Wang Yu can still vividly remember how she was inspired by a lecture she attended during her freshman year of college. This lecture became a crucial turning point in her pursuit of the natural sciences.
掌上春城讯大一时那场讲座带来的震撼，王愉至今记忆犹新，这也成为她走向自然教育之路的重要转折点。
Wang Yu are leading children to observe the nature. By an interviewee
王愉带领孩子观察自然。受访者供图
The lecture was given in 1996 by Liang Congjie, founder of the oldest environmental protection organization, “Friends of Nature.” Liang is also known as the son of Liang Sicheng and Lin Huiyin. Liang spent his childhood in Kunming and taught at Yunnan University in the 1960s, which caused him to develop deep feelings for Dian Lake. Speaking of the lake’s pollution at the time, he was visibly heartbroken. “I dare not and also cannot believe that the lake is so polluted. It used to be so large and clear.” These words struck a chord with Wang, who also grew up in Kunming and enjoyed the beauty of Dian Lake.
那是1996年的一天，主讲人是中国最早的环境保护机构“自然之友”的创始人梁从诫先生，梁思成、林徽因之子。幼年在昆明居住、上世纪60年代在云南大学任教的经历，让他对滇池有着深厚的感情。说起当时滇池已经被污染，他无比痛心，“我不敢相信，也不能相信，它曾经是那么大、那么清澈。”这番话击中了同样在昆明长大、亲身经历过滇池美好的王愉。
On the night after the lecture, she trembled with emotion and returned to her dormitory infused with the desire to do something to protect the environment. Not long after, she spearheaded the establishment of the “Huanqing Association,” the first student environmental group in Yunnan Province. After this, she served as a volunteer for environmental education, became part of a biodiversity protection NGO, went to the United states to study environmentalism and returned to Kunming to set up a nature education center. Through step-by-step explorations, her goals became clearer, guided all throughout by the shining beacon-like idea of environmental protection.
讲座结束的那个晚上，她颤抖着回到宿舍，一种想为环保做点什么的渴望灌满她的身体，不久后，她牵头成立了云南第一个学生环保社团“唤青社”。此后，做环境教育志愿者、参加生物多样性保护NGO、赴美国学习环境教育、回昆明创办自然教育中心……人生的探索一步步深入，目标越来越清新，而扎根心底的环保理念像茫茫大海上的灯塔始终指引着她。
为环保摸索半生
Spending Half a Lifetime Devoted to Environmental Protection
Wang feels lucky for her many beautiful childhood memories of Kunming. Her family usually went to Haigeng Park on weekends. There, adults swam and fished while children collected stones next to the crystal-clear water of Dian Lake. One primary school scene is indelibly imprinted in her mind: Her school was located on a hill. Looking about, one could see nearby fields that stretched all the way to the lake. The lake itself was bordered by the Western Hills, also known as “Sleeping Beauty.” After class, she and several friends would put their heads on the railings of the school building and gaze outward. Around nine in the morning, nearby households would start cooking, with puffs of smoke slowly rising from their chimneys.
让王愉感到幸运的是，她的童年记忆中留下了昆明很多美好的画面。海埂公园是一家人周末常去的地方，大人游泳、钓鱼，小孩捡石头，滇池清澈而又亲切。小学时的一幅场景深深刻在她的脑子里：学校位置较高，一眼望过去，近处是田野，田野的尽头是湖泊，湖泊边上就是西山睡美人。一到课间，几个好朋友就会趴在栏杆上远眺，9点左右，附近人家开始做饭，小房子里冒出缕缕炊烟。
This sight no longer exists, however, because of the rapidly changing city. Wang witnessed the pollution of this “mother” lake during her childhood and teenage years. When Mr. Liang woefully lectured about the pollution of Dian Lake, Wang was deeply touched and was also greatly inspired by his call for the people to take action and protect the environment. As the first student to ask a question that day, she asked Mr. Liang how to join the “Friends of Nature.” Mr. Liang replied, “We don’t encourage students to join NGOs. We would rather they establish their own associations.”
