Inclusion in the Outdoors

In 2020, the Community Foundation for the Fox Valley Region, Fox Cities Greenways, and East Central Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission sponsored a talk by Dudley Edmondson, noted Black outdoorsman, author, and activist, who spoke about the many factors that limit Black and Brown Americans’ interactions with the outdoors. That talk sparked conversations among attendees about what could be done in the Fox Valley region of Wisconsin to further inclusion in the outdoors and what voices and information were missing from the discussion.

To address this, the Boys & Girls Brigade of Neenah stepped up to host an AmeriCorps position, held by Kyle Armstrong, dedicated to research and outreach to historically marginalized populations to better understand challenges and opportunities for the future. The AmeriCorps phase of the project focused on BIPOC and LGBTQ+ people and culminated in a report-out event in August of 2022 featuring preliminary research findings and a panel discussion of residents with diverse lived experience. After receiving strong interest in seeing the work continue, the initiative moved to Multicultural Coalition, Inc., first under the continued leadership of Kyle Armstrong, and as of Fall 2024, under the leadership of Mayra Pasayes.

Funding

The Community Foundation has supported Inclusion in the Outdoors from the beginning and continues to be a key partner. Cumulatively, grants from the Community Vision Fund have provided almost $60,000 for this effort.

Learn More

To learn more about Inclusion in the Outdoors, download the Research Report, and find out how you can get involved, go to https://ourmci.org/inclusion-in-the-outdoors/ or contact Mayra Pasayes at [email protected].

Loop Stories:

• Inclusion In The Outdoors: Wide Open Spaces For All
• Raising Awareness For Inclusion In The Outdoors

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