(www.weainfo.org) 2009 will be the 22nd annual National Conference on Outdoor Leadership hosted by the Wilderness Education Association.  The WEA is proud to co-host the event this year with the Professional Ropes Course Association.  The first National Conference on Outdoor Leadership was held in 1988 in Saranac Lake, NY.  . Since that time the conference has found its home in over 15 diverse locations across the country.  This event creates a unique opportunity for furthered education through the use of workshops and presentations, as well as a chance for networking with other outdoor organizations and leaders. The 2009 Conference on Outdoor Leadership will be held in Bloomington, Indiana- home of the WEA National Office.  Click here to find out more information about the conference.

“Get ’em Outside” is a five-minute video celebrating the value of environmental education and is popular on YouTube. The No Child Left Inside (NCLI) Coalition encourages you to embed the video on your organization’s website or provide a link to the video.  Click here to view the video. To find out more information about No Child Left Inside go to: (www.cbf.org)

Posted By: James Moss (www.snewsnet.com)

DR. BETTY VAN DER SMISSEN
For well over fifty years Dr. Betty van der Smissen has dedicated her professional life to excellence in research and programming in the out-of-doors and to the professional organizations related to outdoors.

Selected Aspects:

• Her early experiences in outdoor programming were with church camps. She was an early member of Christian Camping International.
• She was the first research chair on the American Camp Association (ACA) national board and served as president. She conducted research on the ACA camp standards that resulted in the first major revision.
• She worked with the American Association for Health Physical Education & Dance (AAHPERD) outdoor programs beginning with the Council on Outdoor Education.
• She attended the second meeting, in St. Louis, of what became the Association for Experiential Education (AEE) and served on the original bylaws committee and assisted in the development of its accreditation program.
• Her university leadership with outdoor programs has helped shape the development of outdoor research and programming.
  • The first director of the outdoor field campus at the University of Iowa where she conducted outdoor education programs.
  • Worked with the Stone Valley Outdoor Education Center at Penn State and conducted two national symposia on outdoor research and evaluation.
  • Directed over100 theses and dissertations related to outdoor topics.
  • Worked closely with a Japanese doctoral student who became the national leader for outdoor education in Japan.
• Dr. van der Smissen’s dedication to encouraging and supporting outdoor research has resulted in defining career paths for many professionals and enhanced programs and experiences for untold numbers of individuals.

To continue Dr. van der Smissen’s support of and to further research related to outdoor benefits, the AEE created an endowment the:

VAN DER SMISSEN RESEARCH ENDOWMENT
THE VAN DER SMISSEN
RESEARCH ENDOWMENT

Read the rest of this entry »

San Francisco Chronicle

By John Hayes, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

KENNERDELL — Build it and they will come.

That was the idea in 1955 when Maurice K. Goddard was appointed Secretary of the Pennsylvania Bureau of Forests and Waters (forerunner of the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources) and embarked on an unprecedented plan to build a state park within 25 miles of every Pennsylvania resident.

When Mr. Goddard retired in 1979, 45 state parks and over 130,000 acres had been added to the state park system, which now totals 120 outdoor recreational areas and nearly 300,000 acres of property. But Mr. Goddard couldn’t have anticipated the 21st century market saturation of home computers, TV, movies and electronic games, parental fears about sending their kids outside, and the consequences of a generation of Americans who have lost contact with the natural world.

Read the rest of this entry »

(www.newsweek.com) Pine Jog Elementary School in West Palm Beach, Fla., seems more like a green-themed educational resort than a captivating old schoolhouse. The brand-new $30 million facility, built last year to accommodate overflow from area schools, was planned with extreme sustainability in mind: classroom design maximizes fresh air and natural light, solar panels power much of the energy grid and a rainwater filter feeds an expansive student-maintained garden, among several dozen more green features. Even the cafeteria serves only fresh and healthful lunches made from sustainable ingredients. “We really wanted the students to be excited about learning from the moment they walk on campus,” says Fred Barch, the school’s principal.

Read the rest of this entry »

Bridges in Education: Inquiry, Knowledge, Action  

The AEE Annual International Conference is a time for unparalleled professional development and renewal. Join more than 900 experiential educators from around the world in unsurpassed networking, professional development, continuing education, and community building, with workshops, internationally recognized presenters, an exhibit hall, and world class entertainment.

Vancouver, Washington sits on the north bank of the Columbia River directly across from Portland, Oregon. The Pacific Coast is 90 minutes west. The Cascade Mountain Range rises on the east. Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument and Mt. Hood are less than two hours away. The Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area is 30 minutes east.
Note: Portland International Airport (PDX) is only 10 minutes away.

Go to: www.aee.org to register for the conference.

Conference Theme: “Place, Humility, and the Cultivation of Faithfulness”

One need not go far to read disparaging critique of our day and age. Trouble seems to be everywhere, showing up in every possible disconnection. How are we to reawaken our primary commitments and first callings? How are we to return to central to life convictions and take our programs with us? Together we will explore the connections between place and humility, humility and faithfulness, faithfulness and outdoor leadership.

Keynote Speaker: Kevin Sutton, Coldwater Programs
We are thrilled to have Kevin Sutton join us as this year’s keynote speaker. A native of northern Ontario, Kevin has been involved in wilderness ministry for over 20 years in a variety of contexts. He is passionate about the ways that Christians choose to live and work together, the ways in which we develop convictions about this living and working. He has learned the most about these topics through the wilderness classroom, where the harshness and beauty of wilderness blend to create an indelible print on a person’s life - an imprint for faithfulness. Kevin is the founder and director of Coldwater Programs, a non-profit organization that seeks to develop students through cooperative partnerships in experiential learning and outdoor ministry. Kevin, his wife, and four kids currently live in Mt. Vernon, IA. Check out the website for more information on Coldwater Programs.

(www.nwf.org) Americans are spending less time outside than ever before, and it’s contributing to a decreased understanding of and appreciation for the natural world. Studies show that when children have time for unstructured play and interaction with nature, they benefit immensely. It helps increase understanding of their connection to nature, in addition to improved physical, mental and emotional health. The National Wildlife Federation is sponsoring an online petition to Acting U.S. Surgeon General, Dr. Steven Galson, urging him to promote the benefits of daily outdoor play in nature for all children and families. This is part of the ongoing effort to highlight the importance of outdoor activity and recreation and to support the No Child Left Inside Act in Congress. Read and sign the petition.

September 19 - We are pleased to report that environmental education won a major boost today when the U.S. House of Representatives approved the No Child Left Inside Act of 2008. (www.nclicoalition.org)

The bill received bipartisan support and was approved by a vote of 293 to 109. Click to see a map that shows how your local legislator voted. This is only one step in the process, but it is a major one and gives us enormous momentum to keep working to pass the bill in the months ahead. And the vote represents a victory for all of us who care about environmental education. We know from our work on Capitol Hill that we passed this bill because of the grassroots interest and energy of our members across the country. Those calls, visits, emails and letters made an enormous difference. So thank you for everything you and your organizations have done in support of No Child Left Inside! You have turned this Coalition into a powerhouse.

Please take a minute to send an email to thank those members in the House who supported the NCLI Act.