Climate Justice for Generation Alpha - Non Profit News - Nonprofit Quarterly

Climate Justice for Generation Alpha - Non Profit News | Nonprofit Quarterly

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From the hunger strikes of the Sunrise movement to Greta Thunberg’s journey by sailboat across the Atlantic Ocean, members of Generation Z have demonstrated their commitment to bold action on climate change and are demanding that older leaders follow suit. But Generation Alpha, comprising children born after 2010 and following Generation Z, is on track to be the generation least connected with nature.

JAMA Pediatrics released a study last year that reported a significant increase in the number of children diagnosed with mental health conditions between 2016 and 2020—with increases, particularly in anxiety and depression. Trust for Learning , an equity-focused philanthropic partnership supporting children’s development from birth to age eight, is working to reconnect children to nature to support their mental health, development, and relationship with the natural world.

The organization’s latest report, Nurturing All Children in Nature, highlights the importance of nature-based learning environments and how this establishes values of environmental stewardship from an early age. The report also highlights how public and private programs around the country are finding innovative and often low-cost ways to achieve these goals.

These formative early years influence whether each of us experiences nature as a distant, abstract concept or as an indispensable part of our own lived reality.

Generation Alpha’s Disconnection from Nature

Members of Generation Alpha are coming of age in an increasingly stressful world. While they may not read the headlines, their early years have been marked by a nation confronting racism and White supremacy, violent challenges to democracy, increased gun violence, an ongoing global pandemic, and widening inequality. Children without quality early childhood programs before COVID-19 may have spent more time out of their usual learning environment since the onset of the pandemic, resulting in disproportionate learning loss. Members of this new generation are true digital natives and will grow up in a world informed by artificial intelligence, virtual reality, and new forms of social media we can’t yet envision.

Although the benefits of nature to young children are so clear, children and families experience profound disparities in their access to safe green spaces near their homes or schools.

Those of us in early childhood philanthropy hear this clear alarm bell for our children’s future and worry it is being ignored by those in broader environmental philanthropy who are understandably focused on policy change related to conservation and climate change. This early warning is an important entry point for joint investment across sectors in nature-based learning environments to ensure that young people have equitable access to nature during their formative years. The benefits of these early investments are many, as time spent in the natural world supports children’s mental health and cognitive development, and forges a foundational appreciation for the earth and the mindset early on that it is worth fighting to sustain it.

Although the benefits of nature to young children are clear, children and families across the country experience profound disparities in their access to safe green spaces near their homes or schools. A 2017 Natural Start Alliance survey showed that of the students enrolled at 121 outdoor-based preschools only 1 percent were Native American, 3 percent were Black, and 7 percent were Hispanic.

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Other barriers, such as budget constraints, educational policies, and inequity in urban planning, come into play here too. As funders invest in climate resilience and try to right the wrongs of past generations, we must acknowledge that this particular harm—this present disconnection of young children from nature—is the result of genocide, displacement, redlining, and other intentional policies and acts that have lasting effects over generations.

Philanthropy’s approach to repairing this harm should therefore be generational and reparative. Despite not being able to see or predict how our investments will take root, philanthropists have the flexibility to make the investments needed to drive policy and practice that will support children in the short term and influence environmental leadership in the long term.

The Benefits of Nature-Based Early Learning Environments

Across income brackets, cultures, and races, outdoor learning environments facilitate joy and development for children of all ages. Nature-based learning on any scale fosters environmental stewardship and can be used by teachers and parents alike to encourage interest outside the classroom.

What if we believed that being in a relationship with nature is a human birthright? How would that change our actions and our philanthropic investments?

Critically, nature-based learning environments help connect children to nature and strengthen relationship building with their adult caregivers and educators. More broadly, nature-based learning also helps reconnect communities to their ecosystems. Relationships are a vital ingredient of ideal learning environments, and time in nature brings us together as we explore, play, and rest.

These formative early years influence whether each of us experiences nature as a distant, abstract concept or as an indispensable part of our own lived reality. For almost all of our history, human beings have evolved and developed intimate relationships with the natural world. It is no surprise, then, that reconnecting with the earth supports us on every level—from cognitive development to socioemotional wellbeing. What if we believed that being in a relationship with nature is a human birthright? How would that change our actions and our philanthropic investments?

Fertile Ground for Philanthropic Support

Fortunately, funders interested in this approach to environmental and climate philanthropy will find fertile ground nationwide to support. Local funders can help by sponsoring field trips or assisting existing programs to increase their bandwidth. Philanthropy can invest in accessible public spaces like community gardens and public playgrounds and support schools to partner with gardens, museums, and aquariums, building on existing community resources. Trust for Learning’s new report spotlights programs around the United States that are expanding access to nature-based learning environments for all children—and all of them need investment to take root, grow, and cross-pollinate.

Trust for Learning takes a national policy approach, advocating for equitable, play-based ideal learning environments that include nature as an essential component for all children in publicly funded programs, from child care to Head Start to public pre-K to elementary school. Public investment in outdoor learning programs is essential at the policy level, and there is growing momentum, with five states introducing legislation to expand these programs in the last five years. This year, Maryland and Oregon were the two newest states to introduce legislation.

Trust for Learning is centering this work on its nine principles of ideal learning—including:

- Decision-making reflects equity
- Knowledge comes from diverse experiences
- Play is an essential aspect of learning
- Children and adults co-learn through relationships

These principles are helping to inform the curriculum of schools and partnerships across the country.

For example, the Montessori American Indian Childcare Center in St. Paul, MN, uses an indigenized, culturally relevant, and holistic approach to its curriculum—including the opportunity to study Dakota/Lakota and Ojibwe languages while learning how to grow Indigenous foods.

The Neighboring Tree Project in New York is a public-private initiative that brings experienced outdoor educators to various schools to run outdoor classrooms, provide site-specific equipment, and follow an interactive, nature-based curriculum. And strong community partnerships have sparked the push for more outdoor learning spaces. In Denver, the Denver Museum of Nature & Science and Denver Parks & Recreation are transforming City Park to create the Nature Play and Waterway Restoration Project, featuring an inclusive layout and multi-sensory exploration to support natural play experiences.

Taking Advantage of Current Momentum

This surge of momentum may be a late-breaking silver lining of the pandemic. As programs scrambled to make learning environments safe and accessible to children and families during the height of COVID-19, those with access to safe, outdoor learning spaces rapidly adapted—turning into outdoor preschools nearly overnight.

Future research will paint the complete picture of how COVID-19 impacted child development. Still, children with a fair amount of privilege may likely already have access to learning environments incorporating nature.

As funders, we would be wise to start investing in our youngest as stewards and champions of the natural world they are inheriting. Not just because we will need their energy and creativity in the long fight for climate justice but because nature heals, restores, and reconnects us across generations.