Colorado Kids Outdoors

Boy and Dad in Nature

Colorado Kids Outdoors (CKO) is committed to creating a healthy future for Colorado's youth by increasing the amount of time our kids spend outside, in nature. Leaders in business, health, education, local government and natural resource communities are joining together to address this challenge unique to today’s children.

The Problem
Colorado's children, like the rest of the nation's children, do not spend time outside and are disconnected from the natural world. In a typical week...more

The Costs
Research shows that time spent outdoors (playing, recreating and learning) helps prevent obesity and the variety of related health issues...more

The Solution
Spending frequent time outdoors is the best way to develop a connection to nature and lays the foundation on which to build an environmental stewardship ethic. A coordinated effort...more

Colorado Kids Outdoors Statement of Purpose
Colorado Kids Outdoors is a collaboration among organizations in the public, private and nonprofit sectors for whom the shared goal is increasing outdoor activity for children. The purpose of this effort is to create a comprehensive framework within the State of Colorado to support efforts of many diverse organizations to provide opportunities, environments and infrastructure for children throughout the State to spend significant quality time in the outdoors. The elements of this framework must include:

Development and adoption of public policies at the state and local levels that reflects a very high priority for the goal of ensuring that all Colorado’s children, in particular minority and underserved children, have access to safe and healthy, structured and unstructured, outdoor experiences;
Advocating for the allocation of resources, including new resources, in support of organizations and initiatives that seek to reconnect children and nature;
Creation of mechanisms for communication, big idea and best practice exchange, leveraging of effort, and regular networking and coordination among organizations, individuals and agencies that are working to expand childhood environmental education and outdoor activities; and
Identification and elimination of barriers that prevent any child in Colorado from free and safe access to outdoor experiences that enable them to lead a healthy and successful life and prepares them for the future stewardship of Colorado’s environment.

Colorado Kids Outdoors Leadership Planning Team

Background on Colorado Kids Outdoors