AHS Active in Great Outdoors America Week
July, 2013 – American Hiking Society kicked off Great Outdoors Month (June) with our signature program, National Trails Day and we helped bring it to a close with active participation in Great Outdoors America Week (GO Week).  GO Week celebrates a variety of diverse organizations’ collective connection to the great outdoors while advocating for its future.
The Outdoors Alliance for Kids Coalition (OAK) led off the week’s activities with their annual in-person member meeting. AHS has been a member of OAK since its inception and is an active participant on both the State and National Policy Teams. AHS staff was in attendance at the member meeting and had the opportunity to highlight our recent work with the Washington DC Department of Parks and Recreation.
Tuesday was chock full of GO Week activities! Advocates from a variety of outdoor and conservation minded organizations hit Capitol Hill talking about a wide breadth of bills and issues. AHS’s Director of Government Relations, Sheila Franklin served as a team leader for a group from OAK that included two AHS interns, Danielle Rodriguez and Emily Fink. We had the opportunity to talk with staff in House and Senate member offices on both sides of the aisle regarding efforts to increase opportunities for children, youth and families to enjoy the outdoors. Hiking is one of the easiest ways for children and families to engage in the outdoors. The focus was on three pieces of legislation:
- The Public Lands Service Corps Act [H.R. 1352; S. 360] The difficult fiscal climate has affected the maintenance of many hiking trails on public lands as well as hiker friendly amenities. The Public Lands Service Corps Act would expand the authorities of the Secretaries of Interior and Agriculture and give authority to the Secretary of Commerce to establish service opportunities for youth and young adults on public lands. The legislation would help the public land and water management agencies to meet our nation’s backlogged maintenance needs, address record youth unemployment, and prepare a diverse group of youth to be the next generation of natural resource employees.
- Healthy Kids Outdoors Act [Soon to be Introduced in the 113th] The Healthy Kids Outdoors Act would improve our children’s health, support economic growth and strengthen the future of conservation by reconnecting our children, youth and families with the natural world through innovative state strategies that connect communities with green spaces, provide opportunities for outdoor recreation, and engage the health community in educating caregivers about the benefits of active time outdoors. The legislation provides state-level incentives for agencies and partners across sectors to develop comprehensive 5-year state strategies.
- No Child Left Inside Act [Soon to be Introduced in the 113th] The No Child Left Inside Act would create incentives for states to implement environmental literacy plans for K-12 public school students. This bill would create new funding for: 1) training teachers in environmental education; 2) for expanding environmental education programs; and 3) for states to implement environmental literacy plans, which will ensure that U.S. graduates are environmentally literate. Through this bill, field trips and other outdoor learning opportunities would become more frequent in participating schools.
Pete Olsen, AHS Vice President of Programs represented AHS on Tuesday at an invitation only event featuring a presentation by Secretary of the Interior, Sally Jewell and well known advocate and award winning author, Richard Louv. The topics included a discussion around research showing that even though the outdoor industry has grown substantially over the last several years, Americans, especially children, are disconnected from nature.
AHS was pleased to host an activity station during the GO Week Kids, Youth and the Great Outdoors Festival and Walk on the National Mall held on June 26th. The Festival brought together several outdoor recreation non-profit organizations in an effort to introduce youth to a wide scope of outdoor activities. AHS staff had the opportunity to educate a diverse group of youth about the Ten Essentials of Hiking through a fun and innovative relay race. The kids clearly enjoyed the activity and were happy to take home our Ten Essential rulers and hike stickers as a remembrance. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell was on hand at the festival and came by to greet the AHS staff!
Secretary of the Interior, Sally Jewell (center) greets AHS intern Emily Fink (left) and AHS Director of Government Relations, Sheila Franklin (right) at the Youth Festival.
Photo compliments of United States Department of Interior
It was an energizing week for outdoor recreation and AHS made sure to bring a hiking perspective to all the activities, advocating as always to protect America’s foot trails and the hiking experience.