YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK — Yosemite Conservancy launched an initiative to engage Millennials and Gen Z in outdoor conservation during National Park Week. Protect Your Wild challenges people to consider how they protect the wild inside of themselves — and out in the world.
“We want to help get more bodies of all shapes, sizes, skin tones, and abilities into the outdoors,” said Kimiko Love Martinez, Yosemite Conservancy’s Chief Marketing & Communications Officer. “Public lands are for everyone. And we want to support people in reconnecting with that sense of connectedness to the Earth; to remind people that they are an integral part of nature, not separate from it.”
Why Diversify?
Many organizations, influencers, and individuals have been working to diversify the outdoors. These include Outdoor Afro, Pride Outside, Latino Outdoors, the Diversify Outdoors collective, and many more. In doing so, they’re also addressing the host of reasons for the lack of inclusivity in outdoor spaces ranging from:
- tight-knit, sometimes-exclusionary cultures in climbing, camping, and hiking
- cultural, economic, and accessibility barriers
- lack of:
- access to transportation
- education about nature
- representation in outdoor activities and spaces
- consideration for varying identities
- limited exposure to outdoor activities
- historical exclusion
- and more.
Visitors to national parks — and Yosemite in particular — already include a wide range of ages, ethnicities, socio-economic statuses, and more.
Who is Partnering?
To amplify the Protect Your Wild campaign, Yosemite Conservancy has partnered with influential voices in the #DiversifyOutdoors movement to share how they protect the wild in themselves and in their community, including Amanda Capable, founder of EveryBODY on Trails; Luz Lituma, co-founder of Latinx Hikers; Jose Gonzalez, founder of Latino Outdoors; Brittany Leavitt, CEO of Brown Girls Climb and an Outdoor Afro alumni, Ambreen Tariq of Brown People Camping; Zoe Peterson and Kelby Jecker of @the_AdventureAddicts, and more.
How Does it Work?
An interactive “What’s Your Outdoor Personality Type?” quiz is a staple of the campaign, with personalized tips on how to “Protect Your Wild” for each personality type — ranging from Weekend Warriors to Forest Bathers, History Buffs to Flora and Fauna Lovers, and more.
“We want you to protect the wild around you — and in you,” Love Martinez said. “When you build a love for self and see yourself as part of nature and wild places, you want to protect it.”
About Yosemite Conservancy
For more than 100 years, Yosemite Conservancy has been supporting the conservation of Yosemite’s natural resources and helping people develop deep ties to the park. Thanks to generous donors, in recent years, we have provided more than $162 million in grants to Yosemite for more than 850 projects. and more than $200 million in overall support in the past decade alone, including securing matching funds for major projects and in-kind donations of staffing, services, and park-based programming.
In 2024, we are providing $18 million in total support and funding around 60 new grants to the National Park Service for projects in the park.
The Conservancy’s guided adventures and art classes, volunteer opportunities, wilderness services, and bookstores help people from across the country and world connect with Yosemite. Learn more at yosemite.org.
