Friends of Nature (international abbreviation: NFI, for

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

: Naturfreunde International) is a

non-profit organisation A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

with a background in the social democratic movement, which aims to make the enjoyment of

nature Nature, in the broadest sense, is the physical world or universe. "Nature" can refer to the phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general. The study of nature is a large, if not the only, part of science. Although humans are ...

accessible to the wider community by providing appropriate

recreation Recreation is an activity of leisure, leisure being discretionary time. The "need to do something for recreation" is an essential element of human biology and psychology. Recreational activities are often done for enjoyment, amusement, or plea ...

al and

travel Travel is the movement of people between distant geographical locations. Travel can be done by foot, bicycle, automobile, train, boat, bus, airplane, ship or other means, with or without luggage, and can be one way or round trip. Travel c ...

facilities. It encourages

sustainable tourism Sustainable tourism is a concept that covers the complete tourism experience, including concern for economic, social and environmental issues as well as attention to improving tourists' experiences and addressing the needs of host communities. Su ...

and international friendship. It is also known as ''Naturfreunde'' (

), ''Les Amis de la Nature'' (

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

), ''Amici della Natura'' ( Italian), ''La Naturamikoj'' (

Esperanto Esperanto ( or ) is the world's most widely spoken constructed international auxiliary language. Created by the Warsaw-based ophthalmologist L. L. Zamenhof in 1887, it was intended to be a universal second language for international communic ...

), and ''Natuurvrienden'' or NIVON ( Dutch).

Background

The ''International Friends of Nature'' (IFN), based in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

, is the

umbrella organisation An umbrella organization is an association of (often related, industry-specific) institutions who work together formally to coordinate activities and/or pool resources. In business, political, and other environments, it provides resources and ofte ...

of the national Friends of Nature federations. Publications of the various sections include a handbook detailing all the houses and magazines published by various sections (such as Naturefriends - Great Britain - Bulletin, Les Amis de La Nature, La Migranto – in

by "Esperantistoj Naturamikoj" etc.).

Tradition

The Friends of Nature organisation was founded in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

in 1895.The group was founded by three activists,

Karl Renner Karl Renner (14 December 1870 – 31 December 1950) was an Austrian politician and jurist of the Social Democratic Workers' Party of Austria. He is often referred to as the "Father of the Republic" because he led the first government of German ...

, a law student and future President of Austria,

Georg Schmiedl Georg may refer to: * ''Georg'' (film), 1997 *Georg (musical), Estonian musical * Georg (given name) * Georg (surname) * , a Kriegsmarine coastal tanker See also * George (disambiguation) George may refer to: People * George (given name) * G ...

, a schoolteacher, and

Alois Rohrauer Alois (Latinized ''Aloysius'') is an Old Occitan form of the name Louis. Modern variants include ''Aloïs'' ( French), ''Aloys'' (German), ''Alois'' (Czech), ''Alojz'' ( Slovak, Slovenian), '' Alojzy'' (Polish), ''Aloísio'' (Portuguese, Spanish ...

, a blacksmith. In the age of incipient

tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring (disambiguation), touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tour (disambiguation), tours. Th ...

, the organisation succeeded in making nature accessible to broader population strata by providing requisite recreational and travel facilities. The organisation was banned by the

Nazis Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in N ...

in 1933,Boria Sax (2000). ''Animals in the Third Reich: Pets, Scapegoats, and the Holocaust''. Continuum International Publishing Group. p. 41. . but revived in 1945.

Commitment to sustainable development

International environmental campaigns, such as "100,000 Trees for Europe" or "Blue Rivers for Europe" are intended to enhance environmental awareness in Europe and to offer members opportunities to take action in the interest of the environment. In 1995, the Friends of Nature set up the "Institute for Integrative Tourism". The "Manifesto for a New Europe" (1993) and the "Manifesto for a Social, Ecological and Peaceful Future" (1996) proposals submitted to the Inter-governmental Conference of the European Union, and the "Green Paper - The Alps" are examples of international lobbying by the Friends of Nature.

Friends of Nature worldwide

With 350,000 members organised in approximately 45 member organisations, the Friends of Nature are among the biggest non-profit and non-governmental organisations worldwide. They provide environmentally sound travel programmes for their members and run over 700 Nature Friends Houses mainly in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

. The houses vary in size and facilities.

International Young Nature friends

In the 1970s, a group of young members of four Nature friends' organisations (Germany, Austria, Switzerland and the Netherlands) created a youth umbrella to network and support youth work in the movement. The organisation was formalised and has extended to current 26 member and partner organisations. The organisation was officially funded in 1975 with the first Secretary General Jochem Zimmer from Germany. The International Young Nature friends (IYNF) cooperated and were supported by the Council of Europe's Directorate Youth and Sport. In 2002, after more than ten years of seating in Brussels, the office of IYNF was moved to Prague, Czech Republic where the Secretariat of IYNF is currently located. IYNF is a founding member of the

European Youth Forum The European Youth Forum (from french: Youth Forum Jeunesse, YFJ) is an international non-profit association and serves as a platform and advocacy group of the national youth councils and international non-governmental youth organisations in Euro ...

where Young Nature friends belonged to the socialist family or the family of non-formal education organisations. International Young Nature friends provides trainings and international activities to the members of its network on different topics every year. They are also active in international conference such as the COP of the UNFCCC, actively lobbying for the interests of the young people of both Europe and beyond, concerned with environmental issues, social justice and the climatic change.

Background

Tradition

Commitment to sustainable development

Friends of Nature worldwide

International Young Nature friends

References

External links