In the fall of 2006 Learn Outdoors organized the Impact Challenge Initiative as part of our commitment to our local community, our interest in long term sustainability and our desire to shrink our organization’s ecological footprint. Our goal was to implement a collection of actions and solutions specifically designed to decrease our program’s impact on the natural world, increase community involvement and make Learn Outdoors more economically and ecologically sustainable. When we set out on this project, we had no idea how central this work would become to our mission and values. We are excited that this “Greening of Adventure Programs” continues to guide our day-to-day actions while inspiring us with new challenges for the future.
As we head into our fifth season of programs, guided by the 2009 Impact Challenge Initiative, the label “Green” has become a mainstream modifier and an over-used marketing tag line. At Learn Outdoors, we have chosen to “Go Green” for much larger reasons than selling courses or following the latest industry trend. Avoiding the “We are Greener than You” attitude that has become so prevalent in contemporary sales pitches, Learn Outdoors seeks to reach out and share our experiences, both successes and failures, in an attempt to help all programs achieve the best possible balance between their businesses, their communities and the natural world. To this end, we continue to reach out to the greater Adventure and Outdoor Education communities with information, techniques and resources. This information is made available on our website, through articles and interviews and at presentations given at various industry conferences.
The response to our efforts has been tremendous. We are excited to push our green programming even further in 2009. We hope that our ongoing Impact Challenge Initiative will inspire the actions of others. We welcome any and all feedback, as all of the systems and strategies we employ are a direct result of industry wide brainstorming, experimentation and collaboration. Through all of our efforts, we can continue to find the balance that allows us to offer life-changing experiences and educational programs in the most sustainable ways possible!
For a complete recap of our 2009 Impact Challenge Initiative, click here…
