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| Behind the scenes of nature blogging. Credit: Meghan Kearney/USFWS |
In the wide digital world of the internet you'll find your Tweeters, your Tumblrs, your eBay salesmen, or your gamer. Then, somewhere fewer and farther between, you'll find your tiny niche of nature enthusiast bloggers typing away about how you should get off of your computer and head outside. We are a confusing bunch of people because we almost assuredly wish to be out climbing a mountain with every pressing edit, thesaurus check, and photo upload. We also like to confuse you by asking you to read our blog that will eventually recommend you get off of your computer and head outside… But the truth is, in our defense, we already love nature, and since you are busy reading this, it is our job to win you over.
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| Christy Peterson with a Gopher Snake Credit: Cascade Creative Services |
Like myself, and all of us here on the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Connecting People with Nature Team, Christy Peterson holds a passion for nature that is too contagious not to share. As a non-fiction children's author, parent, blogger, and nature enthusiast, Christy shares her creativity and passion for nature partially through her online hub Tweets & Tree Frogs (the other portion is the good old fashioned way – out amongst the Earth). Through Tweets & Tree Frogs, Christy hopes to connect with parents, teaching them to love nature and to instill that same passion in their children. As a fellow nature blogger, I wanted to get Christy's take on nature, creativity, and technology. Please enjoy Christy's responses, make a visit to her blog and Facebook page to learn even more, and then, you guessed it: get off of your computer and head outside.
Faces of Nature: Tell us more about your idea of "accessible nature." What advice do you have for those who may not know they can find nature just about anywhere?
Christy: The short version: go outside! It really is just that easy. The longer version: we share the world with an amazing array of life forms. These life forms are amazingly tenacious. Weeds sprout up in sidewalk cracks; moss grows on concrete dividers. Trees shade busy streets and pigeons nest wherever they can. We don't even have to go outside to find nature. No matter how tidy we are, there are plenty of creatures living in our homes. That creeps a few people out though, so I usually don't start out talking about that!
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| Christy learned to love nature at an early age just like every child should! Credit: Bob Tuck |
What are some of your favorite urban/inner-city nature activities that kids and families can participate in?
I love the idea of a scavenger hunt. While it's true that nature is everywhere, cities aren't the most hospitable environments for plants and animals. Finding nature there is a challenge, and kids are always up for a challenge. Things you could put on your list include the grass, moss, trees, and pigeons I mentioned above. You can also include flowers, insects, spiders, house sparrows, though these will be a little more challenging to find. Some cities are lucky enough to have hawk or falcon nests. Just remember, city nature walks have unique potential hazards. Make sure kids have safe parameters so everyone has a good time.
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| A Dark-eyed Junco - featured on Tweets & Tree Frogs "Bird of the Week" section. Credit: Christy Peterson/Cascade Creative Services |
You encourage combining nature and creativity – what are some of the most successful ways you've seen youth get creative in nature?
When I talk about nature and creativity, it's usually in reference to my own work. I think it's hard to be creative when sprinting at the speed of life. Being in nature helps me slow down and clear my head. I think it does the same for kids. I like to be a facilitator for my own kids, rather than presiding over structured activities. By facilitator, I mean that I try to provide a seed of an idea or a few raw materials and then let their imaginations take over. When my kids were younger, it was fun to watch them make "soup" in an empty cat litter bucket with water, sticks, leaves, mud, and whatever else they could find. My friends and I used to do that when we were little, although we had access to windfall fruit, so our soup was tastier (just kidding!).
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| A garden spider named "Lucy" by Christy. I've personally found that naming "scary" critters makes them seem less scary. Credit: Christy Peterson/Cascade Creative Services |
What kind of experiences have you had working with children and families in efforts to change their ideas about "dangerous" or "scary" creatures and help them to care about nature?
I doubt there are kids reading the Tweets & Tree Frogs blog, so really my work has been educating parents about "scary" creatures. I think parents and teachers can do two things to help kids have an accurate understanding of commonly misunderstood creatures. First, they can educate themselves. What threats do these animals really pose (usually much less than their reputations) and how can we avoid harm? Second, they can try not to pass on their personal biases to their kids. I am a cheerleader for all kinds of maligned creatures, but I really, really do not like parasites (like ticks and lice—ewwww!). They kind of freak me out, but I try not to pass this bias on to my kids.
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| Christy's son during his first of many encounters with lizards! Credit: Christy Peterson/Cascade Creative Services |
I'm attaching a photo that answers this better than words. It is my son's first encounter with a Western Fence Lizard. He had just turned one. He is 10 now, and shares his room with 3 lizards, a snake, and a frog. He wants to study herpetology. Whether he really ends up in that field or not, he has made a connection with "the wild" that will be with him all his life. That's what it's all about.
Given the opinion that technology is taking kids away from nature & being a fellow Facebooker/blogger - What successes have you found through use of your blog and social media pages that have encouraged people to care about nature?
We humans always like to take things to the extreme, don't we? Technology=bad; nature=good. This is the message I get from some (not all) in the "children and nature" community. Personally, I think technology is a tool. We can use it wisely or not, but it is not inherently bad or good. Technology means I can log nature sightings in the field. I can find out what species of tree I'm standing under. Technology is blowing the world of citizen science wide open—I find this very exciting. Personally, technology has allowed me to connect with people all over the world who care about nature as much as I do. My blog and social media allow me to pass along information I hope will be interesting and helpful to others. Time will tell whether I am reaching new people with my "accessible nature" message or just preaching to the choir!
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