Join a Play Date with Nature

Join a Play Date with Nature

On Sunday 6th March, Ivon Wilson Park in Te Anau will come alive with the sounds of excited children as they explore nature with their families.
Southland District Council, Kids Restore the Kepler, Fiordland Kindergarten, Southern Stars, Plunket, and the Department of Conservation have teamed up once again to run a ‘Play Date with Nature’ to celebrate Children’s Day and encourage families to enjoy some quality time together in the outdoors.

The day will be fun for the whole family with a wide range of activities to enjoy. Come along to ride on a flying fox, climb on an adventure ropes course, create music and art with natural objects, cook damper over a fire, listen to stories, hunt for bugs, play with mud and much more.
Angela Bell, from the Te Anau Library, is helping to organise the event and says Children’s Day is a wonderful chance for children and their families to spend time together exploring and playing in the great outdoors.
“We are so lucky in Fiordland to have great reserves and parks on our doorstep and this day is filled with ideas on how we can interact with, and learn about, nature.”

Connecting children with nature is one of the main goals of the major restoration and education project, Kids Restore the Kepler. This community-driven initiative, managed by the Fiordland Conservation Trust, aims to remove introduced predators from the Kepler project area, and ultimately return native birdlife to the area.

For Alessandra Menegatti, Kids Restore the Kepler Education Coordinator, the event is a special occasion for children and young at heart to come together and enjoy Ivon Wilson Park.

“After all,” she said quoting David Attenborough, "No one will protect what they don't care about; and no one will care about what they have never experienced".
Play Date with Nature will take place in Te Anau's Ivon Wilson Park on Sunday 6 March, between 11 am and 3 pm. The event will take place regardless of most weather conditions, so participants are advised to dress appropriately.
Everybody is welcome but the organisers ask that four-legged friends are left at home. Sausages will be sizzled for lunch by Plunket.

This event is run with the help of many dedicated volunteers from the community and the organisers would like to thank them for all their help and commitment.

ENDS

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