![]() January 1967 front cover | |
Editorial Director | Hannah Schardt |
---|---|
Categories | Nature |
Frequency | 10 per year |
First issue | January 1967 |
Company | National Wildlife Federation |
Country | United States |
Based in | Reston, Virginia |
Website | rangerrick |
ISSN | 0738-6656 |
Ranger Rick, originally Ranger Rick's Nature Magazine, [1] is a children's nature magazine that is published by the United States National Wildlife Federation. [2] The magazine offers feature articles and activities for children ages 8 and up in order to spark their interest in the outdoors and encourage them to become more actively involved in protecting the environment. [2] The magazine's primary intention is to instill a passion for nature and promote activity outdoors. [3] NWF also publishes two companion magazines, Ranger Rick Jr., which is aimed at ages 4–8, and Ranger Rick Cub, which is aimed at kids 0–4 years old. [4]
In 1959, John Ashley "Ash" Brownridge (1917–2015), under the pseudonym John A. Morris, wrote the book "The Adventures of Rick Raccoon" starring an anthropomorphic raccoon named Rick and his friends at the Deep Green Wood. After seeing a book a colleague sent from Japan that featured a tanuki, he was inspired to create a book to teach children the value of conservation. [5] Two years later, in 1960, he wrote another book entitled "Ranger Rick and the Great Forest Fire". Then, in January 1967, the first issue of Ranger Rick's Nature Magazine was published. The magazine was so popular that, by 1972, NWF's membership had tripled.
The first illustrator of the magazine was painter Lorin Thompson, who drew the characters in a realistic yet expressive manner. In 1982, he was replaced by Alton Langford, who redesigned the existing characters and introduced new characters Scarlett Fox and Boomer Badger. In 1999, Robby Gilbert took over as the new illustrator, coinciding with the magazine's shift from short stories to comic strips. In 2009, British company TheCharacterShop became the new illustrators, rendering the comics as three-dimensional images. In 2016, TheCharacterShop, under the direction of Parker Jacobs, gave the comics a new two-dimensional cartoony style. [6]
Numerous characters have appeared in the magazine series. The current main three characters from the magazine's monthly comics are as follows:
Ranger Rick has a circulation of 525,000, and an estimated 200,000 more children are exposed to the magazine via passed along copies. [2] The magazine is published ten times a year by the National Wildlife Federation. [8] [9] The headquarters is in Reston, Virginia. [10]
The magazine uses an environmentally friendly processed paper, which is composed of consumer waste (about 30%) and is absent of chlorine. [11] Vegetable oils largely make up the magazine's actual ink. [11]
Each issue includes nonfiction articles about various environmental and animal topics, fictional story-like articles, and color photography throughout. [9] Also included in the magazine are activities such as nature-themed games, activities that get children to actively learn more about their environment, riddles, and jokes. [9] Most of the pages of the magazine feature multi-page photo stories of animals in their natural habitats. There are also illustrated stories, games, riddles, nature news, poetry, contests, and other features and columns. Ranger Rick, a raccoon park ranger, is the title character in the longstanding magazine feature Ranger Rick Adventures (originally Ranger Rick and his Friends, then Adventures of Ranger Rick): an illustrated short story depicting Ranger Rick and his compatriots from Deep Green Wood exploring the world, often encountering threats to wildlife and environmental problems. Rick or any one of his friends, including Scarlett Fox, his deputy, and Boomer Badger always finds a solution to whatever problem they encounter, thus encouraging children to do their part to protect the natural environment.
Ranger Rick magazines have featured a variety of adventure stories tackling various subjects, such as the hazards of fishing lines at sea or invasive species in the Everglades. [7] Ranger Rick is sometimes incorporated in elementary science classrooms to enhance the interest of environmental conservation in young children. [9]
Because technology had greatly influenced and impacted the lives of children, Ranger Rick magazine made modifications in order to appeal to those becoming increasingly distant to outdoor exploration. [2] To inspire a new generation of conservationists, attracting young readers seemed essential to a magazine promoting environmental awareness and preservation efforts. [12] Ranger Rick made changes within its content [2] to appeal to a changed generation of children, for profit and the future of conservation efforts. It reduced the amount of narrative, replacing most with more visually engaging elements. [2] Ranger Rick himself transformed from a somewhat realistic representation to a stylized cartoon figure. [2] Layout changes included placing the text and titles in locations more likely to attract readers. [2]
Ranger Rick Jr. is a magazine for children ages 4 to 7. [13] It has its origins in Your Big Backyard, a magazine aimed at preschoolers and kids ages 3 to 7. It was established in 1979 as a sister publication to Ranger Rick and Wild Animal Baby , both published by the National Wildlife Federation. The bulk of the magazine consisted of children's activities. [14]
The name of the magazine was changed to Big Backyard in September, 2011. [15] In December 2012 NWF merged Wild Baby Animal and Big Backyard to create a new magazine for children ages 4 to 7, called Ranger Rick, Jr.. [13]
Ranger Rick's debut on television started with an animated television commercial during the early 1970s. [16] A stop-motion-live-action special was aired during the 1980s on PBS. In 2021, Red Rock Films announced a partnership with the National Wildlife Federation and Bix Pix Entertainment to develop a new streaming series based on Ranger Rick's adventures. [17]
The Raccoons is a Canadian animated television series that ran on CBC from November 11, 1985, to March 19, 1991, in Canada and on Disney Channel from July 4, 1985, to August 28, 1992, in the U.S., with three preceding television specials from its inception in 1980, and one direct-to-video special in 1984. The franchise was created by Kevin Gillis with the co-operation of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.
