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13 Oct
PRESS RELEASE: ROI of Play
Posted by Elizabeth Moreno
PRESS RELEASE: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

October 13, 2015

Melbourne, Australia – Global nonprofit Playground Ideas has equipped more than 950 schools and communities in impoverished places around the world to build stimulating play spaces with only local materials, giving over 450,000 children access to play. On October 12th, Playground Ideas released a pathbreaking report called “The Case for Play.”

The report highlights the most significant research findings on the impact of early play interventions, particularly for children living in poverty. The results are astounding: Access to play from birth through preschool boosts life outcomes substantially – 42% raise in yearly earnings, 44% increase in high school graduations, and 17% increase in bachelor degrees. Perhaps most importantly, play builds the critical skill of self-regulation, which underpins success for a lifetime.
Playground Ideas has seen the impact of play firsthand in places like Kenya, Brazil, and the Thai-Burma border, where the organization first began. And now, based on these findings, Playground Ideas and the play advocacy community is calling on both the public and private sectors who oversee the welfare of children to:
  1. Ensure every child under the age of 12 has substantial daily access to a stimulating, safe space for play;
  2. Emphasize the importance of early play opportunities from 0-3; and
  3. Prioritize play as a basic right for children in crisis.
“With this research in hand there is no excuse,” said Playground Ideas Founder and CEO Marcus Veerman. “Universal primary education is a great start, but with 60% of children failing after four years in places like Sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia, it’s time to recognize that lessons and tests are not the final answer. Children are wired to play, because play is how children are wired to learn. It’s time to make sure every child has the space and freedom to play.”READ THE CASE FOR PLAY

Follow on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram and join the movement: #caseforplay

Help us spread the word via social media. Here are some sample tweets:

1) New report from @playgroundideas shows early play = 42% raise in earnings. #caseforplay http://goo.gl/mdythn

2) @playgroundideas report just out shows play to be a powerful, cost effective poverty reduction tool. #caseforplay http://goo.gl/mdythn

About Playground Ideas: Playground Ideas is an Australian non-profit organisation that equips anyone, anywhere to build a stimulating space for play using only local materials, tools, and labor.

Media contact:
Elizabeth Moreno
Communications & Program Development Manager
Playground Ideas
[email protected]

 

Call to Action PI Play Stats PI  Playground_Ideas_logo_small2

PRESS RELEASE: ROI of Play
1 Oct
Press Release: Launch of Open-Source Hub of DIY Playground Design
Posted by Elizabeth Moreno

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media contact:
Elizabeth Moreno
Communications & Program Development Manager
Playground Ideas
elizabeth(at)playgroundideas.org

October 1, 2015

Melbourne, Australia – Global nonprofit Playground Ideas has equipped more than 950 schools and communities in impoverished places around the world to build stimulating play spaces with only local materials, giving over 450,000 children access to play. On September 30, Playground Ideas launched its new website, a from-the-ground-up rebuild of how they work.

Playgroundideas.org is a open-source hub of DIY playground design and a global network of play advocates. The site hosts over 150 playground element designs with step-by-step building instructions, a suite of playground building manuals including a pictorial representation of international safety standards, and a database of playground projects around the world. The new site allows users to crowdfund for their projects directly on the site. In addition, the new site hosts a library of play advocacy resources, highlighting the importance of play for healthy child development, and the potential of early play experiences to break cycles of poverty. In the coming weeks, the Playground Ideas will be releasing two new manuals and a groundbreaking research report on the long term impacts of play.

Playground Ideas began in 2007, when founder Marcus Veerman was asked to build a playground in Thailand. Over the course of 2 years a group of volunteers, builders, and artists constructed 40 playgrounds along the Thai-Burma border. They began documenting their designs and best practices online, and playgroundideas.org was born.

About Playground Ideas: Playground Ideas is an Australian non-profit organisation that equips anyone, anywhere to build a stimulating space for play using only local materials, tools, and labor. For more information, please visit www.playgroundideas.org or @playgroundideas on facebook, twitter, and instagram.

1 Oct
Welcome to the new website!
Posted by client_admin
Playground Ideas Founder, Marcus Veerman here with a very exciting announcement:

We’ve been working away at this new site all year and we’re so excited to finally let it out in the wild! Head on over to www.playgroundideas.org and check out some of the new features:

  • Crowdfunding. Now anyone who starts a playground project on the site will be able to fundraise through our platform, just like you would on Kickstarter or Indiegogo.

 
The first crowdfunding project up on the site is “Play Mexico” by our Global Play Alliance Partners, Rise Now. They’re aiming to fundraise $10,000 in the next 152 days to build 10 playgrounds in Southern Mexico. Check out their project and consider making a donation to make their playground dreams a reality!

 

  • New Manuals. Check out our manuals page for new releases, including our new Community Submitted Resources section, with regional specific playground tips from around the world.
  • Start a project. Easier than ever to start a project, save your designs, fundraise, connect with other projects locally. Begin building your dream project today!
  • Stay tuned! In the next few weeks we’ll be releasing 2 new manuals, a TED Talk, and a groundbreaking research report on the long term impacts of play. Watch our Facebook page for updates!
Welcome to the new website!

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