No Child Left Inside
In June 2007 the Conservation Fund launched the National Forum on Children and Nature* with a forum of 50 public and private leaders – including representatives from the business community (the North Face, Sesame Workshop, Walt Disney), philanthropy (the Turner Foundation, National Audubon Society), governors and mayors – to address ways to reconnect children and nature.
In the words of Fund president Larry Selzer,
“We’ve spent the past 20 years protecting America’s great land legacy--more than 6 million acres of our nation’s most important landscapes. The staggering divide between children and nature places this magnificent legacy at risk. As this generation grows into adulthood, they may never feel a strong affinity for their natural heritage: the lands and waters that surround us. Reconnecting children with nature is a critical health issue--but it also looms as one of the great environmental challenges we will face in the years ahead.”
Well even though the majority of Boat Company guests over the years have been adults, there have always been kids aboard each summer whose parents wanted them to experience the fragile beauty of the Tongass firsthand. In the last two years, the number of family trips has really mushroomed. Returning passengers and new guests alike are eager to share memorable wilderness adventures with their children, grandchildren and even great-grandchildren. And The Boat Company embraces the opportunity to teach this future generation of environmental stewards the value of conservation and of treading lightly on natural habitats.
Families love our flexible itinerary because it enables everyone to pursue their own version of fun and still have shared time together. Board games and old-fashioned jigsaw puzzles in the salon, kayaking in quiet bays, and cookouts on the beach give young guests a welcome break from the routines associated with school and extracurricular activities back home. Their elders, who always took for granted the idea of “going outdoors to play” growing up, are thrilled to see the kids ‘unplugged’ from myriad electronics and plugged-in to the natural world for a change.
Jeremy (LISERON) and Kristin (MIST COVE) worked overtime with the rest of the crew planning hikes, tide-pooling, whale & sea lion viewing and even onboard activities like fish-printing around everyone’s interests. The key is to take advantage of every ‘teachable moment’ by making learning fun – without making it feel like homework. And although The Boat Company has no formal childcare program, slumber parties in the main salon, movies in the observation room and pizza-making with the chef were among the many activities providing bonus time for the adults to socialize together as well.
