ROOTS & TRAILS
A safe space for youth to explore the outdoors and themselves.
Youth Outdoor Wellness
Creating outdoor and land connection experiences for Rural, Farmworker, BIPOC, and LGBTQ2SIA+ youth that would otherwise be inaccessible. These experiences include safe, structured outdoor excursions where youth reconnect with nature while developing confidence, resilience, and environmental awareness.
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Two driving factors:
Safe outdoor experiences are mostly inaccessible for youth of color, LGBTQ2SIA+, and Low Income youth.
Unfortunately, recent studies have shown that while outdoor activities have increased since 2023 by 55%, marginalized communities have not found themselves in this data base. “The latest report published by the Outdoor Industry Association highlights “the outdoor recreation participant base grew to total nearly 55% of the U.S. population ages 6 and older” (Outdoor Industry Association, 2023). Nonetheless, BIPOC communities continue to be underrepresented in these spaces as statistics from the U.S. Forest Service and National Park Service denote.
Stressors for marginalized youth are greater than ever before.
Youth participate in biweekly multilingual outdoor trips focusing on releasing stressors, building mindfulness and adaptive tools, reconnecting with the land and culture, in community with peers and learning about the world around us.
Our trips hold space for all learners, life experiences, needs, identities, and cultures through youth centered participation.
Youth are defined as incoming/current 6th - 12th grades.
Youth are divided into two cohorts, 6th - 8th & 9th - 12th.
Making the outdoors accessible while repairing youth’s mental wellbeing
