Charlotte Observer: Great Smokies on “shaky ground”
His lead:
Having just celebrated its 75th birthday, the Great Smoky Mountains National Park finds its future threatened by wavering public support for America’s green places.
The problem passes from one generation to the next: a chronic lack of financial support in the past, declining visits now and a future shaped by today’s children who are spending far less time in the outdoors.
Another excerpt:
Kids don’t play outdoors – splashing in creeks and chasing fireflies – as they once did, numerous studies and most parents will attest. Increasingly sedentary and overweight, they’re more likely to be mesmerized by a Wii than a salamander.
“Nature-deficit disorder,” author Richard Louv called it in an influential 2005 book. Research has linked lack of unstructured time outdoors to childhood depression, anxiety and behavioral problems.
“If they don’t have those experiences, then we’re worried that it won’t be a priority for future generations to keep natural areas and a clean, healthy environment,” said Lisa Tolley, who heads the N.C. Office of Environmental Education.
Tags: Charlotte Observer, Environment, environmental education, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, kids, Outdoors, smokies, smoky mountains
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