Members of the LA STEM Collective activate parks along CicLAvia routes to create 

STEM Stations. Next up, Barnsdall Art Park, Sunday 8/21/22.

LOS ANGELES (15 August 2022) The LA STEM Collective, a group of more than 40 museums, parks, zoos, aquariums and community-based STEM education organizations are partnering with the open streets organization CicLAvia to create STEM Stations where member organizations conduct STEM education experiences for children and families.

The Los Angeles STEM Collective is one of five state and regional organizations nationwide participating in Cities Connecting Children to Nature (CCCN), a joint initiative of the National League of Cities and the Children & Nature Network, to support local communities to increase equitable access to nature.

“We think CicLAvia is the perfect opportunity to help children and families recognize the nature that is all around us, even in the built environment,” said Dwain Wilson, Executive Director of Wildwoods, a nonprofit organization that serves as the backbone agency for the Collective. “And these STEM Stations help us introduce residents to the community-based organizations that are working in their neighborhoods.”

The partnership kicked off at the July 10, 2022 CivLAvia event in South LA. There, the LA STEM Collective set up a STEM Station at Martin Luther King Jr. Park along the CicLAvia route on Western Ave., providing hands-on activities for children and families. Volunteers with the Collective surveyed community members on their thoughts and feelings about nature in their neighborhoods, as well as barriers to engaging more deeply with nature in their everyday lives. 

“Our goal is to help children and families connect to nearby nature – nature found in our own backyards, local landscaping, neighborhoods, and communities, and change the perception that nature is something far away and largely inaccessible for many,” says Candice Dickens-Russell, President and CEO of Friends of the LA River. Dickens-Russell serves as of the Chair of the Advisory Council for Cities Connecting Children to Nature Los Angeles. “We think CicLAvia is the perfect vehicle to reach those families and learn how they connect with nature and how we can help them do that more.”

The next STEM Station will be at Barnsdall Art Park at the August 21 CicLAvia event, Meet the Hollywoods. Participating organizations include TreePeople, Friends of the LA River, Aquarium of the Pacific, Nature Nexus Institute, USC Sea Grant, Roundhouse Aquarium, and Wildwoods.

“CicLAvia’s new partnership with LA STEM Collective is a natural fit, a perfect alignment with our respective missions,” said Romel Pascual, CicLAvia Executive Director.

“LA STEM understands that nature is all around us everywhere, even in the built environment. ‘Ecology’ literally means the study of ourselves and our relationship to the environment. And our streets represent that connection we have to each other and to our communities, our neighbors, our local businesses, our built & natural environments, and to the diversity of culture that we call home. CicLAvia shows the possibilities of an ecosystem where the intersection of the built, social, and natural environments is joy.”

Wilson echoed the sentiment of mission alignment. “I’ve been a cyclist my entire life,” he said, “and many of the best moments in nature I’ve ever had have been on a bike. And at Wildwoods, our programs are all built around systems thinking and understanding nature as a system.  And bikes are one of the primary metaphors that we use to help kids understand systems principles like chain reactions. So, to me, this partnership is completely natural.”

Across the country, the LA STEM Collective is joined by the following organizations in the CCCN State and Regional Cohort: Lower Columbia Nature Network, Regional Plan Association, Texas Children in Nature Network, UTAH Office of Outdoor Recreation, and Western Reserve Land Conservancy. These awardees bring together three to five cities in the region to collaborate on equitable nature connections. Cities in the region join a growing network of CCCN cities across the nation connecting children to nature in green schoolyards, early childhood settings, libraries, and natural play areas in parks. 

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About the LA STEM Collective. The LA STEM Collective is a growing network of more than 40 museums, parks, aquariums, zoos, and nonprofit STEM education organizations that came together during the pandemic to provide remote learning opportunities for Los Angeles students, both in school and afterschool. Hosted by Wildwoods, a major goal of the newly formalized network is to optimize program delivery to the hundreds of thousands of children and youth in Los Angeles, with a focus on opening access to traditionally marginalized communities. Learn more at lastemcollective.org.

About CicLAvia. CicLAvia is a 501(c)(3) non-profit that catalyzes vibrant public spaces, active transportation, and good health through car-free streets. CicLAvia engages with people to transform our relationship with our communities and with each other.  Inspired by Bogotá’s weekly ciclovía, CicLAvia temporarily closes streets to car traffic and opens them to Angelenos to use as a public park. Free for all, CicLAvia connects communities to each other across an expansive city, creating a safe place to bike, walk, skate, roll, and dance through Los Angeles County.

About Cities Connecting Children to Nature (CCCN). Longstanding systems of inequity have influenced the design and distribution of green spaces. Cities Connecting Children to Nature, a joint initiative of  the National League of Cities and the Children & Nature Network, with funding from The JPB Foundation, supports municipal leaders and their community partners in shifting planning, policies and programs to connect children to the benefits of nature more often and more equitably.

About the Children & Nature Network (C&NN). The Children & Nature Network (C&NN) believes that nature makes children healthier, happier and smarter. C&NN is a US-based non-profit organization leading a global movement to increase equitable access to nature so that children—and natural places—can thrive. C&NN achieves its mission by investing in leaders and communities through sharing evidence-based resources, scaling innovative solutions, and driving policy change. Learn more at childrenandnature.org.

About the National League of Cities Institute for Youth, Education & Families (YEF Institute).  The YEF Institute at the National League of Cities is the go-to place for city leaders seeking to improve outcomes for children and families. With expertise in early childhood success, education & expanded learning, promoting a culture of health, youth and young adult connections, and economic opportunity and financial empowerment, the YEF Institute reaches cities of all sizes and brings together local leaders to develop strategies via technical assistance projects, peer learning networks, leadership academies, and Mayors’ Institutes. Learn more at nlc.org/iyef.

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Additional Contacts:

CicLAvia

Joanna Brody

joanna@brody-pr.com

310-430-0292

Candice Dickens-Russell

Friends of the LA River, President & CEO

CCCN Advisory Council Chair 

candice@folar.org

562-805-8605

Ben Dickow

Columbia Memorial Space Center, President & CEO

LA STEM Collective Chair

bend@lastemcollective.org

310-614-6048

Children & Nature Network (C&NN)

Monica Lopez-Magee, Senior Vice President, Cities and Community Engagement

monica@childrenandnature.org

512-658-9622

National League of Cities (NLC)

Josh Falk, CCCN Program Manager

falk@nlc.org