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Outdoor Play Environments

Ontario Parks recognizes the importance of connecting to nature and the positive effects it has on our well-being. As a part of the ‘Healthy Parks Healthy People’ campaign, visit your nearest Ontario park on July 19th, 2019 to join the celebration and enjoy free all-day access! There is so much to discover, with over 330...

“Step Outside, Get Dirty, Connect to Nature” Earth Day Canada is working to help people spend quality time connecting with the outdoors, encouraging everyone to spend time outdoors every day to support health, happiness, and the planet. Here are a few of the things happening this Earth Month! #FreeYourPlay  Take a photo and share how you #FreeYourPlay with @Kamik and...

During the school week, children and youth spend half their waking hours at school. Schools share the responsibility for making sure students get outside and get active during those times. Alongside instruction and programs, the built and natural environment of the school makes a difference for students’ health. Schoolyards Count! is a citizen-science project.  A researcher...

The Great Trail, now consisting of more than 24,000 kilometres of multi-use trails, has launched a new campaign; Deeply Connected which will highlight the connection every Canadian has with the The Great Trail while showcasing the ways the Trail benefits our health, our economy and our diverse cultures. OUR MISSION: We will promote and assist in the...

Playgrounds with plastic slides, rubber ‘doodads’ and metal monkey bars seem to be the norm these days, but not for North Battleford, Saskatchewan. In September 2018, they opened a natural playground in Centennial Park made from boulders, tree trunks and a teepee made by local elders. This playground was built by Battleford’s Early Childhood Intervention...

To educate communities about the importance of spending time outdoors, Come Alive Outside , together with Landscape Ontario, has found a way to create green space where kids (and adults!) can get creative, outside. On specific days during the summer months, sod is laid down on segments of streets in Ontario communities, creating a temporary outdoor space...

How do you use parks? Why are they important to you? Parks for All is a collaborated effort led by Canadian Parks Council and Canadian Parks and Recreation Association and encourages individuals to recognize how we all benefit from access to healthy parks, green space and natural areas. Our mutual connection with nature in turn connects all...

Some of our fondest memories are from spending time playing outside yet children nowadays are being limited in their ability to roam and play out of doors.  Earth Day Canada believes outdoor play is the foundation of environmental education and action and should be a natural part of the day to day lives of children....

"The Classroom in Open Air" Project, by Naomi W. Reichstein The Classroom in Open Air Project, by Naomi W. Reichstein for the Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation, aimed to examine which Vancouver-area schools use parks, which parks are most popular for school use, which subjects are taught outdoors, and what other school-based activities occur in...