Monday, November 26, 2007

Bienvenue from the Granite State

Concord, New Hampshire

I am in New Hampshire with the rest of Team BBTO, for the Leave No Child Inside Forum here in Concord http://wildlife.state.nh.us/ChildrenInNature/index.htm. This event has the potential to change the landscape in New Hampshire as a diverse group of professionals ranging from educators to health care professional s and developers have come together to set in motion a course to get every New Hampshire child outside. New Hampshire is well know for leading the country in picking our next president and the potential is here for it to lead the way in giving every child in the Granite State a special place outdoors. I spent my high school years in Dover, New Hampshire on the seacoast and I can vividly remember watching sunsets on the Atlantic Ocean and hiking through Tuckerman's Ravine near Mount Washington, these experiences played a large role in shaping my values. But as New Hampshire has changed from a rural state to an extended suburb of Boston many of those special places have vanished. The beauty of the Leave No Child Inside Forum being held here tomorrow is that not only are local folks including the First Lady Susan Lynch who is the honorary Chairperson of the LNCI campaign here involved but a national figure such as Richard Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods www.cnaturenet.org is here to motivate and get action items in place and moving. Over 220 folks have signed up to be part of the action groups and will look for community based, common sense solutions to helping give children outdoor experiences. These action groups include a discussion on how we can engage health and nutrition professionals in the movement along with a workshop on advocacy and how to set educational standards which will include outdoor curriculums.

There have been two good pieces on the New Hampshire Leave No Child Inside Forum in the past week. One is in the Concord Monitor http://www.concordmonitor.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071125/LIVING03/711250337
and the other is in the Wire a Seacoast weekly http://www.wirenh.com/Features/Cover_Stories/the_great_indoors_200711212587.html
Both of these stories show the diversity of groups and the action that Granite Staters want to take in solving this issue.

My 86 year old Pepere (grandfather) is coming down for the event tommorow from Nashua where he has lived his whole life and as he says so well " If the Red Sox can win two world series in four years, you can get all the youngsters outside"