The Minnesota Children’s Outdoor Bill of Rights

Children’s experiences with the outdoors have evolved since Silent Sports started publishing in 1984. Older generations recall a “come home when the street lights turn on” approach to summer fun with fond memories. That generation roamed miles from home on their bikes, exploring the woods that are now likely a subdivision filled with homes and businesses.

According to Richard Louv, author of the 2005 book, “Last Child in the Woods”, the distance children roam from home to play has dramatically decreased from the Baby Boomers to Generation X, Y and Z. Louv reports that “since the 1970s, the radius a child can roam when they are outside has declined by 90%.” Riding a bike ten miles to a wild exurban park has been replaced with hours-long sessions with video game controllers.

In August 2022, the state of Minnesota launched the Children’s Outdoor Bill of Rights initiative. The concept originated when state leaders, children’s advocates, and community leaders recognized that children from diverse backgrounds faced obstacles and challenges to outdoor experiences.

A collaborative effort involving state and local governments, public health officials, nonprofit organizations, and community volunteers developed the Children’s Outdoor Bill of Rights to create formal policies, programming, and funding changes to encourage outdoor recreation.

The Children’s Outdoor Bill of Rights includes 15 activities that reflect a genuine connection between children and wild places.

All Minnesota’s children have a right to:

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  Experience Minnesota’s four seasons
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  Explore and play outdoors in a safe, welcoming, and culturally affirming place
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  Splash, play, or swim in rivers, lakes, ponds, and community pools
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  Plant a tree and watch it grow
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  Start or participate in an urban, community, or personal garden or farm
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  Compost and recycle for a healthy environment
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  Bike, ride, or ski a public trail
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  Camp under the stars and safely build a campfire
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  Catch and eat a fish
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  Hike, hunt, or forage on public lands
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  Boat or paddle on one of our 11,842 lakes
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  Participate in outdoor sports and recreational activities
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  Create art and attend outdoor concerts, festivals, and community events centered in nature
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  Participate in traditions and culturally specific ancestral practices rooted in nature
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  Protect and preserve our environment for future generations

As of January 15, 2025, more than 125 organizations have signed the pledge in support of the Children’s Outdoor Bill of Rights. Partners have developed the COBR Action Plan 2025-2027. The plan presents the vision of equitable outdoor access into specific, actionable steps with assigned organizational “champions” held accountable for progress.

Primary Priorities

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  Elevate nature as a partner for mental health and well-being in schools
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  Empower schools and childcare facilities to expand and improve nearby nature spaces
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  Identify and coordinate support for getting more children experiencing disadvantages outside

Secondary Priorities

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  Develop Children’s Outdoor Bill of Rights advocacy and communications tools
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  Develop an environmental sustainability and climate resiliency toolkit for public, nonprofit and private organizations serving youth

From a time when getting outside to play was a child’s primary mission in life, we now need formal, government-driven initiatives to encourage outdoor play. Society has undergone fundamental changes since Silent Sports launched in 1984. As a community, we need to acknowledge that access to outdoor spaces might not be as easy as it was for earlier generations. As the press release announcing the initiative notes, “the Minnesota Children’s Bill of Rights transforms outdoor access from a privilege into a guaranteed right for every child in the state.”