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Gardening

24. Early Childhood Fruit and Vegetable Gardens

24. Early Childhood Fruit and Vegetable Gardens

26. Wildlife Gardens

26. Wildlife Gardens

Kinder Kastle INC

Kinder Kastle INC

LET’S GET OUTSIDE! The Case for Young Children

LET’S GET OUTSIDE! The Case for Young Children

LET’S GET OUTSIDE! Providers

LET’S GET OUTSIDE! Providers

(Wake Co.) Morrisville Square Creative School

(Wake Co.) Morrisville Square Creative School

Scarecrow

Scarecrow

Harvest Time

Harvest Time

Extending Seasons

Extending Seasons

Grow It, Smell It, Eat It

Grow It, Smell It, Eat It

Garden Path

Garden Path

Launching a low-cost garden in three steps

Launching a low-cost garden in three steps

Preschool Gardening Activity Guide

Preschool Gardening Activity Guide

COVID Support we’re all in this together!

COVID Support we’re all in this together!

NLH October

NLH October

Johnston Community College: Child Development Center

Johnston Community College: Child Development Center

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

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

Research Brief: Impact of Naturalized Early Childhood Outdoor Learning Environments

Research Brief: Impact of Naturalized Early Childhood Outdoor Learning Environments

Dr. Nilda Cosco presents poster at the Society for Nutrition Education and Behavior annual conference, Minneapolis, July 2018

Dr. Nilda Cosco presents poster at the Society for Nutrition Education and Behavior annual conference, Minneapolis, July 2018

POD

POD

ABC Land, Inc.

ABC Land, Inc.

A Safe Place Child Enrichment Center, Inc.

A Safe Place Child Enrichment Center, Inc.

Childcare Network #61

Childcare Network #61

Nilda Cosco, PhD

Nilda Cosco, PhD

Jordan Child and Family Enrichment Center

Jordan Child and Family Enrichment Center

Johnson Pond Learning Center

Johnson Pond Learning Center

Pam’s School of Raleigh

Pam’s School of Raleigh

Wanda’s Little Hands

Wanda’s Little Hands

15th Annual NLI Design Institute

15th Annual NLI Design Institute

Fruit and Vegetable Gardens

Fruit and Vegetable Gardens

Adrienne Murrell

Adrienne Murrell

Greensboro Children’s Museum Edible Schoolyard

Greensboro Children’s Museum Edible Schoolyard

USDA COLEAFS

USDA COLEAFS

Growing Up Green: Naturalization as a Health Promotion Strategy

Growing Up Green: Naturalization as a Health Promotion Strategy

Harvesting and Eating Sunflower Seeds

Harvesting and Eating Sunflower Seeds

Raising Funds and Resources for Outdoor Learning Environments

Raising Funds and Resources for Outdoor Learning Environments

Engaging Community Resources

Engaging Community Resources

Farm to Preschool

Farm to Preschool

Theme Gardens

Theme Gardens

Creating a Butterfly Garden

Creating a Butterfly Garden

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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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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.