with our summer camps. The girls packed up the campsite quickly and the staff adjusted lunch. Rather than an outdoor picnic with the food already purchased, the group pivoted and bought lunch at an indoor restaurant then returned to our park.
Despite the intensifying environmental conditions, the week fostered friendships, confidence, and lasting memories. One evening, campers even organized an impromptu talent show while sheltering from summer thunderstorms! By Friday afternoon, the group chat had started, and the connections formed seemed certain to outlast the summer.
That is the enduring value of camp. Today’ s children have packed schedules and a growing temptation to stay indoors and behind screens, but they still love to be outdoors. Camps give young people time away from their established communities and enable them to build independence and discover new interests. At our camps, youth get to explore creeks and forests, learn skills like fishing, and find out new things about themselves, their community, and the world around them.
Our programs connect people to the nature they love and need. We’ ve seen the demand for high-quality nature education rise from parents, community members, and local educators looking for field trip destinations. We can’ t offer enough educational programming for everyone who wants to come!
I personally wish that every child who wants to attend a summer camp or a nature program
would be able to. Rising temperatures or poor air quality should not be a barrier! But it will take all of us— environmental educators, parents, community members, children, and others— working together to manage and hopefully reverse the effects of climate change, so that our children and future generations of young people can fully enjoy being out in nature, experience its many benefits, and safely participate in outdoor summer camps and nature programs.
Christy Korzen is the Nature Facility & Program Manager of Black Hill Discovery Center in Boyds, MD, which is part of the larger Montgomery Parks system. She is passionate about providing opportunities for outdoor education for all ages and building communal action to address climate change.
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