Tag Archives: Bay Tree Design
New group with Berkeley roots aims to get kids outside
Sharon Danks and her colleagues around the world are doing their best to combat so-called nature deficit disorder in today’s children, many of whom are growing up with competing demands such as “screen time,” and other barriers to a romp in the park such as safety concerns or access issues.
Danks, a planner and partner with Bay Tree Design in Berkeley, recently co-founded the global group International School Grounds Alliance to address an increasingly sedentary and risk-averse generation of young ones who, it is feared, are becoming disconnected from their natural environments. Some children, shuttled from school to home to other indoor activities, simply don’t spend much, if any, time in the great outdoors.
The nascent organization, with members in Australia, Canada, Germany, Japan, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States, want kids to experience the fun and games of outside play. … Continue reading »
Berkeley’s asphalt-to-green movement rooted in schools
Sharon Danks, an environmental planner and founding partner of Berkeley’s Bay Tree Design, is a leader in transforming asphalt playgrounds into kid-friendly places replete with ponds, plants, and places to play.
This video, produced by Erika Brekke for OnEarth magazine, shows Danks’ transformation of the grounds at Rosa Parks Elementary in Berkeley. It’s a wonderland for kids with tree stumps to sit on, rocks to climb on, ponds to study, and vegetables to eat. The teachers use the outdoor space in parts of the curriculum, too, the video shows. … Continue reading »
