Course overview

The Hybrid Mind

In this course, the importance of spending time in nature is discussed as it pertains to building better brains. Factors such as how the senses and sensibilities can be improved by spending time in nature; and how the natural environment stimulates the ability to pay attention, think clearly, and be more creative are studied.
 Faculty

Richard Louv

 Board Review Series

AIHM 2016 Annual Conference

 Required Lessons

1

 Time to Complete

1 hour

 Non-CME Eligible*

0 Credits 

What you will learn

  • Course Summary

  • The ultimate multitasking is to live simultaneously in both the digital and physical worlds, using computers to maximize our powers to process intellectual data and natural environments to ignite our senses and accelerate our ability to learn and feel— combining the resurfaced "primitive" powers of our ancestors with the digital speed of our teenagers.

    There's no denying the benefits of the Internet. But electronic immersion without a force to balance it creates a hole in the boat, draining our ability to pay attention, think clearly, be productive and creative. To combat these losses, our society seems to look everywhere but the natural domain for the building of better brains.

    While the study of the relationship between mental acuity, creativity, and time spent outdoors is still a frontier for science, new data suggests that exposure to the living world can even enhance intelligence. At least two factors are involved: first, our senses and sensibilities can be improved by spending time in nature; second, the natural environment seems to stimulate our ability to pay attention, think clearly, and be more creative. I ask: What if educators, parents, business and government gave equal time to technology and the natural world? What if for every education dollar we spent on the virtual, we spent another dollar on the real? The more high‐tech our lives become, the more nature we need.
    By the end of this course, learners will be able to:

    • Examine the importance of time in nature and natural environment in enhancing intelligence.
    • Discuss how nature therapy can be effective with certain mental health disorders.
    • Recognize the importance of engage with nature for youths and those at high-risk.

Course includes:

  • Video recording
  • Downloadable audio
  • Speaker handout(s)
  • 1 Quiz
  • Certificate of Completion

Included in this course

Course Faculty

Richard Louv

About Richard
Richard Louv is the author of nine books, including Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder and The Nature Principle. Translated into 15 languages and published in 20 countries, his books have helped launch an international movement to connect children and their families to nature. Serving as companion handbook to the two prior books, his most recent book is Vitamin N: The Essential Guide to a Nature-Rich Life (Algonquin Books, April, 2016).

Richard Louv is co-founder and chairman emeritus of the Children & Nature Network. He has written for the New York Times, the Times of London, Parents Magazine and many other publications, and has appeared on CBS This Morning, NPRs Diane Rehm Show and Fresh Air, the Today Show, Good Morning America, NBC Nightly News, and other programs. Among other awards, Louv is the recipient of the 2008 Audubon Medal; past recipients have included Rachel Carson, E.O. Wilson and Jimmy Carter.

In 2010, he delivered the plenary keynote at the national conference of the American Academy of Pediatrics, and in 2012 was keynote speaker at the first White House Summit on Environmental Education. He is currently working on his tenth book, about the evolving relationship between humans and other animals. Married to Kathy Frederick Louv, he is the father of two young men, Jason and Matthew. He would rather hike than write.

*CME/CEU Credits

The CME for this course has expired, however you will continue to have access to your purchased content. 

Enroll Now!

This course is self-paced with no set beginning or end date. You may complete this course on your own schedule and pace. Enrolling in and purchasing this course grants you access to its contents in perpetuity.