Austin -

For several years, the Texas chapter of the national Children & Nature Network has been exploring ways to reconnect families and children with nature and the outdoors. The national movement grew out of Richard Louv’s 2006 book “Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature Deficit Disorder.” The Texas group scored a major milestone this month, when Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas awarded a grant of $192,500 to the TPW Foundation to help launch the Green Ribbon Schools initiative.

Referencing the “blue ribbon” concept, this new effort will recognize schools that incorporate nature, sustainable environmental practices and active, healthy lifestyles across the campus, curriculum and community. The grant will fund a resource guide for Texas schools, plus associated Web pages, banners and other materials to be distributed in early 2010. Nancy Herron in the Communications Division is TPWD’s primary representative on these topics, and has been a Children and Nature leader statewide and nationally.

The Texas chapter includes a wide spectrum of members representing universities, pediatricians and other health care interests, youth groups, environmentalists, wildlife conservationists, architects, planners and many others. State elected leaders are supporters, and in the recent legislative session filed S.B. 205, which would have created the Texas Partnership for Children in Nature. The bill had bipartisan support and passed the full Senate 31-to-0, though it later died on the House General Calendar. Since then, legislators have asked TPWD to implement the partnership administratively in cooperation with the Texas Education Agency, Department of Agriculture and Department of State Health Services. If the No Child Left Inside Act still pending in Congress is passed, the partnership could help Texas bring in federal dollars.