Adverse Childhood Experiences & Stress Busters In the past year, the California’s first Surgeon General, Dr. Nadine Burke Harris, announced that the state was adding “access to nature” to its list of seven Stress Busters as published in the Roadmap for Resilience which highlights how Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and toxic stress impact long term
Outdoor Equity Funding & Community Input Needed Click Here to read a more recent update Have you heard about the new California State Parks outdoor equity grant? WYP and many community partners are excited that California has passed legislation to fund outdoor equity. “California is home to over 280 State Parks and millions of acres
Across the country and here on the Central Coast, Latino Conservation Week takes place July 17-25. Latino Conservation Week (LCW) is an initiative of Hispanic Access Foundation (HAF). It was created to support the Latinx community in getting into the outdoors and participating in activities to protect our natural resources and includes events throughout the
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Wilderness Youth Project, the leading nature connection organization in Santa Barbara County, is proud to announce the addition of Lena Moran and Graciela Cabello to the Board of Trustees. With the addition of these two respected leaders, WYP continues its investment in bringing nature connection opportunities to all communities in Santa Barbara County. Operating in regional
Wilderness Youth Project Announces Addition of Trustee’s Lena Moran and Graciela Cabello Read More »
“I just want to be natural,” said Fran, my 53 year-old patient who is battling obesity, diabetes, and generalized anxiety. She didn’t like the idea of putting artificial chemicals in her body, no matter how well-studied or common the medicines. So of course we talked about diet and exercise, good sleep, and avoiding alcohol. “But,”
Do You Want To Be Naturally Healthy? Try Nature. Read More »
As I reflect on Wilderness Youth Project’s 20th anniversary, some of the moments that mark the passing of time are really quite funny in retrospect. A few years ago I was organizing a site visit for a donor. For a lot of nonprofits this is easy: you set up a time, you tell them your
The World is My Classroom Ver en Español It’s a Tuesday morning in September, a handful of days before the autumn equinox, “back-to-school” season. Fourth grader Luisa is exploring “the Pines,” a rocky wonderland along East Camino Cielo, the sky road. The area is made up of exposed rocks and pine trees for climbing and
Santa Barbara could be the epicenter of the movement to reconnect children with nature. At Wilderness Youth Project, a few years back, I happened to be wandering down the trail just far enough back from two seven year-old children to overhear this priceless exchange: Child 1, whispering: “Do you know what they’re doing at Wilderness
Santa Barbara could be the epicenter of the movement to reconnect children with nature Read More »
Why Nature Connection Matters The late Yale Ecologist Dr. Stephen Kellert concluded that “findings in health care, education, work, recreation and community indicate that contact with nature is vital to child development.” Nature, Kellert’s research demonstrated, teaches children to cope and problem-solve. Hear a story Put Simply… Nature connection is the idea that human beings
Hey Kids! Go Outside, Already by Tom Ashbrook American kids today spend only four to seven minutes a day playing outdoors. We hear a new call to raise the “wild child.” In the space of a generation, American children have been largely pulled out of nature. By one study, the average American boy or
