World Forum Projects

World Forum Alliance Members

Nature Action Collaborative for Children at Work

News from Nepal

NACC Leadership Team Member Bishnu Bhatta presents the March 2010 issue of the monthly e-newsletter published by the Partnership for Sustainable Development (PSD).

The PSD Connect is a quarterly e-newsletter published by the Partnership for Sustainable Development (PSD) Nepal to inform all their partners, ex-volunteers and supporters, about our activities and news. PSD Nepal is a not-for-profit social development organization dedicated to the alleviation of poverty of Children and youth of rural Nepal.

Click here to download the newsletter or visit www.psdnepal.org.

Wild Play in West Australia

NACC Leadership Team Member Gillian McAuliffe had a vision to construct a child's dream outdoor playground.

Read the entire Wild Play article.

Mindstretchers Hosts Nature Conference in Scotland

NACC Leadership Team Member from Scotland, Claire Warden, and the Mindstretchers team are once again hosting an international conference on Nature and Young Children. This will be hosted in Crieff, Perthshire, Scotland at the Crieff Hydro Hotel, on the 8th and 9th June 2010.

The Conference is a very special and unique meeting; naturally it will share a variety of established and emerging consultative strategies and documentation from around the world, but equally important are the social functions and tours. They are designed so people from all over the world, who share the same interest can meet and exchange ideas and knowledge to the benefit of all, in particular, a child's right to learn in an outdoor environment, which in turn encourages healthy and harmonious children. To book and for further information please contact sabine@mindstretchers.co.uk.

Click here for more information.

World Forum Advocate Anne Sivanathan Works to Bring Families Outdoors

Nature's Mood Boosters: Anne Sivanathan, Global Leader Alumna from Malaysia, shares some photos of her center that serves young children in Malaysia. Anne led the children and their families outside to have some fun and promote better health. Here's what Anne has to report: "Exposing oneself to sunlight can help to raise your level of serotonin. Children were enjoying the trees, water, and fish in the stream. Leaves which we take for granted were picked and admired. It was lovely to see fathers bonding with their child, grandma pushing the pram, and children enjoying the quality time with their families in the outdoors."

Three NACC Leadership Team Members to present at Kidsafe Playground Conference, April 19-20, 2010

Helle Nebelong, a keynote speaker for this upcoming conference in Perth, Australia, is a landscape architect from Denmark who specializes in the design of natural spaces and sensory gardens for children, young people with disabilities and seniors. Joining Helle, Gillian McAuliffe will be presenting on "Creating a Wild Space", and Fiona Robbe will speak on "designing opportunities to play in a natural setting." All three leadership members will team up to host a workshop on the World Forum's Nature Action Collaborative for Children (NACC). For more information about the event, visit www.kidsafewa.com.au/playgroundconference.

Wil Maheia visits Liberty Children's Home in Belize

Wil Maheia and Delfena Mitchell met through the World Forum. Wil Maheia, NACC Leadership Team member, regularly visits Delfena's center that cares for abandoned, abused or orphaned children. During his visits, he usually brightens their day with bananas and oranges, but this recent time, he brought them Morenga trees, a very healthy tree food. The children can eat the leaves as a green and will get most of the vitamins they would need for a day. Wil doesn't hesitate to mention that the leaves are very tasty, as well!

News from Nepal

NACC Leadership Team Member Bishnu Bhatta presents the December edition of the monthly e-newsletter published by the Partnership for Sustainable Development (PSD).

A walk through Nairobi's Arboretum

2008 Working Forum on Nature attendees Hellen Kimathi and Lydia Nzomo take a group of nursery school children on a tour of the Nairobi Arboretum, just two kilometers from the City Center.

Despite the nursery school's proximity to the arboretum, this was the children's first visit. The teachers were amazed that children actually enjoyed walking in the woods and interacting with animals, flowers, and plants.

Hellen and Lydia are planning with the Ministry of Forests to have a few natural play materials and equipments so that children could relax and enjoy themselves after their walk.

Elizabeth and Sebastian Chuwa from ABCP in Tanzania comment on experience in Belfast

This year's World Forum conference was held in Belfast, Northern Ireland, a site chosen because of the many innovative educational programs that emerged there related to conflict resolution and peace building during that troubled area's long history of conflict.

