Reconnecting Childhood with Nature
A global network advancing nature-based early childhood education
The global federation connecting national forest kindergarten associations, educators, and researchers — sharing standards, knowledge, and voice across borders.
The International Association of Forest Kindergartens brings together educators, researchers, and leaders who believe that early childhood belongs outdoors — where curiosity, resilience, and well-being naturally grow.
Children thrive in nature.
Our mission is to make this the global standard.
IANEC is a global federation of forest kindergartens, nature-based programs, national associations, educators, and researchers — built from the ground up by the people who do this work every day.
We are not a regulator. We do not issue global licences, impose uniform standards, or sit above the national associations that have spent years building what works in their own context. What we do is connect them — so that what Japan has learned about safety, what Germany has built in policy, what United Kingdom has pioneered in research, and what Slovenia is beginning to scale can travel across borders and strengthen the whole movement.
Who We Are
IANEC is being established in Slovenia — a small country with a strong nature-based culture and a firm belief that the best ideas in education should not be limited by geography.
Our founding team brings together expertise in outdoor pedagogy, early years research, and nature-based learning from around the world. We are practitioners and researchers who believe that building the global infrastructure for this field is itself a form of service to children.
We are building IANEC to last — which is why we are building it slowly, carefully, and together with the national associations and practitioners who will make it real. Founding members are not our audience. They are our co-authors.
We advance the well-being, development, and lifelong resilience of young children by promoting nature-based early childhood education worldwide.
Through global collaboration, we:
connect educators, researchers, and institutions,
share knowledge and best practices,
support the development of quality standards,
inspire transformative approaches to early learning.
We work alongside national associations and networks, not above them. Our role is to connect and amplify — not to regulate or replace.
Our Mission
Why It Matters
In a rapidly changing world, children need more than academic preparation.
They need:
resilience,
emotional balance,
connection to themselves, others, and nature.
Forest kindergartens provide a proven environment where children develop these essential life skills — naturally, holistically, and sustainably.
What We Make Possible
Forest kindergartens are growing on every continent — but the knowledge, standards, and research that support them are still locked inside national borders. IANEC is the connective layer that changes that.
Here is what becomes possible when the global movement works together:
A quality framework that travels across borders
Forest kindergartens in Czech Republic, Korea, USA, and Australia all have something to teach each other — but there has been no shared language to make that exchange possible. IAFK develops the minimum principles of quality that any program in the world can recognise, adapt, and build on — without replacing the national standards that already work.
A research bridge that turns evidence into daily practice
The evidence for nature-based early childhood education is growing — but it rarely reaches the educators who need it most. IANEC translates research into practical resources, standardises how outcomes are measured, and creates the evidence briefs that help practitioners and policymakers make confident decisions.
A collective policy voice that no single country can build alone
Children's right to nature, safety frameworks for outdoor learning, the recognition of forest kindergartens in national education systems — these are challenges that cross borders. IANEC gives the global movement a coordinated voice on the issues that matter most, while respecting the legal and political context of every country it serves.
A global directory that makes every program visible
Thousands of forest kindergartens and nature-based programs exist around the world — most of them invisible to each other. IANEC's global directory connects programs, educators, and researchers across countries, creating the visibility and community that has never existed at this scale before.
A professional home for educators everywhere
Whether you are building a program from scratch in a country with no framework, or deepening your practice in a mature national movement, IANEC offers the community, the resources, and the peer connections that make the work less lonely and more impactful.
Data. Connection. Impact.
We are developing an application that enables forest kindergartens and researchers to collect meaningful data and scientifically demonstrate the impact of nature-based early childhood education.
At the same time, it simplifies communication between kindergarten leaders, educators, and parents — supporting stronger collaboration and everyday efficiency.
A platform connecting research, data, and practice — demonstrating the power of outdoor education.
A global community of people who believe that play, movement, wonder, and nature are not extras in a child's life — they are the foundation.
Global Directory Member
Be visible. Be connected. Be part of the global map.
We invite forest kindergartens, nature-based initiatives, and organizations worldwide to join our Global Directory.
By becoming a free member, you will:
be featured on our global map
present your work to an international audience
connect with a growing global network
This is the first step in building a worldwide community.
© International Association For Nature-based Early Childhood
Established in Slovenia. Connecting the world.
Pregljeva 9, Maribor, Slovenia
Together we can achieve it!
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