The world is changing rapidly. Serious issues have emerged that affect our children, and our future.
These big issues are ours to solve!
Camp Education International invites you to help take responsibility for solving them. If you are an educator, youth development professional, camp professional, coach, parent, or anyone who wants to build a better world and help children today develop into healthy, resilient adults, join our organization now and help us tackle what's in front of us all - solving for the concerns and challenges our children face right now, worldwide.
Children and Adolescents Spend Too Much Time on Screens
Total time spent in front of screens is increasingly recognized as a serious global health concern. In The Anxious Generation, author Jonathan Haidt summarizes this problem very effectively, as follows:
"The Anxious Generation offers an explanation by telling two stories. The first is about the decline of the play-based childhood, which began in the 1980s and accelerated in the ‘90s. The loss of free play and the rise of continual adult supervision deprived children of what they needed most to overcome the normal fears and anxieties of childhood: the chance to explore, test and expand their limits, build close friendships through shared adventure, and learn how to judge risks for themselves.
The second story is about the rise of the phone-based childhood, which began in the late 2000s and accelerated in the early 2010s. This was precisely the period during which adolescents traded in their flip phones for smartphones, which were loaded with social media platforms supported by the new high-speed internet and unlimited data plans.
Camp Education is the solution to this global health challenge: children and young adults are outside, unplugged and active, benefitting from the sustained, play-based experiences accessible to previous generations.
Camp education addresses both issues at once: creating high-quality educational environments typically held outdoors that are grounded in experiential play (informal, group-based, creative and innovative activity), without screens or devices (most summer camp programs do not allow smartphones and other similar devices).
Children and Adolescents Are Increasingly Obese
Since 1990, obesity has quadrupled among children and adolescents (5 to 19 years of age), according to a 2024 study from the World Health Organization. While there are many factors contributing to this major global health crisis, one of them is simple and straightforward: children and adolescents are not spending enough time outdoors, moving and exercising their bodies.
Camp Education provides what children and adolescents increasingly need: children and young adults are consistently and progressively active, at a time when their developing bodies and minds need this most.
Children and adolescents walk, run, hike, explore, move, and play - for the majority of the day. This in in contrast to the short dosages of physical education time designated for that purpose during a traditional school day, an important distinction.
Children and Adolescents Are Increasingly Myopic
According to leading researchers at Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou, China, myopia, an eye condition where someone cannot see objects far away clearly, has emerged as a major public health concern, specifically with regards to children and adolescents. More than one in three children and teenagers worldwide are now shortsighted, with the prevailing theory that screen time is directly responsible.
Young people need "far work" with their eyes, and "far work" can only take place outdoors. For countless generations, humans have spent more time outside than inside, and it is only in the last few generations that this has begun to significantly shift.
Camp Education specializes in "far work" for eyes: children and young adults are outdoors, concentrating and focusing on a variety of engaging tasks, keeping their eyes (and brains) healthy.
During a typical activity day providing camp education, participants are focused (literally) on all kinds of different stimuli, among them other children, terrain, targets (for archery and similar activities), landmarks (during hikes), obstacles, objectives, and the broader immediate environment.
Children and Adolescents Are Increasingly Isolated and Depressed
According to the World Health Organization, globally, one in seven 10-19 year-olds experiences a mental disorder, with depression, anxiety, and behavior disorders being most common. While there are many factors contributing to these trends, one of the primary drivers is simply the lack of time and opportunities for children and teenagers to spend time together in an increasingly isolated world.
In the United States, a team of researchers from the University of Utah published the National Camp Impact Study in 2002. As it relates to the rise in isolation and depression, they found:
- Youth who reported high levels of engagement at camp generally also reported high levels of belonging,
supportive youth-staff relationships, and opportunities for action-based and – to a lesser extent – reflection-
based experiential learning. - Youth who had higher quality camp experiences reported higher levels of affinity for nature,
willingness to try new things, social awareness, independence, and grit than youth who had lower quality camp
experiences. - Youth who had higher quality camp experiences in terms of engagement, belonging, youth-adult relationships,
and experiential learning also reported higher levels of appreciation for being present after camp.