Mission Monarch and the fight against nature-deficit disorder

Over the last thirty years, children have been spending less time outdoors, resulting in the appearance of what American journalist Richard Louv has called nature-deficit disorder. This syndrome of disconnection with our natural world may contribute to negative effects on health (anxiety, attention disorders, depression and obesity).

How do we reconnect with nature and wildlife when we lead lives that are urban, sedentary, overcrowded and overstimulated? When we feel detached from the living world, how do we go about freeing the adventurer in us?

In this article, we propose the community-science program Mission Monarch for stimulating our ecological awareness, developing our appreciation of living things and heightening our desire to protect them.

Combining nature and play

Participating in Mission Monarch to inventory monarchs and milkweed can be a fun activity when done with family or with friends. It’s like a treasure hunt or an investigation – with a positive environmental impact!

Equipped with your note-taking sheet, set off on a hike in search of milkweed, the only plant that monarch caterpillars feed on. Throughout your walk, carefully inspect the milkweed in search of eggs, caterpillars, chrysalises and monarchs.

Enjoy the open air, the landscapes and the birdsongs. Once you’re back home, turn in your data and your photos on the mission-monarch.org/en site. You’ll be contributing to the advancement of scientific knowledge that will help protect this butterfly.

Cultivating biophilia

During your inventory activity, a host of things will no doubt have caught your attention in the surrounding biodiversity. Maybe you heard the song of an unknown bird? Why not use the Merlin Bird ID application to identify it?

Or possibly you observed a beautiful beetle and took a picture of it? Why not share your discovery on iNaturalist and let its community propose an identification?

Or else, maybe you’ve seen majestic butterflies that look like monarchs. Were you aware that a brand-new eButterfly app exists to register your butterfly sightings?

Developing an eco-responsible awareness

These activities – Mission Monarch along with other community-science initiatives – offer excellent opportunities for cultivating our awareness of the richness and complexity of ecosystems. They’re gateways to a more united and responsible relationship with nature. Moreover, these programs are often supported by a community of participants who’ll be delighted to answer your questions!

It’s in getting to know the species that we share our world with that we also develop a fuller understanding of the threats to their survival, things like climate change and habitat loss. Fortunately, every step you take when you participate in community-science initiatives contributes to sustaining and promoting protection of the environment.

Your turn to shine!

Obviously, these programs would amount to nothing without the remarkable people who bring them to life and who make themselves key actors in education, awareness-raising and commitment.

Now it’s up to you! Why not share the brand-new Mission Monarch tutorial with the outdoor enthusiasts in your networks: a good start to helping reduce nature-deficit disorder.

Reference

Louv, Richard, 2005. Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder. Algonquin Books.