Going Outside

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Want to change the world? Let your kids go outside and goof around on their own for a while. That is one conclusion to be drawn from a compelling 2007 study in The Journal of Developmental Processes on the phenomenon of “videophilia,” defined as “the new human tendency to focus on sedentary activities involving electronic media.” Statistics persuasively demonstrate that since the 1980s families have begun to spend less vacation time in natural areas, while hours spent indoors and in front of a computer screen continue to rise. The implications of this shift for conservation are troubling.

“Who is going to care about nature ten years down the road if they aren’t experiencing it today?” asks George Somero, Chair of the Land Trust’s Board of Trustees. “Reading the study about videophilia really touched a nerve,” he says. “It really pulled it all together.”

One of the study’s key points is that media sources tend to sensationalize nature, presenting it either as spectacular or, as in the case of the frequent focus on predators dramatically capturing their prey, dangerous. The result is that local natural areas can appear lackluster and uninteresting in contrast, and not meriting efforts at conservation. Depictions of nature being “red in tooth and claw” send the false message that being outside is unsafe.

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“Young peoples’ lives are so mediated,” Somero says. “Even aquariums and zoos, despite their many positive qualities, usually do not allow children the kind of spontaneous, direct contact with nature that has been central to our evolutionary history. Children today, on average, enjoy 30 minutes a week of unstructured time outdoors.” In his four decades of work as a professor and researcher, Somero has noticed many effects of the shift away from “real” reality to “virtual” reality.

“Undergraduates today are lacking in skill sets that once were taken for granted,” he says. “They’re growing up without adequate direct contact with physical objects—how to take things apart, make up a chemical solution, put things together. Skills in social interaction have also suffered: by focusing on video screens and hearing only what’s coming through one’s ear buds, the abilities to communicate and empathize with others are underdeveloped.”

Increasingly, studies are showing that direct contact with nature is associated with improved emotional, psychological and physical health and well-being. Somero encourages parents to explore our many local natural areas with their children. Self-guided and customized hikes on the Land Trust’s beautiful properties offer an ideal way to nurture the kind of direct contact with nature that will ensure a future for conservation. Even a simple stroll or bike ride on the new South Bank Trail may open the senses of young people to the kinds of outdoor pleasures that can’t be found in front of a screen.

“There’s something magical about just walking and exploring,” Somero says. “Being curious about what’s around the bend was—and still is—a clear evolutionary advantage.”

For information on planning your self-guided or customized hike, please contact Amber Sanchez Leon at asleon@bigsurlandtrust.org or 831-625-5523, ext.103.

You can help get kids outside on the land.