The first public nature library in the US opened in August in Thornton, Colorado, offering residents of Adams county free access to books and equipment designed to help them engage with the natural world.
Mark Fink, executive director of Anythink Libraries, which runs the facility, said the aim is to lower barriers to nature. “There are a lot of barriers for people to access nature here. We want people to learn about the birds and the plants in their own back yard and to appreciate that you don’t need a three-day camping trip in the mountains to experience nature.”
Collection and facilities
While most of the 40,000 items in the library’s collection are books, members can also check out 850 nature-focused “try it” kits, including birdwatching equipment, gardening tools, wildlife cameras, hiking gear, microscopes, and hammocks.
The library is built using local stone, has 370 solar panels on its roof, and a sustainable geothermal heating and cooling system. It sits on a 6-hectare (15-acre) site, a former ranch, with a hiking trail and eight different types of garden, including sensory and pollinator gardens, and two focusing on plants that thrive in Colorado and the nearby Rocky Mountains. Inside, children can play in a boulder field made up of rocks from a local quarry, and free workshops help people build confidence in activities such as birdwatching, gardening, and hiking.
Fink said the library aims to let people make up their own minds about climate change. “In the US, as more information has come out about climate change and global warming, there’s been a lot of pushback on those scientific studies and their validity,” he said. “We want to provide opportunities for them to learn more about the climate, the human impact on the Earth and how we can help reduce climate change and make our environment more sustainable.” He added that spending even 20 minutes in nature has physical and mental health benefits, and research suggests people with more experience in nature are more likely to help protect it.
First visitors share their experiences
Paula Jensen, 64, visited with her mother, Jeanette, 88. Jensen, a pharmaceutical shipping specialist, said the library made it possible for her mother to connect with nature despite her age. “There was a peaceful little rock garden outside, and she was able to walk around in there with her walker. At her age, it’s very important to get out of the house and do that.” Her mother was surprised to discover she could borrow a wooden puzzle and a Danielle Steel book, saying it would be too expensive. Jensen said, “Mom, it’s a library.” She plans to borrow a book about designing a drought-friendly garden, noting Colorado is having a water shortage.
Anna Amici, 36, a scientist for a science education company, visited with her husband and two-year-old daughter, Asha. She said the library makes nature more accessible to her daughter. “She can touch it and interact with it in ways that she can’t when we’re out elsewhere.” The family borrowed a pollinator-garden planning kit and bird guides to replace their lawn with pollinator-supporting plants. Amici said she wants to borrow a stargazing kit next, to take Asha into the mountains to look at the stars. She noted that Asha enjoyed playing in the mud pit, and the family has since created a mud patch in their own garden.
Nataliya Zasadko, 40, a freelance photographer and content creator, visited with her seven-year-old son, Marko. They borrowed an outdoor camera with a macro lens, a GPS gadget, and a digital wind-speed meter. Zasadko said the GPS gadget, which would have cost $300 or $400, and the camera, which would have cost $500, were brilliant to check out without buying. They used the GPS to plan a hike along a scenic alpine trail, Santa Fe Peak. She plans to borrow snowshoes and micro spikes in the winter. “In this economy, with families struggling, I love that people are able to go to this library for a few hours and share community resources that can help us build a better future and learn to explore the great outdoors,” she said.
Alex Bueno, 30, visited from Nebraska with his wife and six-year-old son, Edgar. His wife, an architecture designer, wanted to see the building. Bueno, originally from Cuba, said the countryside in the US is “quite built up” compared to the wild nature of Cuba. He and his son enjoyed reading about insects at the library, and he hopes his son will learn that insects aren’t dangerous. “I wish there was a nature library near us in Nebraska,” he said.
Ricarose Roque, 42, a professor at the University of Colorado in Boulder, visited with her seven-year-old son, Miles. They borrowed a book on wildfires and a fire sensor, which measures humidity, temperature, and wind velocity to assess wildfire risk. They also borrowed a bird-watching book, which helped Roque learn about local wildlife, including the Steller’s jay. “I didn’t know what a Steller’s jay was. But because of that book, we were talking about it – and today I saw one,” she said. Roque, who grew up in a big city, said borrowing camping equipment from the library makes it easier for her family to try camping. She hopes the library helps transplants to Boulder feel that Colorado’s wild spaces are for everyone.
