Written by Carinna Kenigsberg, Director of Programs & Impact

The outdoor sector has always attracted incredible people. Folks who love and care about nature, those who seek adventure and are driven to push their comfort zones, and others who thrive on teaching and witnessing people’s skill and confidence grow. However, there are significant representation gaps in who shows up to work in the outdoor sector. How do people with different abilities, needs, and backgrounds see themselves in this incredible sector? How does someone with a physical limitation, or someone with mental health considerations or neurodiversities find their place in a sector that can be seen as elite and exclusive, and only for a certain ‘type of person’?

At Power To Be we truly believe that Everyone Belongs in Nature. We wear that badge of honour through our approaches, our adaptability, and our energy to really meet people where they are and see them as the experts that they are. The Outward Bound Canada Training Academy, launched in 2022, also shares the same vision and foundational approaches – with a mandate to build a more diverse sector of outdoor professionals across Canada through accessible and inclusive free training programs. Because of Power To Be’s long history of providing impactful nature-based adaptive programs for folks with barriers, we were approached by Outward Bound Canada’s Training Academy to co-develop a unique new training offering.

The pilot program blended the Training Academy’s Foundations program curriculum with Power To Be’s experience in supporting diverse populations to access the outdoors. With Outward Bound Canada’s Training Academy’s knowledge in facilitating outdoor leadership programming, combined with our knowledge around adaptations and modifications, we were able to scaffold an experience for folks. “The support and structure of this program allowed me to have the confidence to participate in things that would usually feel out of reach”, said one participant. “The way this program was run allowed me to experience a more conducive and inclusive learning environment for the first time and see more potential in myself and what I can accomplish under the right conditions!”. Spanning five days, the program was geared towards people who self-identify as having a barrier, disability, mental health consideration, different cultural background or learning style, and who have an interest in working and volunteering in outdoor programs.

We were so lucky to meet the folks that attended the program. The group included people who have led everything from equine programs, to local flora and fauna activities, to working with Indigenous communities as well as newcomers. They brought a ton of excitement and experience and felt that this program could give them the tools, confidence, and tangible concepts to combine with their passions and experiences. As one participant put it “This program brought awareness to some strengths and skills I already have but hadn’t previously had the opportunity to share with others.” The group started as strangers who had very different life experiences and ways of learning, and became a group of friends who built their resilience and confidence together over the four days at our Prospect Lake site. They practiced things like knots and tarp building, learned and experienced what it’s like to facilitate group development, and learned introductory risk management skills and other program curriculum – all while we adapted how we taught and modified as needed.

Some of the magic moments were paddling in the lake together and drifting under the hanging branches of the willow tree where people felt calm, safe and grounded. Hiking together using a variety of adaptive and outdoor gear. Getting to witness one of the Indigenous participants illustrate the intention and effort behind cedar weaving and culturally modified trees by modifying one of our trees with the help of everyone in the group. We had one participant sing a song of gratitude as an offering to the tree, and folks helped pull the cedar.

Programs like this are needed so we can shake up old narratives and cultivate new perspectives and industry norms. This collaborative program between Power To Be and Outward Bound Canada’s Training Academy did not sacrifice any learning objectives to be inclusive, and it illustrated that there is a large group of people that don’t yet see themselves as part of the outdoor industry. That is not because people with different lived experiences should not be a part of the outdoor sector, it is because the outdoor sector as a whole has some work to do to create a more welcoming and inclusive space. When reflecting on the program, one participant shared that a highlight was “feeling accepted and comfortable to show up just as I am”. Small shifts in perspective can have a lasting ripple of change, and we are grateful to Outward Bound Canada’s Training Academy for partnering with us on this path to perpetuate a different way to train, evolve, and inspire people to be outdoors in nature.