Spring Outside this Earth Day with New Online Tools from The Nature Conservancy

Share Your Earth Day Experience Online at Nature.org

SEATTLE, WA — April 13, 2009 — Get out into the natural world, then share the experience with your friends for Earth Day. The Nature Conservancy is offering new tools at nature.org/earthday to help people stay connected to nature and to each other.

You can find new places to go, including many Conservancy preserves right here in Washington state, on the interactive map at the Conservancy’s Spring Outside site. You’ll also find easy ways to connect with friends and share photos of your experiences, like Facebook and Flickr. At the MyNature Page, you can customize your own Conservancy Web page and virtually visit nature preserves across the country.

“Here in Washington, we’re blessed with mountains and forests and ocean and desert. Spending time in these special places enriches our lives in many ways. Whether it’s hiking or paddling, or just going for a walk among the wildflowers, let’s get outside this spring,” said Karen Anderson, Washington State Director for The Nature Conservancy.

People are happier and healthier when they encounter nature, a recent study funded by The Nature Conservancy found. Spending time in nature improves cognitive functioning, reduces symptoms of Attention Deficit Disorder, and increases emotional well-being in people of all ages. (Read more about it at http://www.nature.org/tncscience/misc/art23800.html.) So make time this Earth Day, and all spring, to hike with your family at Ebey’s Landing on Whidbey Island, or search for wildflowers in the Beezley Hills Preserve in eastern Washington, or explore someplace you’ve never been. It’s good for you, and it’s good for the planet.

The Nature Conservancy is a leading conservation organization working around the world to protect ecologically important lands and waters for nature and people. The Conservancy and its more than 1 million members have protected nearly 120 million acres worldwide. Visit The Nature Conservancy on the Web at www.nature.org.