随着城市的变迁，这幅情景再也见不到了。从童年到少年，她正好经历了母亲湖水质污染的过程。梁从诫在那场讲座上讲述滇池污染时的痛心，她深有感触，梁先生号召人们保护环境的感召力让她深受鼓舞。那天她第一个站起来提问，怎样才能加入“自然之友”，梁先生说：“我们不鼓励学生加入NGO，我们鼓励学生成立自己的社团。”
Thus, over that weekend, Wang went to pick up trash at Green Lake Park with her roommates. This was during the season when Kunming transforms into a wild paradise upon the arrival of its black-headed gulls. Tourists would enthusiastically feed the gulls but would also leave garbage everywhere in the park. After collecting this trash for several weeks, both she and her roommates felt a sense of powerlessness in face of the endless rubbish. As an ecology student, she realized that more people needed to pay attention to environmental protection. During the spring of the following year, they started the “Huanqing Association,” the first college student environmental association in Yunnan. The association aimed at advocating the importance of environmental protection via surveys and photographic exhibitions, among other efforts, and it gained the strong support of the Communist Youth League Committee of Yunnan University. What makes her proud is that this association remains active to this day in continuously raising students’ awareness for environmental conservation and sustainable living.
那个周末，她便和舍友去翠湖捡垃圾。那是昆明和野生动物最亲近的季节——红嘴鸥飞来了，游客喂海鸥后留下的垃圾和他们喂海鸥的热情一样留在公园里。这样几周过后，他们有了一种无力感：垃圾怎么捡都是捡不完的。作为生态学专业的学生，她意识到应该唤起更多人对环保的关注。第二年春天，他们成立了云南第一个大学生环保社团——“唤青社”，通过调研、摄影展等宣传环保的重要性，得到学校团委的大力支持。令她骄傲的是，这个社团至今仍在活跃，持续推动学生对环保和可持续生活的认识。
Nevertheless, Wang found that the association’s activities did little to result in substantial societal changes. During her final year at college, an opportunity arose when Yunnan conducted a pilot program on environmental education. As such, Wang became a volunteer for the environmental education courses at a public elementary school in Kunming, and she started to think systematically about how to best integrate environmental education into classes. When she brought her children to the natural world and saw their eyes shine with excitement when they answered her questions, she saw the power of change. This was the first time that she had learned about environmental education, and she quickly accepted it as her lifelong vocation.
然而，社团活动仍让她觉得很难真正给社会带来变化。契机发生在大四，云南省开展环境教育试点，她成为昆明一所公办小学的环境教育课程志愿者，开始系统思考怎么将环境教育融入课堂。当她带着孩子们走进自然，看到孩子眼睛里闪着的光，热情地回应她提出的问题时，她看到了改变的力量。这是她第一次认识什么是环境教育，并把它当成自己终身的职业追求。
After graduating from college, she worked at the Center for Biodiversity and Indigenous Knowledge (CBIK) in Yunnan. Five years later, she left for Wisconsin, a state in the United States, to pursue a master’s degree, after which she returned to the field of environmental education. To gain insight into how environmentalism was taught in American schools, she took many off-campus internships and strove to immerse herself in the knowledge acquisition process.
大学毕业后，她进入云南省生物多样性和传统知识研究会工作。再次回到环境教育领域，是5年后赴美国威斯康星州攻读硕士学位。为了深入了解美国学校的环境教育，她争取了很多校外实习的机会，像一株深深扎根的植物拼命汲取养分。
After finishing her graduate studies, Wang tried to bring the US model of environmental education back to China. During her early attempts at teaching environmentalism, she assisted local institutions in Kunming with training programs, supervised college students and encouraged teachers and volunteers who focused on environmental issues to train people with the motivation to protect the environment.
毕业后，她试着把在国外学到的环境教育模式带回国。协助昆明本地机构做培训、给大学生做督导、推动关注环境问题的老师和志愿者成为对环境有行动力的人，是她早期关于环境教育的实践。
Motherhood was another turning point of Wang’s life. When she realized that urban life was preventing children from experiencing nature, the phrase “nature-deficit disorder” attracted her attention, and the idea of creating an ideal model for a nature-focused education started to germinate in her mind.
成为母亲是又一个转折的开始。当她发现城市生活正在阻碍孩子跟自然亲近时，“自然缺失症”这个词走进她的视野，构建一种理想的自然教育模式的种子在她心中萌芽。
In America, Wang discovered that environmentalism was mostly taught outdoors — “learning on the ground.” Thus, after a few attempts at setting up a nature education support group with a handful of parents, she established a nature education institution called Zaidi (or the “Yunnan Zaidi Nature Education Center” in full) in Kunming. This name, which means “on the ground” in Chinese, has three levels of connotation: “a local institution,” “close ties with the earth” and “the spirit of being down-to-earth.”
