In recent years, there has been a notable decline in the amount of time young people spend on outdoor activities, which exposes them to nature, especially during holidays or weekends. In this essay, I will point out the main contributors to this trend and suggest some possible solutions.
There are two main reasons why youngsters tend to stay at home during their breaks. First and foremost, a shift in people’s interests has been recorded, as more and more young adults use digital devices as their main kind of recreation. In the past, people seemed not to have as many diverse entertainment options as their current counterparts, so their only choice was to do outdoor activities for entertainment purposes. However, growing up in the Internet age, younger generations might spend more time on devices, which are comparably fun and easily accessible. Financial barriers also play a fundamental part in this tendency. To elaborate, outdoor activities often require safety gear or enrolling in introductory classes. These costs are often exorbitant for such young ages, eventually making outdoor activities hard to reach or even inaccessible. Moreover, the courses may take an overwhelming amount of time, and with their hectic schedules as students, it is considerably hard for them to participate in outdoor activities.
While undoubtedly hard and costly, it is not impossible to reverse this trend, regarding two solutions. As aforementioned, the young generation is mostly digital natives, so apparently famous people in social media can be their role models. This is predicated on the assumption that young individuals tend to emulate and adopt the behaviors or practices of their idols. Therefore, collaborating with influential figures, for example, a famous mountain climber on YouTube, may make this demographic want to follow these activities, as they want to know what is exciting about mountain climbing that drives their idol to practice it. However, even after gaining their attention, young people may only try outdoor activities a few times rather than frequently. To address this, these activities also need to be updated and changed, making them appealing and more accessible, even comparable to online entertainment. Investing in shuttle services and self-service amenities is a suitable way, as it brings about better access and accommodates youngster’s demands.
In conclusion, the decline in outdoor activities among young people is driven by their digital engagement and the high costs of such activities. Collaborating with influencers and improving access to outdoor facilities can help reverse this trend.