Cities Scaling Nature-Based Play: Key Takeaways From a Vision Lab Link copied!

How can cities infuse nature into the places where kids play, learn, and grow?

In partnership with the Children & Nature Network (C&NN) and the National League of Cities (NLC), KABOOM! is convening city leaders and strategic partners from across the country to share knowledge applicable to other regions about how to incorporate nature-rich playspaces in their cities at scale. This is a part of Nature Everywhere Communities, a national initiative designed to help cities create policies and practices that expand equitable access to nature.

To help cities put these ideas into strategic action, KABOOM! and our partners recently led the Nature Everywhere Communities Play Equity Vision Lab in Oakland, CA, bringing together leaders from across the country for learning, peer collaboration, and real-world case studies.

Cross-Sector Collaboration in Action

The Vision Lab brought together eight teams from cities across the country—representing parks and recreation departments, school districts, and other municipal agencies—to develop strategies for integrating nature into play infrastructure. By working across sectors, these teams are identifying systemic solutions that will ensure kids in their communities have access to high-quality, nature-rich places to play.

These teams are partners in our 25 in 5 Initiative to End Playspace Inequity, our plan to accelerate ending playspace inequity across the United States in partnership with 25 municipal systems. As the cities who participate in 25 in 5 continue this work, KABOOM! is committed to supporting a strong network where partners can share best practices, challenges, and successes to drive impact at scale.

“All our communities are different, but we can learn something from each other. The true power of coming to events like this is being able to connect with your colleagues across the country, and as you’re going through things you have thought partners to bounce things off.”— Jacia T. Smith, Baltimore City Department of Recreation & Parks

Panel discussions featuring local leaders, including Preston Thomas and Sailaja Suresh from Oakland Unified School District (OUSD) and Phil Ginsburg from San Francisco Recreation & Parks. They shared their experiences implementing green schoolyard projects and nature-based play with communities, emphasizing how collaboration between schools, parks, and local organizations is key to making lasting change.

Additional speakers from organizations like the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy and the Low Income Investment Fund (LIIF) offered insights into funding strategies, design approaches, and community engagement models that have successfully driven nature access efforts in the Bay Area.

What’s inspired me about the Vision Lab is meeting all of the people across the country doing this work on their own but also in partnership with other cities.” — Elizabeth Winograd, Low Income Investment Fund – San Francisco

Key Insights from Real-World Solutions

A highlight of the Vision Lab was a half-day bus tour, where participants explored four unique playspaces that demonstrate nature integration in action. Each site provided key lessons on overcoming challenges, securing funding, and designing for long-term impact:

These site visits provided real-world examples that resonated deeply with participants:

“We’ve gotten so many ideas about how we can bring this to our community that we didn’t have before. I think we were kind of stuck in ‘wouldn’t it be nice, but we don’t know how.’” — Claire Worshtil, Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission

“The Vision Lab really has opened our eyes in terms of the possibilities and the creativity that we can enact in thinking about our environment, and how to bring in natural elements into play for young people and families.” — Anamaria Villamarin-Lupin, Office of Youth and Families – New Orleans

By visiting these sites and hearing directly from local leaders, participants gained practical takeaways they can apply in their own cities.

What’s Next?

Following the event, these eight city teams will receive nine months of technical assistance through the Nature Everywhere Communities initiative, including individualized coaching from their KABOOM! Regional Lead and a member of the Nature Everywhere Community technical assistance team. They will also have access to a national peer learning network of more than 25 city teams working to advance nature-based play and will be eligible for a $40,000 seed grant to support their efforts.

The Vision Lab reinforced the importance of collaboration, community-driven solutions, and cross-sector partnerships in ensuring that all kids—especially those in communities that have been historically excluded from nature—have the opportunity to play in spaces that support their health, well-being, and connection to the natural world.

“To be immersed in all the possibilities of nature play has helped me understand what I can prioritize right now and how we need to work in the future.” — Jacia T. Smith, Baltimore City Department of Recreation & Parks

“We’ve been in our own siloed thinking about this kind of thing, but now we’re coming together to actually do it.” — Claire Worshtil, Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission

Interested in bringing nature-based play to your city? Learn more about 25 in 5 and Nature Everywhere Communities and how you can get involved.