December 6, 2005
Press Release

Minnesota DNR - News Releases

Technology, kids and the outdoors

Darn near have the whole TV remote - DVD/VCR player thing figured out. Have even mastered the options on my cell phone. Yet I keep falling further and further behind in the dizzying world of technology.

Henry David Thoreau once warned that the day is coming when we will become tools of our tools. Old Henry was pretty prophetic. That day arrived long ago. Now, the three worst words in the typical workplace are, "The computer's down." When the computer system crashes, employees are suddenly relegated to doing tasks that don't require a computer - mostly dusting their office furniture or re-arranging the pens and pencils in their desk drawer.

The latest technological craze, apparently, is something called the Xbox. As I understand it, the Xbox console is a gizmo that allows a user to access somewhere in the neighborhood of three billion computer games, not one of which anyone over the age of 40 would have the slightest idea of how to play.

Microsoft sold 450,000 Xbox 360 consoles on November 22, the first day they became available. Of course, by this time next year the 360 will be obsolete, to be replaced by the XXgeekbox, a device that will allow the average ten year-old to completely avoid reality for the next 25 years.

Last year in this country alone, $8 billion was spent on video games. At the rate we're going, the limbs of our young people are going to start to atrophy to the point where someday only the push button fingers will work.

Mother Nature, it seems, is losing the battle with technology for the hearts and minds of the young. Rather than race home after school to join dad for a couple hours of pheasant hunting, many of the younger crowd races home to the computer. Rather than trade stories with friends about their latest outdoor adventure, they talk (in code) to complete strangers over the Internet.

We live in a world of information overload. It comes from so many sources, so quickly, that it's like trying to drink water from a fire hydrant. If it isn't fast-paced and glitzy, many kids lose interest. There are no such guarantees with nature. Its' flow and rhythms can be slow, measured, even droning. On the other hand, it can suddenly become furious, brilliant, awesome. You take, with patience, what nature gives. She won't be changed by the click of a mouse or remote control and that, in the minds of many, can be a turn-off. Patience is no longer considered quite the virtue it once was, it seems.

Growing up in a small southern Minnesota town along the Minnesota River provided splendid opportunities for exploring the outdoors. A bike ride of just a few blocks took us from the tame life of town to the wild side of the country. There we might build a fort of tree branches, follow a killdeer feigning injury, float a homemade raft across a backwater pond, cast heavy braided line into the river, or hike deer trails up and down ravines. Contrast those youthful experiences to present day, when a walk through a city park can be considered a wilderness experience. So, as young people become less inclined to immerse themselves in the outdoors, where will the future advocates for natural resource conservation come from? Studies have shown that environmental attitudes are formed as a result of life experiences rather than any specific program designed to change attitudes. A great deal of these life experiences are learned during childhood, such as hunting, hiking, fishing, or camping. And parents are the principle introducers of young people to the outdoors.

When young people are introduced to the sights, sounds, smells and tastes of the outdoors, they gain awareness of natural resources. Awareness leads to appreciation, appreciation leads to emotional attachment, and emotional attachment leads to action. In the end, we conserve only what we love and appreciate.

Years ago famed conservationist Aldo Leopold opined the following. "A man may not care for golf and still be human, but the man who does not like to see, hunt, photograph or otherwise outwit birds or animals is hardly normal. He is supercivilized and I for one do not know how to deal with him. Babes do not tremble when shown a golf ball, but I should not like to own the boy whose hair does not lift his hat when he sees his first deer. ?When the last corner lot is covered with tenements we can still make a playground by tearing them down, but when the last antelope goes by the board, not all the playground associations in Christendom can do aught to replace the lost." As adults, the choice is ours. Another video game or a walk in the woods.

An Outdoor Column From: Tom Conroy DNR Information Officer 261 Highway 15 South New Ulm,MN 56073 507-359-6014 tom.conroy@dnr.state.mn.us 

New law requires a sticker to ride snowmobile trails

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) reminds people that a Minnesota snowmobile state trail sticker is now required for all snowmobiles operated on any state or grant-in-aid snowmobile trail in Minnesota. A new law requiring the sticker was enacted during the 2005 legislative session. It took effect Oct. 1.

