Wild Diversity

By Viv Cai & Sofia Baum All images by Sofia Baum Inspired by Organeyez’s Instagram post on Wilderness as a Colonial Construct , Wild Diversity Youth Ecology Coordinators Viv Cai and Sofia Baum break down postcolonial effects on the wilderness and human connection to the land. The Term Wilderness The wilderness as we know it today is a postcolonial concept that has been crafted to portray nature as a place separate from our human identities and lives. We are taught to either conquer nature, modernize wilderness, or to leave it alone to preserve its integrity. This dominant ideology was brought over during the European explorations. The European colonizers approached these new lands with these presumptions and forever changed the ecological systems of these lands. This postcolonial wilderness experience has affected all of us and our relationship with nature. The commodified nature, privatized natural resources, altered natural landscapes, and disrupted ecosystems have made nature in...

By Sofia Baum Photo credit: Sofia Baum The Leave No Trace Seven Principles share a guiding framework to a fulfilling and intentional experience in the outdoors. The purpose of Leave No Trace is to reconnect with the natural world and avoid damaging the land, waterways, and wildlife. 1. Prepare and Plan Ahead What does this look like? ✓ Identifying goals for your experience ✓ Lining up experiences and activities with your or your groups level of knowledge, skill, and experience ✓ Considering weather, terrain, regulations, and anticipated food consumption. What's the impact? ✓ Ensure safety for yourself and your group ✓ Minimize impact on natural world ✓ Increase level of comfort and enjoyment of the experience ✓ Encourages self-growth Photo credit: B en Duchac 2. Travel and Camp on Durable Surfaces What does this look like? ✓ Staying on trail specifically on rock, sand and gravel; ice and snow; and sparse vegetation ✓ Avoiding living soil as it miti...

By Viv Cai Photo credit: Yuri Arcurs (Getty Images/iStockphoto) Just because we may not show early signs of sun damage doesn't mean that protection against the sun is any less important for dark-skinned folks than it is for people with light or white skin. Outdoorsy BIPOC people especially need to be mindful of the dangers of sun exposure and make a habit of adding sunscreen and protective clothing to our adventure check lists. Many folks of color, especially darker-skinned folks, don’t think that sun protection applies to them. But melanin alone will not protect you against the sun! While we might not display the initial signs of sun damage as early as light-skinned folks — such as wrinkles, age spots, or hyperpigmentation — our skin is still being damaged by the Ultra Violet (UV) rays. UV damage looks different on people with different skin tones. Folks with higher melanin can still get sunburned, but might not show the redness that is typical in lighter skin tone...

Over the past decade, grocery stores have been popping up in neighborhoods traditionally known as food deserts where residents had a lack of access to fresh produce.  The common perception was, if grocery stores were added to these areas, it will help provide healthier dietary habits as opposed to having access only to fast food or processed food.  However, research shows that only by adding grocery stores does not change people’s grocery shopping habits or dietary habits. Why is that?  Food deserts are more common in low income and minority neighborhoods where families are often working multiple jobs, living paycheck to paycheck while having to take care of their kids on their own. Because of this, just by having access to a grocery store with fresh produce is not going to solve the economic inequalities. Communities need fresh healthy food they can actually afford, being paid a livable wage instead of working multiple jobs and the education necessary to put tog...