Designing Toys to reconnect Children with Nature

Children are optimists, adventurous and born explorers.They have a different way of looking at things and if we support them with right tools and ecosystem, the goodness in them can be truly overwhelming.
In the digital age, it is hard to see a Child not exposed to Mobile and Laptops from early age. Clubbed with internet, the virtual world is so colorful, infinite & addictive, that Children naturally tend to have no interest in the real physical world.
While this lack of exposure to Real Natural World hampers the overall development of a Child, it also poses another significant challenge. Our generation has already created huge damage to the Ecosystem we live in and we’re slowly waking up to the reality. After all most of us have played in vast fields, plucked fresh fruits from a real tree and even felt the thrill of swimming in a village pond or a river.
We all had some adventures with Nature that just can’t be replicated digitally.
But our next generation doesn’t have that privilege. Smart classrooms, concrete jungle, busy parents, packaged food and numerous other things are ensuring that children don’t go out and discover nature. So, when trapped indoor the Child’s best friend is the ultimate “know all” SmartPhone.
So, when Children have no association with the Natural World, why would they even care to conserve and protect it?
Posed with this question, we at Simplified Technologies have been working to design meaningful experiences that inspire Children to appreciate the beauty & balance of the Natural World while also addressing their need for instant gratification.
Just like video games, Children love when a Toy or an activity can give them immediate feedback and challenge them to cross the next level.
Taking this as a cue, we designed a solar cooker whose toy like simplicity invites a child to play with it but whose intricate relation with the Solar intensity, type of food and quantity of water poses real challenge to understand the art of solar cooking.
Just like games, the entry level is real easy and attractive — cooking Noodles. Children love noodles and when they witness they can cook it, there is a sense of wonder and excitement and they are roped in to try more complex recipes like cakes & cookies.
Another important element here is the social currency of Sharing. Children are natural multipliers, they love to share the idea that they found exciting. And when they share their solar cooked food to their friends and relatives, the amusement & surprise on the faces is their ultimate reward.
Eventually after cooking different recipes, the child begins to wonder if one can cook with Sun using such a simple device, it must be possible to do other things as well. And that is when the real journey begins.
We have been doing this for last 4 years now and consider ourselves lucky enough to have seen 120,500 happy faces with their first real experience with the Sun.
What impact such activities have in long term is yet to be seen, but we frequently receive touching feedback of how Children can create a wonderful possibility out of anything.
Happy to share an enactment of one such feedback…hope you like it.
SuryaKumbh is the World’s Largest Solar Cooking Festival with 3 World Records. Over 120,500 children from India, Dubai and Kenya have experienced the Joy of Solar Cooking through this festival.
Connect with us at info@suryakumbh.com to host a festival in your city or institute.
