In her daily news briefing on April 29, 2020, Dr. Bonnie Henry, British Columbia's provincial health officer, re-iterated what she has been saying throughout the COVID-19 outbreak: enjoy BC's outdoor spaces, safely, and with immediate family members. Dr. Henry highlighted the observation that transmission of the virus by briefly passing by someone who sneezes or coughs...
Many have struggled to access the outdoors, parks, and nature as a result of physical distancing regulations instituted across the country in reaction to the COVID-19 outbreak. Though most Provincial and National parks have reopened, and reopened again in the third wave, services are limited. At the municipal level, restrictions are being lifted on parks...
Thank you to Alexander Wray, H.BES, MA-Candidate (Western University, Canada) for providing this post and photo. Canadian children and youth over the past decade have reported lower levels of physical activity than previous generations and are reporting a worrying decline in their overall mental wellbeing. These populations report spending less time outside than ever before, which...
March 16, 2020 10am Eastern/7am Pacific On Saturday, March 14th, BC's provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry spoke to the public on ways to stay healthy while engaging in safe social distancing practices. In her announcement, she highlighted the observation that viruses do not transmit as readily outdoors. So, she suggests, 'go outside and play with your...
On November 20th of last year, Outdoor Play Canada published an article titled, "If In Doubt, Let Them Out – A Child’s Right to Play," marking the 30th anniversary of The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. In mid-December, this article was published in The Conversation. Click here to read the article in The Conversation. ...
In the fall of 2019, the 'Minimum Planning Requirements Regulations' were added to the Nova Scotia Municipal Government Act. The regulations added 'recreation facilities and public open spaces' to the list of elements that must be included in municipal planning strategies. Similar changes were made to the Halifax Regional Municipality Charter. This was an important...
New research from Statistics Canada’s Canadian Health Measures Survey reaffirmed the dramatic decline in Canadian children’s fitness seen over the past 35 years with only a third of Canadian school-aged children meeting physical activity guidelines. Other research from the same survey showed that physical activity increases when children are outdoors, with each additional hour spent...
Make sure your voice is heard. Ontario Parks is halfway through the Healthy Parks Healthy People consultation period. The time to submit your feedback on nature and health is now! We know nature is a valuable tool for producing positive health outcomes. Ontario Parks is ready to take action, but they need your help first. They...
From October 8-9, 2019, the Uppsala Health Summit was held at the Uppsala Castle, Sweden. The theme of the summit was Healthy Urban Childhoods with a focus on how to strengthen the child perspective in urban planning to create healthier and more inclusive cities for children. Topics covered at the summit included child-friendly city planning,...
Check out the new documentary “Running Free: Children’s Independent Mobility”! Told through the eyes of 3 families, this 26-minute documentary explores the concept of children’s independent mobility, the benefits for children’s mental health, and challenges viewers to consider solutions to this issue. Watch it here: [vc_video link='https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKOXfa8NfTY&feature=youtu.be']...
