Inclusiveness

What does this word mean today in our changing society? My colleague, Sara Close and I attended a conference last week determined to find out. The conference, jointly sponsored by the Denver Foundation and the Community Resource Center, was an all day seminar that included more than 200 attendees and a huge variety of non-profits interested in the ideas of inclusiveness (check out the entire inclusiveness movement here. What we learned is that we have a lot to learn.

For a number of years, we at Leave No Trace touted the fact that we were an “all inclusive” program. We worked with many different partners (even corporate competitors) and we were a program that included hikers, climbers, mountain bikers, boaters, bird watchers and any other group who enjoys the outdoors. Our definition of inclusiveness did not, however, call out specific races, ethnic backgrounds, etc. I would not say that these groups were in anyway excluded, but they were not specifically identified ¬– until somewhat recently, that is. In the past few years, we have been reaching out more and more, creating programs and materials for diverse cultural and ethnic groups. But in many ways, and the conference confirmed this point, we are just learning.

This endeavor for inclusiveness is not an easy one. Anyone involved in the outdoor industry knows it is generally not a diverse bunch. There is, in fact, a lack of diversity on many levels from participation to employment. But I believe the industry is also very aware of this problem and am hopeful that change is coming. Leave No Trace has started the uphill climb and is committed to becoming more inclusive. We can and will make an impact on as many diverse communities as possible. Through our work for inclusiveness, perhaps we will begin to see that change so needed in the outdoor demographic. As the conference stressed many times, it might be a challenging, lifetime journey, but inclusiveness in the long run will be worth every step.