Keith Burgess-Jackson, J.D., Ph.D.

To the Editor:

Once upon a time, before video games, televisions, iPods and cellphones, we had to entertain ourselves. And most of us did so by playing outside. Youth spend 50 percent less time engaged in outdoor activities than kids did 20 years ago, and now we learn in “If Your Children Are Awake, Then They’re Probably Online” that they are “plugged in” for more than 50 hours each week.

Studies indicate that children who spend time in nature are more likely to develop positive attitudes toward the environment in adulthood. Today’s kids will have to deal with tomorrow’s environmental challenges. While climate change jeopardizes our very existence, inactivity threatens the health and well-being of our children; about one-third of American kids are overweight.

It is time to make a concerted effort to pull the plug and reconnect our kids with the wonderful and truly wireless world outside.

Jacqueline Ostfeld
Washington, Jan. 21, 2010
The writer is national youth representative for the Building Bridges to the Outdoors project of the Sierra Club.