The state trail sticker costs $16 for an annual permit and $31 for a three-year sticker, which may only be purchased during snowmobile registration. The permit will only be valid from Nov. 1 through Apr. 30 of each year.

Tom Danger of the DNR's Trails & Waterways Division said operators of snowmobiles caught on a state or grant-in-aid trail without a valid trail sticker will be required to purchase an annual permit at the price of the three-year permit, $31.

Annual stickers can be purchased from a deputy registrar or any of the 1,800 electronic licensing agents throughout Minnesota, by telephone at 1-888-665-4236, or on the DNR Web site at www.dnr.state.mn.us.

The three-year sticker is available at a deputy registrar office; through the mail to the DNR at 500 Lafayette Road, St. Paul, MN 55155; or with an online renewal at www.dnr.state.mn.us. A $3.50 convenience fee will be added to stickers purchased by telephone or online. More information about the state trail sticker, including proper placement, can be found in the 2005-2006 Minnesota Snowmobile Regulations handbook.

Minnesota has 20,385 total miles of snowmobile trails, with more than 18,000 miles managed and maintained by local snowmobile clubs through the grant-in-aid program.

51 Minnesota schools receive archery grants from DNR; physical education archery program growing rapidly

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has awarded grants to 51 schools to purchase archery equipment. The grants, which are part of Minnesota's National Archery in the Schools Program, enable schools to acquire state of the art archery gear at a greatly reduced cost.

Minnesota, which launched the physical education based archery program last year, had the largest pilot in the country when it enrolled 50 schools. The grant program has enabled the state to double the size and scope of this program.

According to Ryan Bronson, the DNR's recruitment and retention supervisor, archery's popularity with teachers and students has made expansion of the program much easier.

"There is something magical about releasing that first arrow and hitting the target," Bronson said. "They can't help but smile when they realize that they can do this."

Providing high-quality equipment at a low cost is just part of the program. The DNR also provides teacher training so that instructors can learn how to effectively and safely teach archery.

"After the training session, even novices have the tools to effectively teach archery," Bronson said.

"Archery is a lifetime sport," Bronson explained. "We want to teach these beginning shooters the fundamentals of archery form so that they can build on them for a lifetime of recreational or competitive shooting."

The DNR is also encouraging schools to establish after school archery programs. Several schools have started archery clubs and many more are working with existing archery clubs to provide youth leagues. The 4-H shooting sports program is an active partner with many other school programs.

Schools participating in the National Archery in the Schools Program are eligible to compete in the State Archery in the Schools Tournament, which will be held April 1 in Sartell.

SCHOOLS IN ARCHERY IN THE SCHOOLS GRANT PROGRAM IN 2005-2006 Aitkin High School

Andover High School

Annandale High School

Anoka High School

Blaine High School

Braham High School

Cloquet Christian Academy

Cook County High School

Coon Rapids High School

Cromwell Wright School

Detroit Lakes High School

Evansville Pubic School

Fred Moore Middle School

Golden Hill ALC (Rochester)

Harmony ALC/John Glenn Middle Schools (Maplewood)

Henry Sibley High (Mendota Heights)

Hilltop Primary School (Westonka)

Janesville-Waldorf-Pemberton School

Jordan High School

Lake City High School

Lake Park-Audubon School

Lakeville North High School

Lincoln High (Ivanhoe)

Maple River Schools

McGregor Schools

Minneapolis South High School

Morgan Park Middle School (Duluth)

Mountain Lake Public Schools

New York Mills High School

North Branch High School

North Junior High School (Hopkins)

Northome Schools

Ogilvie Public Schools

Parkers Prairie High School

Pillager Public Schools

Pine City Junior/Senior High School

Plainview Community Schools

Prairie Wind Middle School (Perham)

Red Lake County Elementary School

Red Lake County High School

Red Lake Middle School

Robbinsdale Middle School

ROC Charter High School (Rochester)

Roosevelt Middle School (Blaine)

St. Charles High School

Twin Bluff Middle School (Red Wing)

Two Harbors High School

Verndale Public School

Warren Alvarado Oslo High School

Watertown-Mayer Middle School

Woodbury Junior High School