Always a seeker

In a few weeks, I’ll be retiring from my position as curator of the Children & Nature Network’s Research Library. Though the team was much smaller when I joined eight years ago, the momentum was already there. Since then, so much has been accomplished, and I anticipate even more in the coming years. I know the research will go on and that new insights will be uncovered.

The author as a child on the farm where she grew up.

When I applied for my position, I was seeking validation of what I had come to believe — that is, that our connectedness to nature is more than a luxury or a frill. 

Since childhood, I’ve known nature to be a source of wonder, of solace, of inspiration and of guidance. I was fortunate to grow up on a farm, immersed in a nature-rich environment. 

I know that not every child has this experience, and I’m thrilled with the Children & Nature Network’s commitment to creating a society where all children have equitable access to outdoor natural spaces. Children need this for their holistic development.

Research makes it clear — nature is a necessity for a life well-lived. We all need the physical support that nature provides — food, shelter, air, water, etc. But we also need the emotional and spiritual nourishment we gain through connectedness with nature. 

We all need the physical support that nature provides. But we also need the emotional and spiritual nourishment we gain through connectedness with nature. 

Many of us have known this for a long time, and fortunately, we now have extensive research to support this understanding. So, are we there yet? Does research still have a role to play in providing motivation and guidance for connecting children to nature? 

The answer is an unwavering yes. We’ve learned a lot from research about the benefits of connecting children to nature and about innovative ways of doing so. Yet, life continues to change, new challenges and new opportunities emerge, new insights and questions call for further investigations.  

I started working with the Children & Nature Network over eight years ago as a seeker. Since then, it has been an honor and joy to read and summarize over 1,000 research studies focused on children and their connections with nature. I’ve been informed and inspired by this research, but I’m still a seeker. I know there is more to discover about this connectedness.

While thousands of research studies provide some answers to our questions, there is still more to investigate, more nuances to explore. We’ll continue to look for answers and guidance, but we’ll never reach the end of “knowing.” As much as we question and probe, some things will remain a mystery. 

Spending time with nature and contemplating the wonder of it all has allowed me to catch glimpses, but the mysteries are too marvelous to fully comprehend. This, I believe, is one of the gifts of nature.

Spending time with nature and contemplating the wonder of it all has allowed me to catch glimpses; but the mysteries are too marvelous to fully comprehend. This, I believe, is one of the gifts of nature.

Some aspects of nature and of the human/nature connection can be dissected, measured and categorized. But other aspects are beyond our knowing. I relish both what I know and what I don’t know. I relish the sense of kinship I feel with the trees, the water, the sky and the many living creatures of the Earth. And I also relish the fact that I will never fully understand the source or depth of this kinship.  

What I do know is that nature, for me, is a dependable strength and a source of wonder, inspiration and solace. I also know that every child needs nature and has a right to daily connection with the natural world. This makes the work of the Children & Nature Network so incredibly important. I will always be cheering you on.

Meet Ruth Wilson

With a varied, wide-ranging career spanning seven decades, Dr. Ruth Wilson has shaped the movement for children and nature while maintaining a unique spark of energy and curiosity — the spark that drives her work. 

Wilson’s career began in 1966 with a Bachelor of Science degree in education, launching a teaching journey that spanned over 30 years. She worked with students of all ages, from preschool through graduate school, and, during this time, earned a master’s degree in special education and a Ph.D. in early childhood and elementary education. Remarkably, she completed her Ph.D. while caring for two daughters at home and working full-time in an early childhood special education program.

After completing her Ph.D., Wilson taught in the special education department at Bowling Green State University in Ohio for 10 years, during which she also wrote grants to support her interest in integrating environmental education and early childhood education, and published several books and academic articles about the importance of connecting kids with nature. 

“This was in the early 1990s when I had little research or other resources to draw from,” Wilson explains. “I felt I was just winging it or making it up as I went along. But I also felt I was on the right track.”

In 1999, Wilson “retired” after three decades of work — but in her post-retirement career, she continued to teach full-time at two more universities, write five more books about children and nature, develop environmental curriculum for the state of California, serve as a consultant for the Brookfield Zoo near Chicago, and consult with Sesame Workshop on their nature programming.

“What a surprise to get a call from Sesame Street!” she says. She traveled to New York to advise the Sesame Street planning team on key science and nature messages for their early childhood programming. While she was there, she also got a chance to meet Cookie Monster and Big Bird.

When asked how she’s seen the movement for children and nature change since she joined the cause professionally in the ‘80s, Wilson remarks on the growth that has taken place.

“It was a very lonely field when I first started, and many people didn’t understand what I was trying to do,” Wilson says. 

In the 1990s, she secured a grant that covered her travel to every nature preschool in the U.S. — but she could only find three programs. “Today, there are over 800!” she exclaims. 

“Not only has the movement grown so much larger, it has also become so much broader,” she continues. She is excited to now see increased networking across disciplines, and efforts to incorporate a variety of cultural perspectives. 

Wilson emphasizes the role of others in nurturing the movement. “I think I planted some seeds but other people certainly made those grow,” she says. 

She is especially inspired by the experts and advocates working across sectors to promote nature connection in fields such as mental health, recreation, urban planning, parenting and family programming, all facets of education, environmental groups and more. 

For her part, Wilson is intrigued by the links between sustainability and spirituality. This interest has taken her to the development of her 10th book.

“I’m currently working on a book for Routledge Publishing on the spiritual dimensions of young children’s connectedness to nature,” she says. “This theme has intrigued me for years. I’ve hinted at this topic in earlier writings, but now have the opportunity to bring many related ideas together.”

In researching her book, she is “wondering where certain emerging ideas will take us, such as human/nature reciprocity, kinship and post-humanism,” Wilson says. 

“After all, I’m still a seeker.”

Select publications by Ruth Wilson

Creating Quality of Life for Adults on the Autism Spectrum: The Story of Bittersweet Farms. Routledge, 2023. (co-author)

Naturally Inclusive: Engaging Children of All Abilities Outdoors. Gryphon House, 2022.

Trees and the Human Spirit. Cambridge Scholar, 2019.

Learning is in Bloom: Cultivating Outdoor Explorations. Gryphon House, 2016.

Nature and Young Children: Fostering Creative Play and Learning in Natural Environments. Routledge, 2018.

Special Educational Needs in the Early Years. Routledge, 2003.

Environmental Education at the Early Childhood Level. North American Association for Environmental Education, 1994.

Fostering a Sense of Wonder during the Early Childhood Years. Greyden Press, 1993.

Learning to Communicate Early in Life. Interstate Printers & Publishers, 1985. (published under the name of Ruth Ann Johnson)

Check Out More News and Resources