PKP has determined, through research, that national trends in Nature Based Outdoor Recreation (NBOR) support the recommendation to invest time and capital into the projects outlined in the proposed plan.

Since the publication of Richard Louv’s book, “Last Child in the Woods” and a recent paper by Oliver R.W. Pergrams and Patricia A. Zaradic titled “Evidence for a Fundamental and Pervasive Shift Away from Nature Based Recreation,” there has been considerable interest in better understanding current trends in NBOR. A very small sampling of this research and analytics is included in our findings, along with links to additional data (links section).

The general flow of the material was outlined in H. Ken Cordell’s white paper, “The Latest on Trends in Nature Based Outdoor Recreation”- Spring 2008.

Cordell found that the research and data support the observation that “all nature based recreation activities popular in the 1960’s, such as hiking, camping and picnicking, are still popular with the American Public (today).” While there has been an ebb and flow of interest and participation, over the long-term, interest and participation has increased and additional activities have been introduced into the core group listed above.

Click to read complete reports from:

Outdoor Recreation Resources Review Commission (ORRRC)

National Survey on Recreation and the Environment (NSRE)