Easy Ways To Celebrate June As Great Outdoors Month

A kid fishingThe old song goes: “June is busting out all over.” And, for families and kids, that can also mean busting outdoors into nature and having fun. Each June, an impressive collection of organizations, agencies and companies work together to galvanize public attention around the value of spending more time outdoors. Great Outdoors Month 2014 is upon us and offers many terrific opportunities:

Fabulous Events!

Great Outdoors Month offers many events, large and small. The pillars of Great Outdoors Month include widespread national events ranging from National Trails Day® to National Fishing and Boating Week, from National GO (Get Outdoors) Day to National Marina Day and the Great American Backyard Campout. There are numerous state parks events and local park departments and nature centers have weekly events during June with many interesting things to see and do.

Amazing Places!

Great Outdoors Month is also about amazing places. The Internet can tell you about state and local parks and some people are near enough that they can enjoy national parks, refuges, forests and more. National Wildlife Federation has a terrific and helpful website called Nature-Find that will let you plug in your zip code to display a rich set of outdoor opportunities (and events too) that are near you.  There are dozens of opportunities near nearly everone in the U.S.

Great Things to Do!

There are many, many fun outdoor ideas. National Wildlife teamed up with Good Housekeeping Magazine on a list of activities that will help even the most indoor-oriented people enjoy the outdoors. Take a look at 30 ways to get your kids to play outside. The Federation also has a wide range of programs that can help kids learn about and become connected to nature as part of our broader goal to help 10 million kids getting regular outdoor time.

Networks to Join!

The Federation supports an online network of families and individuals whoA outdoor trail want to share their enthusiasm and ideas about getting outdoors in nature. We call it Wildlife Nation. It is a new and growing network of people that is free to those who sign up and is full of ideas, information and more. Please check it out.

Why it Matters.

NWF’s members and those of our state affiliate organizations believe that keeping kids connected to nature is essential to the future of wildlife and wildlife conservation. It is also essential to the future of our children who often need to unplug and take a walk in the woods or learn to fish or just play in the backyard.  June is Great Outdoors Month and a good time to make sure we have great outdoor kids to go with it.

Great Outdoors Month is coordinated by the American Recreation Coalition with co-chairing support by the National Wildlife Federation and the American Hiking Society. Importantly, its participants, sponsors and supporters include hundreds of recreation, nature and outdoor organizations including state park departments, major city park and recreation agencies and federal public agencies that reach 150 million Americans each June alone. This year the Coleman Company and Wal-Mart are corporate major sponsors.

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Published: May 28, 2014