Robin Moore and Nilda Cosco at NC State are leading thinkers in designing natural places for children. Each year their Natural Learning Initiative runs its Design Institute. This year it was held at NCTC. Here's a great summary of the doings at that event, at the NLI website site.
This year the Design Institute was hosted by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service at the National Conservation Training Center in West Virginia, from August 9-11, 2007. The theme this year was "Design for Children IN Nature". For two and a half days, participants learned:
* Why is community design for children and families important?
* What can be done through design to address the lack of contact with nature?
* How can outdoor environments for children and families be better designed?
During the conference participants also experienced an outdoor activity with children where they rediscovered their inner child and learned how to create a magical and imaginative outdoor environment.
