Why Environmental Education Matters And Why CKBY Is Leading the Way
How over 1,400 students discovered the power of nature at Camp Kum‑Ba‑Yah Nature Center in 2025.
Every year, thousands of children across Central Virginia step into the woods at Camp Kum‑Ba‑Yah Nature Center and experience something increasingly rare in childhood: unstructured time in nature, hands‑on learning, and the chance to explore the world with curiosity and confidence.
In 2025 alone, more than 1,400 students visited CKBY on school field trips, not just from Lynchburg, but from Amherst, Bedford, Campbell County, and beyond. These visits weren’t simply “fun days outside.” They were powerful, research‑supported learning experiences that shape how young people understand themselves, their community, and the natural world.
A major academic review published in People and Nature (2026) reinforces what we see every day at CKBY: environmental education is one of the most effective tools we have for building knowledge, confidence, stewardship, and lifelong connection to nature.
Here’s what the research, and our own experience, tells us.
🌱 1. Environmental education builds real academic and cognitive skills
The article synthesizes eight systematic reviews and finds that environmental education consistently improves:
Critical thinking and problem‑solving
Observation and inquiry skills
Science literacy
Academic achievement across subjects
When students investigate tree rings, identify animal tracks, or explore biodiversity plots at CKBY, they’re not just learning science facts: they’re practicing the same analytical skills that support success in school and beyond.
🌿 2. Time in nature strengthens confidence, resilience, and personal growth
The research is clear: outdoor learning environments help young people develop:
Confidence in their abilities
Resilience when facing challenges
A sense of belonging and connection
Curiosity and intrinsic motivation
We see this every day.
A second grader proudly identifying her adopted tree.
A fifth grader writing a haiku inspired by the wind across Long Lake.
A group of students discovering the hidden world of insects in KinderWoods.
These moments matter. They build the foundation for confident, capable, compassionate young people.
🌎 3. Environmental education fosters stewardship and pro‑environmental behavior
One of the strongest findings in the article is that environmental education doesn’t just teach about nature: it changes how people act.
Students who participate in high‑quality environmental education are more likely to:
Care for natural spaces
Make environmentally responsible choices
Engage in community stewardship
Understand their role in protecting ecosystems
At CKBY, we see this spark ignite when students learn how trees grow, how animals adapt, or how seasonal changes shape the forest. They begin to see themselves as part of something bigger and as people who can make a difference.
🌳 4. Hands‑on, place‑based learning is the most effective approach, and it’s CKBY’s specialty
The article highlights that the most impactful environmental education programs share key features:
Outdoor, place‑based learning
Hands‑on investigation
Real‑world problem solving
Social collaboration
Repeated or extended engagement
This is exactly what CKBY offers.
Our 47‑acre urban forest, protected forever by conservation easement, is a living classroom where students can touch, observe, question, and explore. From tree cookies to biodiversity plots to sensory hikes, every lesson is rooted in direct experience.
🌟 5. Environmental education benefits entire communities
The research emphasizes that environmental education:
Strengthens community well‑being
Builds environmental literacy across generations
Supports long‑term conservation goals
Helps children develop healthier relationships with the outdoors
CKBY’s role as a year‑round nature center means these benefits ripple far beyond summer camp. Families walk the Cosby Trail. Teachers return year after year. Students bring home stories, questions, and new ways of seeing the world.
This is how a community grows stronger: one child, one classroom, one experience at a time.
💛 Your Support Makes This Possible
CKBY’s environmental education programs are made possible by donors who believe that every child deserves access to nature, regardless of background or income.
Your generosity helps us:
Keep field trip costs low for schools
Provide high‑quality, standards‑aligned lessons
Maintain trails, habitats, and outdoor learning spaces
Train staff and educators
Expand programming to reach more students across Central Virginia
When you support CKBY, you’re not just funding a field trip.
You’re investing in curiosity, confidence, stewardship, and the next generation of environmental leaders.
🌲 Help Us Continue This Work
If you believe in the power of nature to transform young lives, and if you want to help us reach even more students in 2026, we invite you to support CKBY’s year‑round programming.
Together, we can ensure that every child has a place to explore, learn, and grow.
Because when children discover the world, they discover themselves.
