News from BGEN: a million reasons to visit – Rio Tinto Naturescape Kings Park celebrates its millionth visitor Jill Murray, Senior Partnerships Officer, Botanic Gardens and Parks Authority Are you one in a million? This year Rio Tinto Naturescape Kings Park clocked over its millionth visitor! Whether you visited this much-loved nature play space to make mud pies in the recent school holidays or if you were one of the first visitors to paddle in the creek 12 years ago, you can count yourself as one of our million visitors. Our urban wilderness was the first children’s play space of its kind when we launched back in 2011. At the time children’s playgrounds had become risk-averse spaces with rubberised soft-fall surfaces and very few natural materials. Sedentary pastimes were also on the rise with time spent on screens disconnecting children from the natural world. When it opened to the public Rio Tinto Naturescape Kings Park was revolutionary. In contrast with the trends of the time, it encouraged active play in a natural space with activities like tree climbing, creek paddling, and balancing on log bridges. It challenged preconceptions of what made for ‘safe’ children’s outdoor play both with parents and the wider community. Children engaging in active nature-based activities develop a skill set that includes risk assessment, problem-solving, and physical aptitudes. They learn about the natural world and have lots of fun on the journey. Parents in 2023 consider outdoor play in a natural space to be a normal part of a healthy childhood. Maybe this is because our million visitors have spread the word?
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Adorable Florables. Credit: Matt Biocich
THE BOTANIC GARDENer | ISS 61 Summer 2023
