News from the Friends of Reinstein

The staff at Reinstein Woods and the board of Friends of Reinstein Woods would like to reaffirm our commitment to equal outdoor and environmental education access for all. Recent events have reminded us of the importance of pursuing this ideal. We acknowledge that racism can keep people of color from exploring and learning from nature. No person should feel afraid to enjoy their neighborhood park or nature preserve.

We pledge to work to make Reinstein Woods a more welcoming place for all. Prior to the COVID pandemic, we had begun exploring ways that we could change to make our programs and facilities more welcoming. What can we do to diversify our staff and volunteer base? How can we ensure people of color play a role not just in attending our programs, but actively developing and shaping our programs? While the pandemic has provided additional challenges, the events of the last week remind us that this work is more important than ever, and we remain committed to implementing change. We are open to suggestions from our members and supporters. Change must start with us.

We encourage you to support movements such as #BlackBirdersWeek, a week-long celebration of racial diversity in birding. You can read about the beginnings of the movement here.

To understand the core of this issue, listen to the “Made for You and Me” episode of the Code Switch podcast, a 20-minute look at the lack of diversity in outdoor recreation, and people who are working to change things. Or for an interesting perspective on youth environmental education, read the article “What does outdoorsy look like?”

We appreciate your support of our efforts to help all people share in nature’s harmony.