In 2005, author Richard Louv wrote a book entitled, Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature Deficit Disorder. The book was so popular that it was updated, expanded and reprinted in 2008.

Louv’s book sheds light on a situation that won’t come as a surprise to most parents: Modern society has created a drastic disconnect between young people and nature.

Its obvious why this disconnect has occurred. Today's kids have too much homework, too many after school activities and too many electronic playthings keeping them inside. Too much negative news has instilled sometimes-unrealistic fears in both parents and children: fear of traffic, fear of crime, fear of strangers and even of nature itself. And rapid development is quickly eating up many of the parks and other really fun places to play.

For whatever reason, kids just aren’t playing outside much anymore — not even in their own backyards.

Louv’s title would lead you to believe that this is causing a health problem for modern children. And he does, in fact, touch on many of the “mental, physical and spiritual health” aspects that this deficit creates including loneliness, depression, high rates of obesity, and the onset of one-time adult conditions such as diabetes and a shortened life expectancy. On the other hand, he states, research shows that exposure to nature helps reduce the symptoms of hyperactivity and attention deficit disorder, while improving memory, concentration and grades.

But perhaps the most important aspect of this “nature deficit” is the one that should have made it to the cover of the book. Correcting the problem isn’t just necessary for the health of our children. It is necessary for the health of the entire planet.

If kids don't go outside, how are they going to learn to respect the planet? Ten or fifteen years from now, those kids are going to be making the decisions about parks and public gardens and university horticulture programs. They are going to be creating the land clearing ordinances and voting on whether to fund endangered land programs. And most of them will think of trees as nothing more than messy things that drop leaves all over their front yards and insects as things that bug them.

The truth is that adults as well as children seem to be experiencing a rapid disconnect from nature, and for many of the same reasons. We have become enslaved by our electronics, fearful of crime, strangers and unknown creatures that lurk in the woods. And we are just too busy to find any free time between dusk and dawn.
As kids, we would fidget through school, eager to be outside to climb trees, fish, and just explore the bugs and birds and other beasties that we found as we scouted through our own backyards. We squeezed every moment from our outdoor adventures, reluctantly tearing ourselves away when called in at night as the owls began to call and the fireflies began to dance across the sky.

But many adults have lost that sense of wonder they once felt for the environment. The songs of the birds and the fluttering butterflies go virtually unnoticed. And our children, our spirits and our planet are all paying the price.

It’s a wonderful cause to want to help save the planet. But it isn’t a planet of asphalt and steel and huge skyscrapers we are trying to protect. It’s the little things. The miniscule miracles. The things we sometimes forget to even notice.

So go outside! Get eye to ey