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Gelderland
Gelderland is the largest province of the Netherlands and is especially known for the national park De Veluwe, Het Rivierenland and the cities Arnhem, Apeldoorn and Nijmegen. Because of its combination of city, nature and water, it is a dynamic region where many places can be discovered! Gelderland is also very centrally located, and you can get to its surrounding provinces fairly quickly for a nice walk in the countryside.
In cooperation with the province of Gelderland, SBO Gelderland was launched in January 2022. With the help of a survey, we have developed 10 appealing activities for young people in SBO Gelderland. Interested in participating? Sign up now!
SBO already works with many institutions and national organisations in Gelderland, such as: Staatsbosbeheer, Geldersch Landschap, Radboud University, Wageningen University, Otherwise, Green Office, Van Hall Larenstein. We also work together with many student associations and student groups. Together with these groups, we try to organise fun activities for students.
SBO Activities:
#1: Barefoot Walk Wageningen
In collaboration with Otherwise, we organized a 'barefoot walk' in Wageningen on 20 April. With more than 10 participants, it was a great success for our first Gelderland SBO activity. Participants said they felt more connected to nature after the hike and that they were more likely to walk barefoot through nature reserves.
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#2 Make your own bee hotel Wageningen
In collaboration with the Green Office WUR, we organized a bee hotel workshop on the Wageningen Uni campus. Participants were first taught how to make a bee hotel, and then they could get free materials to make a bee hotel together, or take them home to make a bee hotel later. With more than 20 participants and around 10 bee hotels made, it was a good day for bees and biodiversity!
#4 Beautiful Botanical Walks in the Hortus, Nijmegen
In collaboration with the Hortus Nijmegen, we organize three walks during the lunch break for students. While the Hortus is located next to Radboud Uni, few students know about these beautiful botanical gardens. By offering free guided tours in Dutch and English during the break, we want to introduce more students to nature.
#5 De Goede Week Challenge
Young people often participate in online challenges that go viral on social media. De Goede Week Challenge is a similar attempt to encourage young people to take certain actions, share them online, and win a possible prize. We launched this in collaboration with Yuverta MBO in Nijmegen. Here students have certain challenges every week, such as: counting steps, sharing your way of relaxation, and making an animal shelter. The winner of the challenge will naturally receive a prize.
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#6 Nature Forest Adventure
On June 25 we organized a day trip to Klimbos Veluwe. Before climbing we had a tour of the beautiful Berg en Bos park. Klimbos Veluwe has an extensive selection of climbing courses with different levels. After an intensive few hours of climbing we had a drink and a snack together. During this we talked about mental health and how young people can give back to nature.
#7 Surviving the Elements
Survivalrun is a versatile outdoor sport, which combines running with obstacles. It is a challenging sport in which strength, condition, flexibility, technique and perseverance are important. Because in addition to running and the obstacles, the 'fight against the elements' also plays an important role. Water, wind and temperature cost extra strength during a survival run. SBO organized a Survival Run on June 24. A very intensive but very fun activity that really released all our stress.
#8 Wellness Workshops
In the beautiful nature reserve of 't Leesten near Apeldoorn, SBO gave an afternoon meditation workshop in collaboration with the NJR. In addition to meditating, we also discovered nature and talked about what we experienced and what causes us stress. At the end we enjoyed some food and a drink together.
#9 Bushcraft/Nature Sketches
In collaboration with Van Hall Larenstein we carried out two activities: Bushcraft and Nature Sketches. Bushcraft was mainly about how we survive in the wild, where you could learn skills like building a fire. Nature sketching was a bit more relaxing, where we would sit quietly in nature during our lunch break, and then draw something from nature that inspired or calmed us. After both activities we had a discussion about how we experienced the activity.
#10 SBO Nature for Life Event
As a final activity and celebration of the successful SBO roll-out in Gelderland, we organized an SBO Nature for Life Event. Here we had several workshops on mental health, nature, biodiversity and youth participation. All participants also contributed to the drawing up of an SBO manifesto, which we gave to the Province of Gelderland. A successful afternoon with a great turnout!
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#3 Canoeing and Connecting
In collaboration with study association IPSO Facto, we are going canoeing on Thursday 12 May. We start at Kanoverhuur Veenendaal and then go canoeing in the direction of Wageningen through the Binnenveldse Hooilanden nature reserve. After about an hour of canoeing we arrive at a watchtower. Here we are going to eat some french fries and have a discussion about mental health. During the canoeing we will also pick up litter in the water. The canoe with the most litter collected wins a nice prize.
Activities from our partners
On the website of Geldersch Landscape & Castles ( GLK | Discover Gelderland ) you can find all nature reserves, estates and castles; nice for a walking tour! Furthermore, tips for walking tours through nature reserves can be found on the website Wandelroutes in Gelderland: 5 tips - Wandel.nl and tips for walking tours through cities (Arnhem, Apeldoorn, Nijmegen and Zutphen) can be found on the website Top 5 city walks Gelderland (wandelzoekpagina.nl ) .
For volunteer work in nature you can take a look at the website of Stichting Landschapsbeheer Gelderland ( Stichting Landschapsbeheer Gelderland ). There are several activities you can help with; projects that promote biodiversity, planting actions and the development of clog paths.
Staatsbosbeheer
On the website of the Staatsbosbeheer ( Nature Reserves of Staatsbosbeheer ) you can find information about activities, walking routes and places of interest for each Gelders nature reserve. There are various walking routes in the Achterhoek, sights such as forts in the Betuwe or Gelderse Poort and recreational opportunities in the Betuwe and the Veluwe.