Thornton Waldo Burgess was an American conservationist and author of children's stories. He was sometimes known as the Bedtime Story-Man, after his newspaper column Bedtime Stories. By the time he retired, he had written more than 170 books and 15,000 stories for the daily newspaper column.
Mark Trail is a newspaper comic strip created by the American cartoonist Ed Dodd. Introduced April 15, 1946, the strip centers on environmental and ecological themes. As of 2020, King Features syndicated the strip to "nearly 150 newspapers and digital outlets worldwide."
The National Wildlife Federation (NWF) is the United States' largest private, nonprofit conservation education and advocacy organization, with over six million members and supporters, and 51 state and territorial affiliated organizations (including Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands).
Acorn Green was a children's comic book series in the mid-1980s based around a community of woodland creatures, all of whom had different jobs to play in the wood, for instance police officer, nurse, firefighter and postman.
Earth Rangers is a Canadian registered charity focused on environmental education and conservation for children and families. The goal of the organization is to educate children and their families about environmental issues, and mobilize them to take actions that protect animals and the environment. Earth Rangers is membership-based, with over 300,000 members and alumni across Canada. Earth Rangers also provides in-school programming to elementary schools, with school assemblies that feature live animal ambassadors. Earth Rangers headquarters is located in Woodbridge, Ontario.
Jerome C. Ringo is an environmental justice, clean energy, and quality jobs advocate who founded and chairs renewable energy developer Zoetic Global.
Anne LaBastille was an American author, ecologist, and photographer. She was the author of more than a dozen books, including Woodswoman, Beyond Black Bear Lake, and Women of the Wilderness. She also wrote over 150 articles and over 25 scientific papers. She was honored by the World Wildlife Fund and the Explorers Club for her pioneering work in wildlife ecology in the United States and Guatemala. LaBastille also took many wildlife photographs, many of which were published in nature publications.
The National Wildlife Federation recommends that parents give their kids a "Green Hour" every day, a time for unstructured play and interaction with the natural world. This is part of NWF's strategy called Reversing Nature Deficit. The Green Hour program teaches that unstructured play can take place in a garden, a backyard, a nearby park, or any place that provides safe and accessible green spaces where children can learn and play.
The New Hampshire Wildlife Federation (NHWF) is a non-profit member organization promoting conservation, environmental education, sportsmanship, and outdoor activities such as hunting, fishing, trapping, camping, and photography. Its mission statement is "To be the leading advocate for the promotion and protection of hunting, fishing and trapping as well as the conservation of, and access to, fish and wildlife habitats."
Family Nature Summits are annual gatherings that offer a mix of environmental and outdoor education and adventure, with notable environmental and wildlife educators providing classes and activities for adults and children. Called "Conservation Summits" until 2000, the National Wildlife Federation (NWF) held the first Summit on July 20–25, 1970, at the YMCA of the Rockies, Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado. There have been 119 Summits since 1970, with notable environmental educators, naturalists, authors and artists such as Robert Michael Pyle, Jim Halfpenny, Clare Walker Leslie, Roger Tory Peterson, Annie Tiberio Cameron, Steve Torbit, and Craig Tufts serving as faculty at many of the Summits. The organization's objectives focus on entertaining educational nature programming for youth, teens, and young adults, led by nationally recognized environmental educators such as Steve Houser, recipient of the 2009 Edward C. Roy, Jr. Award For Excellence in K-8 Earth Science Teaching.
Northwest Trek Wildlife Park is a 723-acre (293 ha) wildlife park located near the town of Eatonville, Washington, United States. The park is home to black and grizzly bears, grey wolves, bald eagles, a cougar, wolverines, bobcats and more. Its primary feature is a tram tour which takes visitors through a 435-acre (176 ha) free-roam area. The park also allows guests to drive their own vehicles past bison, mountain goats, Roosevelt elk, deer, caribou, swans and more on a Wild Drive tour. Guests can also take a premier Keeper Adventure Tour and go off-road in a Jeep with a keeper and up close to wildlife. The Zip Wild zipline is also open seasonally.
National Wildlife is an American magazine published quarterly by the National Wildlife Federation (NWF), a nonprofit conservation group. In publication since 1962, and with an emphasis on wildlife conservation and natural history, it is designed to inform NWF’s Associate Members and other readers about key issues relating to the nation's natural resources and environment.
Wild Animal Baby was a magazine for children published by the National Wildlife Federation. The magazine was targeted to children ages 2–4, and consisted of readings, pictures, and games designed to teach children about animals. The National Wildlife Federation also publishes Ranger Rick and Your Big Backyard, which are geared towards older children.
Robby Gilbert is an American animator, illustrator, and cartoonist best known for work in educational and interactive media. He illustrated the monthly comic strip, "The Adventures of Ranger Rick," and worked on animation for MTV's "Liquid Television". Additionally, he served as an animation director on early projects for Disney Interactive and as senior animator for Broderbund Software's "Living Books" series. His work often explores the relationships and interconnectivity of many artistic disciplines. Gilbert has taught animation, illustration, and game design at several colleges is currently a professor of animation at Rowan University in Glassboro, New Jersey.
Elam S. Stoltzfus is an American environmental documentary filmmaker.
Pete Oxford is a British-born conservation photographer based in Cape Town, South Africa, after living in Quito, Ecuador for several years. Originally trained as a marine biologist, he and his wife, South African-born Reneé Bish, now work as a professional photographic team focusing primarily on wildlife and indigenous cultures.