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New Mexico
"Outdoor experiences help children develop healthy bodies and minds. Kids need more 'green time' and less 'screen time' in order to gain a sense of ownership and responsibility for their natural environment."
-- Diane D. Denish, Lieutenant Governor of New Mexico
Factsheets
A Community Investment in our Future
Most of us can recall fond memories of growing up in the great outdoors. The Land of Enchantment offers unique opportunities to experience the wonders of nature firsthand: in the forest, atop a mountain or along a river. Regrettably, though, children today are staying inside, watching more television, playing more video games and eating more junk food than ever before. This change in our relationship with nature has profound implications for the mental, physical and spiritual health of future generations. New Mexico can, and should, lead the way to a different future with programs and legislation that reconnect children with the outdoors.
Building Bridges to the Outdoors is committed to ensuring that local communities throughout New Mexico are empowered to connect children with nature. We work with a wide range of partners including environmental educators, community-based organizations, Latino and Native American advocacy groups, faith-based communities, health organizations, state agencies and outdoor recreation groups. It is our long-term commitment to give every child in New Mexico an outdoor experience by:
- Promoting the positive benefits of outdoor experiences on children's academic achievement, especially in science and math.
- Working with a diverse set of coalition partners to showcase that outdoor experiences are critical in helping children acquire leadership skills, gain respect for themselves and the environment, and develop positive relationships with their peers and community members.
- Encouraging healthier and more active lifestyles by connecting children with the outdoors.
- Engaging public officials to provide sustainable funding for outdoor education and recreation programs.
- Providing young people with leadership and campaign skills through Environmental Leadership Trainings with the Sierra Student Coalition, in order to go back to their communities and create positive social change.
Recent studies have shown that young people, especially minorities and underserved youth, who participate in outdoor educational programs, improve their academic performance, develop leadership skills, gain respect for themselves and the environment, and develop positive relationships with their peers and community members.
What you can do:
- Organize a family outdoor outing.
- Take a walk through a local park.
- Enjoy a backyard picnic.
- Contact a decision-maker in your community and let them know that getting kids outside is an important issue to you.
- Get an organization you are involved with, your city council, and your county commission to endorse the "Resolution Supporting Leaving No New Mexico Child Inside." and join the growing statewide Coalition.
- Subscribe to our e-mail listserv and receive updates, news and action alerts.
Connecting children with nature is a community investment for all of us. By working together we will leave no New Mexico child inside.
Featured Partner: Sandia Mountain Natural History Center (SMNHC)
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Sandia Mountain Natural History Center (SMNHC) has partnered with the Sierra Club's Building Bridges to the Outdoors Project in an effort to get more New Mexico students in the outdoors. The Sierra Club has provided the SMNHC with a grant that not only supports our 2008 Outreach program but also gives students throughout New Mexico a chance to experience an outdoor area near where they live. The Sandia Mountain Natural History Center's goal is to get at least 2500 students into the outdoors through its Ecology Field Programs. So far, the SMNHC is well on its way towards that goal with over 1800 students either already served or scheduled to be served with this fun innovative program.
By the end of the school year, SMNHC staff will have traveled thousands of miles covering the farthest reaches of New Mexico, from Roswell to Raton and Silver City to Chama. The beauty and ecological diversity of New Mexico is a special gift that the Sandia Mountain Natural History Center and the Sierra Club hope all New Mexico students will get the chance to enjoy. The Ecology Field Program takes elementary aged students into an ecosystem near their school and introduces them to the interconnectedness of nature through a vast array of hands on activities. The program consists of a brief introduction to ecosystems, a 2.5 hour nature hike, a picnic lunch and an in depth discovery activity.
The SMNHC is run through a unique partnership between the Albuquerque Public School System (APS) and the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science. APS owns the 40 year old, 128 acre facility and the Natural History Museum runs all of the programming. This partnership gives almost 11,000 students a year a memorable educational, outdoor experience. With the generous support of organizations, such as the Sierra Club, the SMNHC will bring that experience to over 13,000 people this year.
More Partners:
Rivers & Birds (Arroyo Seco, NM)
Rocky Mountain Youth Corps (Taos, NM)
Sandia Mountain Natural History Center (Albuquerque, NM)
Santa Fe Mountain Center (Santa Fe, NM)
Wind River Ranch Foundation (Watrous, NM)
For more information, contact:
Kristina Ortez, Associate Regional Representative
505.273.7767, kristina.ortez@sierraclub.org