Uploaded January 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Mara Mintzer is the co-founder and executive director of Growing Up Boulder, a nonprofit whose mission is to center young people's rights, voices, and agency to advance equitable and sustainable communities for all. In this episode, we do a deep dive into the power of engaging children in community conversations, like planning and design, that for too long have been left primarily or exclusively to adults.
Helpful Links (note that some may include affiliate links to help me support the channel):
👉 Growing Up Boulder: growingupboulder.org
👉 James Rojas: linkedin.com/in/james-rojas-7693388
👉 PlaceIt activity: placeit.org
👉 My recent episode with Tim Gill: youtu.be/ExA58Pf2edU
👉 My first episode with Tim Gill: youtu.be/zDE1uHWh4W8
👉 Urban Playground by Tim Gill: amzn.to/4pvpW5c
👉 My Episode with Lenore Skenazy: youtu.be/Tu58o_AFefA
👉 Let Grow organization: letgrow.org
👉 Lenore's book on Free Range Kids: bookshop.org/a/85379/9781119782148
👉 The Nature of Cities mini-doc: youtu.be/8gmf7Kv4030
👉 Global Designing Cities Initiative Streets for Kids: globaldesigningcities.org/streets-for-kids
👉 Mara on the TEDx stage: youtu.be/9cudn_vSdCY
👉 Anxious Generation website: anxiousgeneration.com
👉 Anxious Generation book: bookshop.org/a/85379/9780593655030
👉 Mr Get Out There Ryan Van Duzer: youtube.com/@duzer
👉 Richard Louv, Nature Deficit Disorder: richardlouv.com/blog/what-is-nature-deficit-disorder
👉 Last Child in the Woods by Richard Louv: bookshop.org/a/85379/9781565126053
👉 Children & Nature Network: childrenandnature.org
👉 Child Friendly Cities Initiative: childfriendlycities.org
👉 Ryan Van Duzer - The Get Out There Guy: youtube.com/@duzer @duzer
👉 My Rotterdam ride-along with José Besselink: youtu.be/qVgTkd2zn3s
👉 Reimagining Streets for Activity and Belonging | Darcy Kitching | TEDxCherryCreek: youtu.be/fLmzwVT83Gc
Chapters
0:00:00 A Teen's Ideal Park
0:02:00 Meeting Mara Mintzer
0:06:00 Trusting Kids More
0:09:00 False View that Children Are Not Capable
0:15:00 The Nature of Cities
0:17:46 Denver 7 ABC News Clip
0:21:10 Mara's TEDx Talk
0:22:40 The Mission and Vision
0:27:40 Nature: Climate Resilient Schoolyards
0:35:55 How to Get Child-Friendly Cities
0:42:14 Working with All Kids
0:46:25 Hiring Teen Consultants to Get to the Teens
0:49:30 Kid-Friendly Places Map
0:54:00 Opportunities for Developing Leadership Skills
Thank you so much for watching! If you enjoyed this video, please give it a thumbs-up, leave a comment below, and share it with a friend. If you'd like more content like this, please subscribe to the Active Towns Channel, and be sure to "Ring" that notification bell to select your notification preferences.
If you are a fan of the Active Towns Channel, please consider supporting the effort as an Active Towns Ambassador in the following ways:
1. Become a Member of Active Towns right here on YouTube by clicking on the Join button and selecting the level that best suits you
2. Join the Patreon community: patreon.com/activetowns
(Note: Patron benefits include early, ad-free access to all my video content)
3. If you enjoyed this video, you can also "leave a tip" by clicking on the Super Thanks button right here on YouTube or through "Buy Me a Coffee" buymeacoffee.com/activetowns
4. Make a donation to my non-profit, Advocates for Healthy Communities, Inc. at activetowns.org/donate
Credits: Video and audio production by John Simmerman
Music via Epidemic Sound: bit.ly/3rFLErD
Resources used during the production of this video:
- My recording platform is Ecamm Live: bit.ly/3rwsUup
- Editing software Adobe Creative Cloud Suite: bit.ly/35DBDDU
For more information about the Active Towns effort or to follow along, please visit our links below:
Website: activetowns.org
BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/activetowns.bsky.social
Newsletter: bit.ly/SubscribeActiveTownsNewsletter
Background:
Hi Everyone! My name is John Simmerman, and I’m a health promotion and public health professional with over 35 years of experience. Over the years, my area of concentration has evolved into a specialization in how the built environment influences human behavior related to active living and especially active mobility.
Thanks once again for tuning in! I hope you find this content helpful and insightful.
