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Edible Plants

Infants & Toddlers Outdoors: Best Practice Toolkit (partial)

Infants & Toddlers Outdoors: Best Practice Toolkit (partial)

Garden Planning and Caring

Garden Planning and Caring

Infants & Toddlers Outdoors: Best Practice Toolkit (partial)

Protected: Infants & Toddlers Outdoors: Best Practice Toolkit (partial)

Protected: POD Community College Modules at a Glance (LDCM)

Protected: POD Community College Modules at a Glance (LDCM)

Preschool Outdoors: Best Practice Toolkit (2nd Ed.)

Preschool Outdoors: Best Practice Toolkit (2nd Ed.)

Certificate Course Participant Survey Results 2022

Certificate Course Participant Survey Results 2022

Harmony Place

Harmony Place

National Play Value Plant Database

National Play Value Plant Database

Harvest Learning Center

Harvest Learning Center

01. Benefits of Engaging Children with Nature

01. Benefits of Engaging Children with Nature

02. Top Ten Activity Settings For Outdoor Learning

02. Top Ten Activity Settings For Outdoor Learning

03. Affordable Settings and Components

03. Affordable Settings and Components

07. Conicals

07. Conicals

10. Growing Edibles in Containers

10. Growing Edibles in Containers

11. Shade Solutions

11. Shade Solutions

12. Arbors, Pergolas, & Trellises

12. Arbors, Pergolas, & Trellises

18. Making Newspaper Seedling Pots

18. Making Newspaper Seedling Pots

19. Starting Veggies Indoors

19. Starting Veggies Indoors

24. Early Childhood Fruit and Vegetable Gardens

24. Early Childhood Fruit and Vegetable Gardens

28. Plants for Outdoor Learning Environments

28. Plants for Outdoor Learning Environments

30. Tire Planters

30. Tire Planters

LET’S GET OUTSIDE! Providers

LET’S GET OUTSIDE! Providers

Extending Seasons

Extending Seasons

Grow It, Smell It, Eat It

Grow It, Smell It, Eat It

COVID Support we’re all in this together!

COVID Support we’re all in this together!

NLH February

NLH February

Research Brief: Impact of Naturalized Early Childhood Outdoor Learning Environments

Research Brief: Impact of Naturalized Early Childhood Outdoor Learning Environments

Designing Early Childhood Outdoor Environments Certificate

Designing Early Childhood Outdoor Environments Certificate

16th Annual NLI Design Institute

16th Annual NLI Design Institute

POD

POD

ABC Land, Inc.

ABC Land, Inc.

Childcare Network #61

Childcare Network #61

Planning and Planting

Planning and Planting

Edible Plants for Play and Learning

Edible Plants for Play and Learning

Landscape Plants for Play and Learning

Landscape Plants for Play and Learning

Fruit and Vegetable Gardens

Fruit and Vegetable Gardens

Greensboro Children’s Museum Edible Schoolyard

Greensboro Children’s Museum Edible Schoolyard

Down East Discovery Play and Learning Park in Rocky Mount, NC

Down East Discovery Play and Learning Park in Rocky Mount, NC

Starting Seeds in the Spring

Starting Seeds in the Spring

Raised Planters: Timber Construction

Raised Planters: Timber Construction

« Older Entries

VIEW DISCLAIMER

The Natural Learning Initiative (NLI), its partners and supporting entities assume no responsibility for the installation of outdoor components and/or designs and their use. In no event will NLI be liable for any loss or damage, including without limitation, indirect or consequential, incurred during the construction or use of outdoor play and learning environments. NLI further suggests adherence to the guidelines set forth in the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission’s Public Playground Safety Handbook and to follow local, state, and national code requirements concerning but not limited to land use, zoning, safety, accessibility, permitting, and approval of plans prior to construction.

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Raleigh, NC 27695-7701


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children smelling herbs in garden with teacher

Growing Up with Nature

Creating environments for healthy human development and a healthy biosphere for generations to come.

- NLI Mission

For 25 years, the Natural Learning Initiative (NLI) has applied community-based, equity-driven design thinking to create healthy, natural play and learning environments. The NLI Resource Hub offers a collection of free public resources dedicated to supporting the development of biophilic play and learning environments where children can grow up caring for the planet and each other. These resources encompass landscape design, research, professional development, and information dissemination.

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What are NLI Resource Hub Categories?

Design Sites

Real-world places where NLI has provided professional landscape architecture design assistance.

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Infosheets

Two to four page documents about implementing and maintaining nature-based play settings.

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Interactive Apps

Web-based teaching tools and virtual experiences about exploring and designing nature-based play settings.

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Leaflets

Single-page documents about activities for children and caregivers in nature-based play settings.

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Natural Learning at Home

A month-by-month newsletter series about nature-based activities for children and families at home.

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Programs

Comprehensive projects that combine design assistance, research & evaluation, professional development, and dissemination & communications.

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Publications

Printed and published books and resources about nature-based design, education, childhood, and more.

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Research

Published scientific research about nature-based design, childhood, behavior mapping, and more.

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The Green Desk

A blog series responding to NLI’s most frequently-asked-questions.

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Videos

Videos created by NLI and our partners about nature-based design, education, childhood, and more.

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What are NLI Resource Hub Tags?

Affordable Settings

Elements of outdoor learning environments that can be built and deployed at a low cost, but with a great impact.

Community Engagement

Families, partners, neighborhoods and cities that help outdoor learning environments thrive and grow.

Fundraising

Information for raising resources to build and maintain outdoor learning environments.

Gardening

Resources about growing plants and all the different ways it benefits young children.

Healthy Eating

Fruits and vegetables, trying and tasting, growing and eating. Learn how young children can be excited to eat nutritious food.

Outdoor Installation

Building and constructing outdoor learning environments can be challenging. Find resources to guide your project.

Outdoor Management

Maintaining and sustaining outdoor learning environments is vital to their long-term success. Learn about managing environments.

Outdoor Safety

Risk management in play areas is critical for certification and regulation. Learn how to create safe spaces and address concerns.

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The Natural Learning Initiative (NLI), its partners and supporting entities as­sume no responsibility for the installation of outdoor components and/or designs and their use. In no event will NLI be liable for any loss or damage, including without lim­itation, indirect or consequential, incurred during the construction or use of outdoor play and learning environments. NLI further suggests adherence to the guidelines set forth in the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission’s Public Playground Safety Handbook and to follow local, state, and national code requirements concerning but not limited to land use, zoning, safety, accessibility, permitting, and approval of plans prior to construction.