Outdoors for All: Partnerships to Make Parks Welcoming and Inclusive

Parks and natural open spaces should be welcoming and inclusive spaces that allow all community members to co-create their experiences in them, especially for people of color and youth, who have been historically removed or excluded. But decades of discriminatory practices and policies have led to biased decisions and practices that have denied these groups equal access and a connection with nature that centers their interests.

This panel will focus on an unlikely partnership of grassroots group and federal government agency that created Get Black Outside (GBO) Day, an initiative that advocates for people of color to have the opportunity to engage in nature, through an authentic and culturally tailored experience. The panel will discuss both the successes and lessons learned in developing this global platform designed to acknowledge, support, and unite Black-led organizations and facilitators that bring outdoor programming to primarily Black and Brown audiences. Presenters will also share a resource, Engaging Diverse Groups in Building Community Resiliency through Stewardship, which one agency has used to engage groups in their natural resource efforts to create programs, events, and spaces that welcome and engage youth of color to build the long-term relationships necessary to ensure communities are environmentally just, resilient, and encouraging of the next generation of environmental stewards.