在美国，她发现环境教育都大量应用了室外教学方式，即“在地型”的学习场景。在经历了和几个伙伴组建自然教育互助小组的摸索后，一个名叫“在地”的自然教育机构（全称“云南在地自然教育中心”，以下简称“在地”）在昆明成立。在地，蕴含着“基于本地”、“与大地相连”的体验、“脚踏实地”三重含义。
把孩子带回自然
Bringing Children Back to Nature
Wang Zengqi, famous as a contemporary Chinese writer, once described the rainy season in Kunming as abounding with wild vegetables: “During the rainy season, all kinds of mushrooms sprout from the soil, their fragrance filling the air.”
“雨季一到，诸菌皆出，空气里一片菌子气味。”这是汪曾祺笔下盛产山野美味的昆明雨季。
In Gulu Forest Kindergarten about 30 miles from the central area of Kunming, children, led by Jasmine and Leopard Cat, look for the “little houses” depicted in fairy tales after a rain in the forest. A mushroom “house” with rising vapor attracts everyone’s attention. Jasmine pokes the surface of the mushroom while explaining that the vapors are its babies, called spores, and that they can develop into new mushrooms after the rain. The children then reach with their little hands in curiosity to feel the magical birth of these mushroom babies.
而在距离昆明主城30公里的咕噜森林幼儿园里，孩子们正在茉莉和山猫的带领下去下过雨的森林里寻找童话中的“小房子”。一朵会冒烟的蘑菇“房子”引起大家的注意，茉莉一边轻戳蘑菇表面，一边解释冒出的烟是蘑菇妈妈的宝宝——孢子，遇到雨水就会长出新的蘑菇。孩子们好奇地伸出小手，感受蘑菇宝宝繁殖的奇妙瞬间。
Jasmine, a tutor of Gulu Forest Kindergarten, is introducing the fresh-cut mushrooms to children. By Shi Yang
咕噜森林幼儿园的茉莉带着孩子认识刚采的蘑菇。施阳摄
The children’s exclamations can be heard, one after another, in the forest: “Here’s a bunch of potato mushrooms.” “The mushrooms smell like feet.” “They smell like chocolate bread.”
“这里有一堆土豆蘑菇。”“这个蘑菇有脚丫子的味道。”“像撒了巧克力粉的面包。”森林里，孩子们的惊叹声此起彼伏。
Their spot on Daqing Mountain is on the left side of “Sleeping Beauty.” Gulu Forest Kindergarten is located at the foot of the mountain. As one of the three major nature bases of Zaidi, the kindergarten specifically targets young children. Jasmine and Leopard Cat are both nature “tutors” at Zaidi. Indeed, they are the founders of the kindergarten. “Gulu” in Chinese is onomatopoeia for the sound of one’s stomach rumbling. Likewise, the children are told that they can lose themselves completely in the pleasures of the kindergarten.
这是西山睡美人“左耳朵”边的大青山，咕噜森林幼儿园就坐落在山脚下。作为“在地”的三大自然基地之一，主要面向幼儿阶段的孩子。茉莉和山猫是“在地”的自然导师，也是咕噜森林幼儿园的创始人。“咕噜”是肚子咕咕叫的声音，他们告诉孩子，这是一所会让你玩得肚子咕咕叫的森林幼儿园。
Jasmine is telling the story of “Mushroom Forest” to children by shadow plays. By Gu Tingting
茉莉用皮影为孩子讲述蘑菇森林的故事。顾婷婷摄
In line with the rhythms of nature, the kindergarten enriches the children’s experiences of nature with various community activities including “natural observation,” “living in nature,” “natural creation” and “hiking in the forest.” Around the time of the “insect awakening,” the kids observe insects. And during the “little summer,” they observe lotus flowers. In addition, on the Qingming Festival, they plant beans. As the seasons change, the children, immersed in their interactions with nature, experience joy, make friends and find comfort.
跟随自然的节奏，咕噜的社群活动用“自然观察”“自然生活”“自然创作”“森林远足”来丰富孩子在自然里的体验。惊蛰，观察虫子；小暑，看荷花；清明，种豆。节气流转，孩子们沉浸在与物候的互动中，收获快乐、友谊，获得自我疗愈。
Feel the changes of seasons in the vegetable garden of Gulu Forest Kindergarten. By Liu Ju
在咕噜森林幼儿园的菜园里感受季候变化。刘飓摄
At another nature education base — Shicheng Nature School, which is located in Haikou Town, Kunming — Wang and her team of tutors plan a series of wonderful summer holiday activities, such as experiencing and practicing an environmentally friendly life through washing dishes with tea seed powder, building ecological pit latrines and separating garbage into groups. They spend ten days in the mountains and cultivate confidence and growth while hiking, pitching tents, making cooking fires and engaging in physical exercise. Then, they head toward Shangri-La, where the children can experience the lifestyle and culture of villages with histories of over 300 years. There, they perform shadow plays in return for the Tibetan villagers’ care. Life here might seem “tiresome,” but this enhances the children’s awareness of environmental protection throughout the enjoyable process of learning of how to live in harmony with nature.
