Article by Ken Finch

For those who missed our keynote speaker last Friday, or who would like to refresh their memory about his presentation, here is an article that sums up much of it, without the clever cartoons, though. 🙁

By Ken Finch

Note: This article is a brief distillation of a speech presented at the 2003 Summit of the Association of Nature
Center Administrators. To read the full speech and related articles, visit online at www.natctr.org.

How many of you climbed trees when you were a child, or played in tree houses? How many
collected natural stuff like leaves, rocks, shells and bugs, or liked to explore woods and fields without
staying on the trails? Now, how many of you recall those experiences as playing a significant role in
the formation of your personal conservation ethic? If you feel that way, you are far from alone!
THE CHALLENGE
The United States’ environmental education (EE) and nature center professions have a quiet,
underlying goal of positive, non-partisan social change: to help create a society that lives in harmony
with nature. Clearly, we have not reached that idyllic state, so our challenge is to transform societal
values further. We do not seem to be succeeding……(download pdf to keep reading)