The short film by Huntington (2015) tells inspiring story of selfless Philadelphia residents who are making a difference in the city through environmental activism. One the inspiring story is how Skip Weiner is involving members of his community to plant trees and crops in abandoned public spaces. Watching young children connecting with nature through gardening triggered my mind to think about children and their role in protecting the environment.
In my view, the future of environmental activism depends on our children. Sadly, the society has created an environment where children cannot connect with nature, as Heinsch (2012) noted. According to Heinsch (2012), connecting with nature helps in developing and enhancing individuals’ physical and psychological wellbeing. The problem with our cities is the fact that they do not offer enough space for children to connect with nature. The limited space for gardening and playing makes it next to impossible for school going children to engage in activities portrayed in the film. Technologies such as hand-held devices, and games makes it even harder for children to find the much-needed time to discover nature leave alone supporting environmental activism efforts. For example, a report by the Guardian (2016) revealed how children in the current generation spend half as much time playing somewhere outside compared to their parents. This alarming trend shows the need to engage children in environmental activism at their tender age.
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In my view, we need to create an enabling learning environment for all urban schools to allow children to have learning session out of the city such as farms and gardens. The idea is instill a sense of responsibility to young generation regarding the protection of nature. As noted by Norton (2012), social work helps in nurturing the development of a personal and consciousness by supporting individuals in their transformation. In my opinion, creating a learning environment for city dwelling children to connect with nature will equip the next generation with the much-needed knowledge, passion, and will to fight for the protection of their environment. That, it my view, is the only way to achieve sustainability since the next generation of environmental activists will take over the fight ad pass it to the next.
References
Norton, C. L. (2012). Social work and the environment: An ecosocial approach. International Journal of Social Welfare , 21 (3), 299-308.
Heinsch, M. (2012). Getting down to earth: Finding a place for nature in social work practice. International Journal of Social Welfare , 21 (3), 309-318.
Huntington, T. (2015, April 30). From the Pavement Up: A View into Philadelphia's Environmental Activism. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gkoGNfl4Kkc
The Guardian, P. (2016, July 27). Children spend only half as much time playing outside as their parents did. Retrieved November 11, 2018, from https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/jul/27/children-spend-only-half-the-time-playing-outside-as-their-parents-did