在另一个自然教育基地——位于昆明海口镇的石城自然学校，王愉和导师团队正策划一场场精彩的暑期活动。学着用茶籽粉洗碗、搭建生态旱厕、垃圾分类，体验并践行环境友好型生活；用10天的时间来一次深度山野体验，在徒步、搭帐篷、生火做饭、体能锻炼中获得自信和成长；走进香格里拉，体验有三百多年历史的村庄的生活方式和文化，并用影子剧的方式回报藏民的照顾……这里的生活有点“麻烦”，但“麻烦”的背后是对环境的关照，少年们乐在其中，学习如何与自然友好相处。
Insect Hotel for insects made by Shicheng Nature School. By an interviewee
石城自然学校为昆虫做的昆虫旅馆。受访者供图
Also, Zaidi offers six courses, including “Learning from Nature,” “Animal Observation” and “Walking into the Wild.” It has held hands-on, inquiry-based learning activities with elementary and secondary schools, and it has also endeavored to contribute to rural revitalization through education about nature. So far, a rough estimate of over 50,000 children have been influenced by Zaidi. When they are allowed to play, think and create undisturbed, they form close bonds with nature.
此外，“在地”还开设了“以自然为师”“动物观察”“走进荒野”等六大课程，和中小学合作开展研学活动，并尝试通过自然教育参与乡村振兴。粗略估计，自2012年创办至今，“在地”已影响超过5万个孩子，当他们不被打扰地玩耍、思考和创作的时候，他们早已和自然密不可分了。
Observe the nature with children. By Gu Tingting
和孩子一起观察自然。顾婷婷摄
Wang enjoys many titles, such as chairman of the China Nature Education Capacity Building Committee, director of the China Nature Education Forum and head of Zaidi Nature Education Center. But she rarely mentions her titles and prefers to be called Ant, her “nature name.” At Zaidi, everyone calls each other by their nature names, such as Leopard Cat, Jasmine, Pepper and Caryota. The children are also required to choose nature name to get closer to nature.
全国自然教育人才培养委员会主席、全国自然教育论坛发起理事之一、在地自然教育中心负责人，这些头衔，王愉很少提及，她更希望大家叫她的自然名——蚂蚁。在“在地”，大家都以自然名相称，山猫、茉莉、花椒、鱼尾葵……孩子们也被要求起一个自然名，在赋予自己名字的同时，与自然的连接也进一步亲密起来。
改变悄悄发生
Changes Happen Quietly
Whether it was in America, where Wang pursued further education, or in Kunming, where Wang founded Zaidi, many parents rejected the idea of nature-focused education in the beginning. They questioned the necessity of children playing in nature and whether Wang’s tutors deserved to be paid for this so-called nature education.
无论是留学时期的美国，还是“在地”创立之初的昆明，自然教育并非一开始就被家长接受。不就是带着孩子玩吗，为什么要去自然里玩？为什么要跟着你们一起玩，还要付费玩？
Faced with this challenge, Wang could always draw on Liang Congjie for encouragement, as he would insist on giving his lecture about environmental protection, even if there was only one member in the audience.
面对质疑，梁从诫的经历总是适时给她力量：梁先生当年去做环保方面的宣讲，哪怕只有一个人来，他仍然会坚持讲下去。
Children change quietly.
孩子们的改变却在悄悄发生。
The children are learning to make fires and cook.By an interviewee
石城自然学校的孩子们学习生火做饭。受访者供图
At Shicheng Nature School, a child spent the whole afternoon sawing wood only to look up at her instructor and asked, “Now since we have advanced science and technology, why should we bother to do woodwork?” Later, after she had made a wooden box that satisfied her, she wrote in her camp diary: “I think doing woodwork isn’t easy. It requires patience and persistence. I’ve grown fond of it.”
