Maybe we should all howl less and listen more...

Trenython Manor resort is on course for gold, silver or bronze when the first ‘Wildlife Friendly’ awards are decided at the 2012 Cornwall Tourism Awards.

This fiercely contested category, introduced to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Cornwall Wildlife Trust, had the highest number of entries for this year’s awards. Resort manager Nick Waddington, who takes a strong personal as well as business interest in all green issues and wildlife related activities, is absolutely delighted to…

http://www.dahndesign.com/2012/10/11/the-urban-wild-ish/

With all the great information and curriculum and standards and benchmarks available to us in this technology driven information age, let us not lose sight of the child himself.

British educator Charlotte Mason wrote:

Here we have the right order. That which was born of the spirit, the idea, came first and demanded to confirm and…

I recently went hiking with a friend in the Angeles National Forest.  We manage to get together on the trail about once a month.  Our hikes are a great way to get out into nature – and to catch up, socialize, and solve the world’s problems.  It was a perfect morning and we picked a great trail – a 10 mile out-and-back that promised spectacular vistas, pine forests, mountain geology - postcard quality stuff.

We were well along on our hike when we reached a signpost noting that we were…

So, as I have mentioned in posts on my other blog, my son and I have started this year trying to re-nature our lives. Whether hanging up birdfeeders, saving bits of fruit to feed to the deer in the woods surrounding our home or even increasing the number of plants in our home, we are all IN!

One of the recent efforts that has made me the happiest has been quite simple: I printed out photos of the two of us out in nature and hung them in the common area. Daily, we get to look at these…

Featuring guest artist, student Miranda Andersen!

"A wonderful toolkit for natural teachers everywhere."

-- Richard Louv, author of "The Nature Principle" and "Last Child in the Woods"

"It begs us to get outdoors"…

Fifty years ago to this very day—September 27, 1962—your world-changing book Silent Spring was first published. Though you did not live to see the full revolution that ensued, rest assured that the book’s impact has been immense: the environmental movement, Environmental Protection Agency, banning of various pesticides, Earth Day,  . . . on and on.

It’s not surprising, then, that for most people, the name Rachel Carson still brings to mind an ardent activist bravely…

Tick Troubles

            Repeated experience makes us more comfortable.  Airplane traveling, driving in rush hour on roundabouts, or speaking in front of a crowd can be unnerving experiences at first.  Amazingly, sometimes, they become second nature with exposure and practice.  I never realized until recently however, that an experience I took for granted, that I assumed to be a human birthright, is in fact becoming rare enough to warrant concern.  I am talking about the simple…

In Central Maryland, my featured C&NN video Conservation Kids:   Edventures Inside Green Ridge State Forest is being used on October 2nd to start “Conservation Kids Club” for volunteers ages 12 to 17. 

The information session is being hosted by the Eldersburg Branch Library.  Naturalist Max Bukowitz of Piney Run Nature Center will teach volunteers to mentor local 4th graders about  natural

resources related to our state and the Chesapeake Bay watershed.

One more…

Teaching Kids To Fish now has Proclamation from the City of Ridgecrest, California for National Public Lands Day that says The City Council of the City of Ridgecrest dose hereby proclaim September 29 1012 as National Public Lands Day and call upon the citizens of Ridgecrest, California to recognize and participate in this special observance. Volunteering with Teaching Kids To…

African Cats is a documentary that was released by Disney Nature last year on Earth Day. It is a true story that features two star felines: Mara, a lion cub, and Sita, a cheetah mother of five. Both cats live on the Savannah in Africa.

The film has the dramatic power that comes from…

In his national best selling book “The Tipping Point” author Malcolm Gladwell discusses a few reasons that some products and ideas become huge success stories and others do not. Mr. Gladwell argues that at some point in time "an idea, trend, or social behavior crosses a threshold, tips, and spreads like wildfire."  Successful products or ideas that spread over a wide demographic do so not because of the direct actions of their creators but because they happened to catch the attention of…

Hello Everyone!

I am excited to introduce to you Kids In the Woods Initiative--K.I.W.I. As Founder & Executive Director of K.I.W.I., I hope that we can count on your support!  Please visit our Fundraising Campaign here: http://www.indiegogo.com/KIWI-fund?a=1209704

Kids In the Woods Initiative is a nonprofit organization dedicated to reconnecting children and youth to nature through…

Fall is the perfect season to encourage kids to be outdoors - cooler weather, beautiful leaves and fun ways to observe nature.  We've got 17 Outdoor Activities to enjoy this Autumn to encourage families to spend more time in nature.

As my colleague Aaron walked in from Church the other day, he said “Reverend E lit it up today – you know how she does.”

I never imagined myself being a church goer; for all of my spiritual life, I had been the type of person who chose to worship on my own. And somehow I find myself going to the East Bay Church of Religious Science…

http://www.dahndesign.com/2012/09/11/cosmic-sightseeing-3/