The conference was attended by 600 delegates from 78 countries and topics presented included Education for Sustainable Development, Diversity, Childrens' Rights, Peace Building with Children, Gender Issues, Children Affected by HIV/AIDS, and Learning Through Nature. Sebastian moderated a forum entitled, "Bringing Nature into Indoor Classrooms." One project demonstrated was the gathering and analysis of woodland mushrooms, teaching students to distinguish between edible and inedible types.

Elizabeth commented that one thing that was most noticeable to her in attending the conference was the lack of educational materials in the schools where she teaches in Africa, as compared to those in more developed countries. She directly attributes this lack as a primary factor in the slow educational advancement of poorer countries, along with teacher shortages and overcrowded classrooms.

To view entire report and newsletter, visit: www.blackwoodconservation.org/09report.html.

Transforming Trees into Preschool Tables: inside a classroom in Belize

A Mahogany tree that was planted 28 years ago, on the day Belize got its independence, was transformed into two tables at a local preschool. Since Mahogany is the National Tree of Belize, many schools all over the country had planted trees to celebrate Independence day.

When the tree got sick, we decided to turn it into something that would be lasting, so we made two tables for this preschool. The kids love their tables and we are all celebrating 28 years of Independence together.

- Wil Maheia, NACC Leadership Team Member, Belize

NACC Member Fiona Robbe reports from Sydney, Australia

At Arcadia Public School, we created a "Secret Garden" with the local kids. Each child painted a plank, any way they liked. We then made a "cubby" (called utopia) from the planks with the kids, and surrounded the cubby with an ever evolving natural garden space, all done by the kids. The space continues to have additions, for example mosaic artworks.

We made this space in an area where a demountable classroom was removed, and the space looked awful. It is now a natural play area and is very beautiful.

Lakeshore's "Nature Explore Classroom" Earns Certification

One of Lakeshore's most exciting projects in a long time is our new outdoor Nature Explore Classroom at Kids & Company, our on-site preschool for employees' children. It is the third California classroom and the 25th in the nation to be fully certified by the Arbor Day Foundation (ADF) and Dimensions Foundation...
Learn more

NACC at the 2009 World Forum

Bishnu Bhatta, NACC Leadership Team Member and Director of the Partnership for Sustainable Development (PSD) in Nepal, writes about his experience at the 2009 World Forum on Early Care and Education in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

"PSD-Nepal's Director, Bishnu Hari Bhatta, had the opportunity to visit the United Kingdom from June 7th to the 25th. He is extremely grateful to World Forum Foundation who gave him the opportunity to attend the conference by providing support for his trip to UK and also many thanks to all the others who helped him to make this trip possible. It was undoubtedly a productive and worthwhile trip. Bishnu first attended a two day meeting of Nature Action Collaborative for Children in Belfast followed by a World Forum on Early Care and Education Conference. This conference had over 600 participants from 70 countries which provided a great opportunity for him to network and make contacts on behalf of PSD-Nepal.

In Scotland, he was fortunate enough to participate in a three day tour around the Crieff Hydro sponsored by Mind Stretcher, an organization focusing on providing outdoor learning opportunities for children. Aside from the conference, he able to use his time wisely to network within the PSD network also. He met with trustees, current and past volunteers from Oxford, Bristol, Glasgow, and Edinburgh. Through these meetings he was able to strengthen the partnerships between PSD and its partner universities organizations and to discuss improvements that could be made to the volunteer program. Bishnu also met with the chairman and trustees from the UK-based charity JustAid, that partner with PSD to fund many small scale projects in Nepal each year."

Enthusiasm for Nature Conference

Following the 2009 World Forum, 65 delegates from 12 countries across the world assembled at the Enthusiasm for Nature Conference, sponsored by Mindstretchers in Crieff, Scotland. Attendees visited the Famous Grouse Experience distillery to listen to speakers whose work provided insights and inspiration into naturalistic play and learning environments and practices in Scotland and Europe.

2009 Arbor Day Awards

Bonnie and Roger Neugebauer, on behalf of the World Forum Foundation, were presented with the Rachel Carson Award at the 2009 National Arbor Day Award Ceremony. The World Forum Foundation was recognized for its work on Nature Education.
Read the article and learn more about the recipients of the Arbor Day awards.