together in ways that other parts of our lives don’t allow. Even though we are focused on the African-American experience, it’s not exclusive. We also have diversity in experience, age, and economic status.
Many organizations want to encourage more diverse participants but have had limited success. Do you have any insight on how to approach this issue?
Diversity and inclusion is like love. You can’t make someone be in a relationship with you if they don’t want to be. You don’t get there if you don’t take the time to get to know people and what matters to them. Sometimes we can get so bogged down in our product that we are not considering how the product has relevance to the com-munities we want to touch.
Going to a remote wilderness area is not at the top of most people’s bucket lists—black or white. We need to think about what we can offer busy working people that will make their lives better, rather than saying we have something that they of course want. That’s not the case.
Outdoor Afro leads big trips to national parks as well as simpler outings closer to home. For what you are trying to foster, is one more important than the other?
They’re both really important. When people are focused only on national parks, it’s tough. That’s a once-a-year thing for many people. But when you go to natural spaces that are nearby, they are already activating people who live in those communities, especially busy families who don’t have a lot to spend on travel and lodging. Going to a local park and walking a dog may be all you can do. And those places close to home can absolutely be a gateway for other experiences.
Some Outdoor Afro activities have weaved in historical significance. Why bring this appreciation of history together with appreciation of nature?
When interpretation includes people’s histories, visitors look at those spaces differently. You mean this was an area that was once inhabited by someone who looked like me or someone who overcame something that I can relate to? It’s been phenomenal to see that kind of spark that’s ignited when we’re able to tell these stories, and a lot of them are not on the official placards.
There’s definitely bad history—people getting lynched and disappearing in the woods—but there’s also amazing history. We had leaders last year take on over 40 miles of the Appalachian Trail, which overlaps with the Underground Railroad at some points. For people to do that was incredibly powerful—it was a way for them to challenge themselves but also connect deeply with this history. Today, people have GPS, nice hiking boots, and a nice base layer. They learned about people who did that same trek who didn’t have that. It created a deep sense of understanding and empathy for what our ancestors had to endure.
'We have people who have summited mountains around the world and people who have never done anything—who had to work up the courage to even join us for the first time.'
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