在石城自然学校，一个孩子在锯了一下午的木块后，抬头问领队：“现在科技那么发达，我们为什么要花那么大的劲儿在这儿做木工呀？”后来，她做出了一个令自己满意的木盒子，她的营期日记本上写满了内心的欢喜：“我觉得做木工不是一件简单的事，需要更多的耐心和坚持，我喜欢上了它。”
Rock Climbing organized by Shicheng Nature School. By an interviewee
石城自然学校组织的攀岩活动。受访者供图
When children first come to Gulu Forest Kindergarten, they are afraid to get dirty and do not know the right way to climb a mountain. Nature is strange to them. But after coming back several times, they not only learn how to build a slide in the forest but also discover what kinds of plants can be used to treat mosquito bites. Leopard Cat encourages the children: “Just have fun. If you go back covered in mud, treat that as a gift from nature!”
在咕噜森林幼儿园，刚来的孩子特别怕脏，爬山的时候不知道怎么迈步，在自然中不知道玩什么。来了几次之后，不仅能在林子里搭建滑梯，还知道被蚊虫叮咬后用什么草止痒。“玩得一身泥巴回去，就是赚了！”山猫鼓励孩子们。
Explore the nature in the mud. By Liu Ju
在泥水中探索自然。刘飓摄
These firsthand experiences pull children — who typically spend less time outdoors — back into nature, helping them reconnect with the earth they live on by liberating their senses. Wang compares children to trees, whose behaviors are akin to the visible parts above ground, whereas their emotions and thoughts are like roots. Which is more real? People who have observed trees know that both parts are indispensable to their survival. Nature-focused education is precisely about the roots.
这种浸润式的影响将远离自然的孩子重新拉回自然，打开他们的感官，与赖以生存的地球生命重新建立链接。王愉将孩子比作一棵树，他们的行为属于看得见的、树上的部分，情感、思想、经历是树下的部分，树上和树下哪部分更真实？观察过树的人知道，缺了哪一部分，这棵树都不可能成为真正的生命。自然教育的实践正是树下的部分。
The students are going hiking in the forest. By an interviewee
石城自然学校组织学生在森林徒步。受访者供图
There have also been quiet changes to the social climate. Wang has gotten a real sense of people’s deepening understanding of the environment. As the UN Biodiversity Conference is around the corner in Kunming, an increasing number of schools have proposed cooperating with her on nature education programs, and many parents have even made requests for biodiversity-related courses.
同样在悄悄改变的，是社会氛围，王愉切身感受到，这些年，公众对环境的理解逐渐加深，尤其是联合国生物多样性大会即将在昆明召开，找她合作开展自然教育项目的学校越来越多，不少家长还提出对生物多样性相关课程的需求。
As a native of Kunming, Wang thinks that the city has a competitive advantage in the promotion of nature-focused education. First, it enjoys an abundance of biodiversity: its mountains, lakes and wetlands play an essential role in nature-focused education. Second, the city is developing in close connection with nature, and its inhabitants are inclined to live by water, with their daily lives characterized by the dozens of rivers that nurture Dian Lake. Finally, Kunming embraces nature, which is manifested in its diverse ethnic cultures. Each culture can be traced back to the mutual adaptation of humans and nature, and this is a valuable advantage for the creation of nature-focused education.
作为土生土长的昆明人，她认为在昆明推广自然教育有很大的优势。首先，昆明的生物多样性很丰富，山、湖泊、湿地，都是自然教育非常重要的素材。其次，城市发展跟自然连接很紧密，人们逐水而居，几十条入滇河道贯穿市民的日常生活。此外，昆明多元的民族文化氛围也呈现出对自然的包容，对每一种民族文化的追溯最终都会回到人与自然的相互适应，这是开展自然教育的宝贵优势。
“Whether the COP15 (the 15th Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity) is held or not, biodiversity plays a crucial part in our lives.” Wang expresses hope that through the conference, the people of Kunming will not only get to know more about biodiversity but will also think more about its profound meaning and relationship with cities.
“不管开不开这个大会（COP15），生物多样性都是生活中非常重要的主题。”她期待通过COP15的召开，昆明人不仅是知道“生物多样性”这5个字，还更多思考生物多样性的意义是什么，跟城市有什么样的关系。
“When she talks about children, you can feel how much she loves them. But when it comes to environmental issues, she is clearly distressed!” This comment comes from an audience member attending one of Wang’s lectures. Indeed, this characterization is the imprint left on Wang by the career for which she has devoted half her life and for which she continues to steadfastly pursue.
“当她说起孩子的时候，就能感到她对孩子的那种爱；当她谈起一些问题的时候，就能感到她对环境的关注！”这是听过王愉讲座的一位观众对她的评价，也是她追逐半生并将继续坚持下去的事业留在她身上的烙印。
来源：看昆明
昆明日报全媒体记者：顾婷婷
责编：李冬雨
编审：李星
终审：钱红兵
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