Creative Commons License: Attributions, Non-Commercial, No Derivatives, 2025
Mara Mintzer is the co-founder and executive director of Growing Up Boulder, a nonprofit whose mission is to center young people's rights, voices, and agency to advance equitable and sustainable communities for all. In this episode, we do a deep dive into the power of engaging children in community conversations, like planning and design, that for too long have been left primarily or exclusively to adults.
Helpful Links (note that some may include affiliate links to help me support the channel):
👉 Growing Up Boulder: growingupboulder.org
👉 James Rojas: linkedin.com/in/james-rojas-7693388
👉 PlaceIt activity: placeit.org
👉 My recent episode with Tim Gill: youtu.be/ExA58Pf2edU
👉 My first episode with Tim Gill: youtu.be/zDE1uHWh4W8
👉 Urban Playground by Tim Gill: amzn.to/4pvpW5c
👉 My Episode with Lenore Skenazy: youtu.be/Tu58o_AFefA
👉 Let Grow organization: letgrow.org
👉 Lenore's book on Free Range Kids: bookshop.org/a/85379/9781119782148
👉 The Nature of Cities mini-doc: youtu.be/8gmf7Kv4030
👉 Global Designing Cities Initiative Streets for Kids: globaldesigningcities.org/streets-for-kids
👉 Mara on the TEDx stage: youtu.be/9cudn_vSdCY
👉 Anxious Generation website: anxiousgeneration.com
👉 Anxious Generation book: bookshop.org/a/85379/9780593655030
👉 Mr Get Out There Ryan Van Duzer: youtube.com/@duzer
👉 Richard Louv, Nature Deficit Disorder: richardlouv.com/blog/what-is-nature-deficit-disorder
👉 Last Child in the Woods by Richard Louv: bookshop.org/a/85379/9781565126053
👉 Children & Nature Network: childrenandnature.org
👉 Child Friendly Cities Initiative: childfriendlycities.org
👉 Ryan Van Duzer - The Get Out There Guy: youtube.com/@duzer @duzer
👉 My Rotterdam ride-along with José Besselink: youtu.be/qVgTkd2zn3s
👉 Reimagining Streets for Activity and Belonging | Darcy Kitching | TEDxCherryCreek: youtu.be/fLmzwVT83Gc
Chapters
0:00:00 A Teen's Ideal Park
0:02:00 Meeting Mara Mintzer
0:06:00 Trusting Kids More
0:09:00 False View that Children Are Not Capable
0:15:00 The Nature of Cities
0:17:46 Denver 7 ABC News Clip
0:21:10 Mara's TEDx Talk
0:22:40 The Mission and Vision
0:27:40 Nature: Climate Resilient Schoolyards
0:35:55 How to Get Child-Friendly Cities
0:42:14 Working with All Kids
0:46:25 Hiring Teen Consultants to Get to the Teens
0:49:30 Kid-Friendly Places Map
0:54:00 Opportunities for Developing Leadership Skills
Thank you so much for watching! If you enjoyed this video, please give it a thumbs-up, leave a comment below, and share it with a friend. If you'd like more content like this, please subscribe to the Active Towns Channel, and be sure to "Ring" that notification bell to select your notification preferences.
If you are a fan of the Active Towns Channel, please consider supporting the effort as an Active Towns Ambassador in the following ways:
1. Become a Member of Active Towns right here on YouTube by clicking on the Join button and selecting the level that best suits you
2. Join the Patreon community: patreon.com/activetowns
(Note: Patron benefits include early, ad-free access to all my video content)
3. If you enjoyed this video, you can also "leave a tip" by clicking on the Super Thanks button right here on YouTube or through "Buy Me a Coffee" buymeacoffee.com/activetowns
4. Make a donation to my non-profit, Advocates for Healthy Communities, Inc. at activetowns.org/donate
Credits: Video and audio production by John Simmerman
Music via Epidemic Sound: bit.ly/3rFLErD
Resources used during the production of this video:
- My recording platform is Ecamm Live: bit.ly/3rwsUup
- Editing software Adobe Creative Cloud Suite: bit.ly/35DBDDU
For more information about the Active Towns effort or to follow along, please visit our links below:
Website: activetowns.org
BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/activetowns.bsky.social
Newsletter: bit.ly/SubscribeActiveTownsNewsletter
Background:
Hi Everyone! My name is John Simmerman, and I’m a health promotion and public health professional with over 35 years of experience. Over the years, my area of concentration has evolved into a specialization in how the built environment influences human behavior related to active living and especially active mobility.
Thanks once again for tuning in! I hope you find this content helpful and insightful.
Creative Commons License: Attributions, Non-Commercial, No Derivatives, 2025
