Stacey Stickler, Associate Principal at Valerian, will be presenting at the Colorado Parks and Recreation Association‘s (CPRA) annual conference in Snowmass on Thursday September 13. Alongside Denver Parks and Recreation’s Sloane Bullecks, Stacey and Sloane will present, “Children Need Nature and Nature Needs Children”. 

Early exposure to nature by children is one of the most powerful experiences to influence their desire to work in, play in, and protect natural areas as adults. A natural play environment meets the child where they are physically, cognitively, and emotionally and provide greater diversity of play to a wider audience of children with a broader set of needs. The City and County of Denver Parks and Recreation recognizes the critical role natural environments play in optimal child development and advocates for connecting people and land through play as a core community value that is critical to a better quality of life and the development of future stewardship of our public spaces. Denver Parks and Recreation continues its commitment to incorporate high quality nature play in their parks, natural areas, and recreation facilities and this session discusses the important outcomes and challenges associated with their recent initiatives and partnerships.