Island Life Magazine Ltd December 2015 / January 2016 | Page 74

COUNTRY LIFE

Photo: Megan identifying fungi by HIWWT

Every child wild
W

hen asked to recall our
fondest memories, 90 per
cent of our best childhood
memories take place outdoors. We at
Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust
help many local children discover and
learn outdoors, welcoming over 12,000
children a year to outdoor events.
However this represents a fraction of the
206,000 school age children across the
two counties.
Those that we help get to visit, enjoy
and value nature in ways that many
other children don’t get to. So much has
changed in recent decades and today,
only 10% of children play in natural
areas and 64% play outside less than
once a week.
Nature is not only good for the health
and mental wellbeing of children but
also essential for the future protection
of our natural environment. Children
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www.visitilife.com

By Alison Fowler, Head of
Education & Engagement at
Hampshire & Isle of Wight
Wildlife Trust
in the UK are losing touch with nature
at an alarming rate. We’re concerned
that young people’s disconnection with
nature could mean that there is no one
to care for it in the future. Sir David
Attenborough summarises the issue
saying “no one will protect what they
don’t care about; and no one will care
about what they have never experienced”.
Now more than ever, we need to inspire
young people to cherish the natural
environment and appreciate the value
it brings to all our lives. Putting more
children in touch with wildlife so that
they care for it now and in the future is
the only way to secure the long-term

Ropewalking at Forest School by Lianne de Mllo