest exhibits, one introduces children to all the many different cultures living here in Brooklyn and the other one relates exactly to your topic; the exhibit is an introduction for children to understand, relate and be a part of all the wonderful nature that surrounds us here in brooklyn! The exhibit will recreate actual real natural places in brooklyn like estuaries,beach, tidal basins,etc. and also introduce kids(ages1-1/2 to 12yrs old) to all the animals here as well. The exhibit name is: "Neighborhood Nature" and will open late spring '08 with the other new exhibits. we are in the process of updating our website to have all the current info about the new exhibits (currently it has or former exhibits). I urge you to contact the museum (or me) for me info if you're interested in more info about it!

3 cheers for Nature Network and WNYC

I got rid of our TV (a big flat screen) 3 years ago and we've been enjoying the park (and our lives and community) so much since....

We don't miss it it all...and we can always watch a DVD on a laptop on a rainy day...

A goal of Nature Network is to preserve and restore nature in NYC and bring children there to learn. (www.nature-network.org) While generally praising PlaNYC, the Nature Network board noted that there was no attention to nature in the City, and the Plan even proposed transforming important natural areas into playgrounds and development.
Bill Shore, Executive Secretary

we carry umbrellas when it snows, because we actually walk outdoors when it snows instead of dashing from the car to the doorway. if your out in the snow for more than a couple of minutes you get wet! (try it)

we use our umbrellas mainly going to work or running errands and other city stuff. We have waterproof jackets with hoods just like yours for long rambles in the park.

I am a baby-boomer and I can tell you that I grew up mostly in front of a TV. I didn't really understand or appreciate the outside world until after my college years and I was exposed to vegetable gardens. In my opinion, if you would like to instill in children a proper respect for nature,grow some tomatoes (or whatever) with them!

new yorkers are averse to anything outdoors...they carry umbrellas when it snows!

in response to other posts...
lyme disease can be avoided by checking for ticks after spending time in woods. and raccoons, while sometimes aggressive if they're around food, are nothing to be afraid of. and certainly should not be an excuse to avoid being in nature.

camping and hiking are national pasttimes in germany, france. so are beach holidays.

they have 6 wk vacations there. a 1 wk vaca makes disneyw easier.

those w 6 wk vacas in us often go to eurpean parks and beaches too.

Regarding mothers working: Mother has always worked. Women have always worked. Our son is in his 30's and I worked in a nursing home in Brooklyn. There was a tall red-haired woman who back then in the 1970's said to me..what is all the fuss about mother's and women working?
We always worked!
I always remember this woman!
Working mother's is not excuse for not teaching children abut the world around them..the physical and historical world.
Thank you for this episode. It is a very important one. NYC is full of historical museums and galleries and parks.
Take your children to them!

I have been going to the National Parks for more than 30 years. But one of the factors which you do not mention is the increasing inconvenience of visiting the parks in high season. Frequently, reservations must be made months in advance, lodging and accommodations are difficult to find and sometimes expensive, particularly for a family. All this reached a very high level in the early 90s and I wonder why you don't seem to take this into account when considering the diminished visitorship.

kids should be taught to enjoy nature, nothing is more peaceful

actually, what the current caller is saying, exercise makes him feel better, is based in the fact that this type of sensory input into our body helps release biogenic amines that help neurological processing. google: sensory integration...

then add the nature, light, fresh air, respiration...

= healthy human

There are tons of raccoons in Central Park, that's a fact.

I've found that getting kids involved in a free-form outdoor activity helps a lot.

I've gotten all my boys surfboards, and we hit the beach as often as we can. This gives them both great exercise and an appreciation for the ocean and its wildlife.

WE (middle-aged adults) visited MT Vernon this winter and were told that parents are not bringing their children to national monuments also.
I don't think it is the cost.
Parents are taking their children to amusement parks and shopping instead.
I am not certain if this is statistical or just hear-say.

Has anyone considered the increased awareness and spread of Lyme disease as a disincentive for kids (and adults) to play outside?

Have you correlated the fall in use with the fall in federal funding? I've noticed that the national parks' roads and facilities have been allowed to deteriorate for years.

Also, now that the second baby boom is fading, perhaps there aren't as many families with young children as there were in the 80s. I know my children are grown up, in college and graduate school, and I've grown older, so my occasions for going camping have gone down in the past few years.

Is this another example of a correlation that isn't cause and effect?

One word sums this up for me, parenting; regardless of how much technology comes into this world and over-innundates us, I believe it all comes back to the values instilled in children by their parents.

Does it also correlate with the rise in fees--that is, taxes--to use the national parks?

How about the fact that a shift in dietary habits that (coupled with a more sedentary lifestyle) has led to a rise in obesity? Certainly those who will be weasing after a short walk will be less inclined to go hiking and camping.

There's an excellent book by Richard Louv called "Last Child in the Woods" about the affect of nature deficit disorder on children. It was published a couple of years ago.

The issues isn't just about camping trips and such, but the need for kids to have time and freedom to be out in "nature", even if it's just a city kid poking around in a vacant lot