Governor Martin O’Malley Addresses Children In Nature Web Seminar
Annapolis, MD (April 15, 2010) - Governor Martin O’Malley Saturday
addressed the hundreds of attendees from across the country at the National
Wildlife Federation’s national webinar: “Be Out There: A National Summit on
Children and the Outdoors.”
The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) held the seminar through
webcast at the Arlington Echo Outdoor Education Center in Millersville, Md. The
webcast allowed Marylanders to participate in the seminar held in Houston
advanced a state and national policy to reconnect children with nature.
“Through Maryland’s Partnership for Children in Nature, we are at the forefront,
ensuring our children will experience and learn about their natural world,” said
Governor Martin O’Malley. “Children across the country deserve the same rights.
I am asking other states and our federal leaders to join in, creating more
opportunities for children to explore their natural world.”
This National Summit issued a three-fold call:
1) For federal leaders to implement policy that creates more opportunities to
connect children with the outdoors;
2) For governors to issue executive orders to develop state plans and champion
legislation; and
3) For parks, conservation and recreation leaders to place greater emphasis on
outdoor immersion experiences such as camping, hiking, fishing, hunting, boating
and more.
The webcast featured National Wildlife Federation CEO Larry Schweiger, Texas
Representative Carol Alvarado, and video messages from Secretary of the Interior
Ken Salazar, Kansas Governor Mark Parkinson, and Governor O'Malley. There was
also a panel discussion entitled, "New Partners and Innovative Strategies to
Address the Indoor Childhood," featuring Dr. Sandra Stenmark of Kaiser
Permanente, Dr. Nina Roberts of San Francisco State University, and Margo
Pedroso of Safe Routes to Schools.
To ensure all Maryland young people have the opportunity to connect with their
natural world and grow to become informed and responsible stewards, Governor
Martin O’Malley established the Maryland Partnership for Children in Nature in
2008. Under the initiative, which is now being used as a national model, the
Governor created the Maryland Civic Justice Corps and recently issued the
Maryland Children’s Outdoor Bill of Rights. A plan to implement the
partnership’s report and recommendations – presented to Governor O’Malley in
April -- is under development. During the 2009 legislative session, the
O’Malley-Brown Administration secured record funding for Maryland’s No.1 ranked
public schools for the third consecutive year, with an investment of more than
$5.5 billion.
To see the Governor’s address go to:
http://www.dnr.state.md.us/cin/.
The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR), which celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2009, is the state agency responsible for providing natural and living resource-related services to citizens and visitors. DNR manages more than 467,000 acres of public lands and 17,000 miles of waterways, along with Maryland's forests, fisheries, and wildlife for maximum environmental, economic and quality of life benefits. A national leader in land conservation, DNR-managed parks and natural, historic, and cultural resources attract 12 million visitors annually. DNR is the lead agency in Maryland's effort to restore the Chesapeake Bay, the state's number one environmental priority. Learn more at www.dnr.maryland.gov