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Author: Jose G

Yo Cuento- “I Matter”

Latino Outdoors GGNRA

This post was originally published by the Institute at the Golden Gate, a program of the Parks Conservancy in partnership with the National Park Service.

por Hector Zaragoza.

Diversity, what is that? One of the main topics of conversation in the environmental movement is that of diversity. Here in the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, we are home to an incredibly diverse population, both culturally and ethnically. Therefore the question remains how parks can actively engage all of these different communities.

Last Thursday I had the chance to attend an event put on by Latino Outdoors called “Yo Cuento.” The title of the event can be interpreted in various ways – I count (as in numbers), I tell a story, or I matter. The founder of the organization, Jose Gonzalez, brought people together to explore the role of culture as it pertains to an individual’s interpretation of the outdoors.

In essence, different cultures interpret nature in different ways. The park world should therefore step outside of its park mentality and be willing to go into unexplored and perhaps uncomfortable places to reach the non-traditional park user in an engaging and meaningful way. One of the main points of conversation revolved around viewing our ignorance, biases, and preconceived notions of others as a valuable trait rather than a hindrance. In other words, if we are open and honest about our ignorance then we set ourselves up for open dialogue and this honesty can be refreshing. We can do this by framing our data-driven messages with a dose of storytelling.

Ask yourself this, what is the Latino Story? For some it means illegal immigration or Cinco de Mayo celebrations. Here is another question – have you heard of the Monarch Butterfly? If so, how are the two related if at all. Well, it represents both an endangered butterfly, and a symbol to migrant workers. Jose showed two maps – one represented the migration patterns of the butterfly and the other for migrant farm workers in the US. The two could almost be superimposed. This story gives personal meaning to both an environmental concern and a human concern with a much more powerful impact than a more traditional and scientific approach to the conservation of an endangered species.

This led him to talk about the academic research that supports the notion of culturally-dependent interpretations of nature. He showed the following adaptation by Charles Thomas of the original Edwin Nichols model:

He used this table to point out the subtleties of the different cultural interpretations of the outdoors. However, this is not a definitive tool but rather something to help us be open to differing perspectives.  According to the table, some groups may be more interested in the scientific approach to nature while others may be more interested in how we can relate to each other in the outdoors as a group. Essentially, we should be using storytelling as entry points to topics of diversity and inclusion. We have to step into the discomfort that may come with changing our programs or services into something that may not fit our vision of what they “should” be.

One of the major questions revolving this topic is that of safety. How do you make people feel safe? One of the best strategies is to be willing to be vulnerable yourself by making explicit the existence of preconceived notions that are created based on biases formed from lived experiences. Once people realize that you are being honest with yourself and others, then it can lead to shared growth. To test, he showed us a picture of a Latino family outdoors as an example. It was a family of 3. They were wearing normal clothes and not the typical outdoor gear that is promoted by places like REI or the traditional Sierra Club member. He then asked the group if they thought that the people in the picture fit into the perceived notion of what gear you need to enjoy the outdoors. When compared to an ad put out by the Sierra Club depicting a lone person fully geared to go backpacking there were even bigger distinctions noticed. The message is essentially the same but it probably appeals to different audiences.

So, he then asked direct-service providers in the audience (mostly National Park Service rangers) to ask themselves, “What am I doing to create opportunities that people then choose to be a part of?”

What can you do? You can spark growth by learning different ways in which you can frame your story. This can manifest itself in doing outreach in non-traditional outlets for job postings, framing the program language so that it appeals and engages non-traditional audiences and finally, exploring what levels of discomfort you are willing to put yourself in to grow as an organization, as a professional, and as a modern conservationist.

Hector Zaragoza, Health and Wellness Fellow, has a background in research as well as environmental education. At the Institute at the Golden Gate he contributes to the development of both the Youth and Wellness Initiative in partnership with the Crissy Field Center in addition to the Healthy People Healthy Parks initiative. He holds a degree in International Development Studies from the University of California, Los Angeles and has experience studying and working abroad in both Germany and Mexico. 

On Defining Latino Engagement with the Outdoors

This post was originally posted on our previous website in 2013. Please enjoy these archived re-posts while we also include new content. Enjoy!

 

UC Davis Stebbins

Photo by Jose Gonzalez. UC Davis Stebbins Cold Canyon Reserve

By Jose Gonzalez

I recently had the opportunity to listen in a Google Hangout on Diversity in the Outdoors, hosted by the Sierra Club. A good summary of it is up on the Huffington Post, courtesy of Stacy Bare, Director of the Sierra Club Mission Outdoors Program.

First of all, this is a much needed discussion, something I have alluded to in previous posts. It is an issue that many are aware of, but it requires a bit more push to keep making it a national discussion.

During the diversity discussion, several good points were made, which also provides a good opportunity to focus again on the ways Latinos do and can engage with the Outdoors, as well as the ways we can support efforts in this endeavor.

Here are the points that Stacy Bare made from the discussion, but furthered boiled down with a special focus connected to Latinos:

  • Find where people are getting outside and build on the work already being done.
  • A traditional Latino family may bring multiple generations out for a party vs. two hikers seeking adventure on a rock face.
  • Activity in a back yard, city park, or sidewalk is equal and more accessible, than national parks.
  • Ensure that people can visualize themselves in the outdoors, change the visual representation of the outdoors: There are not enough Latino youth and family faces in catalogs or outreach.

To note, of course these points also apply to many communities of color, but I want to highlight this for Latino communities so as to engage you, dear readers.

Embedded in these points are some interconnected issues, but it presents a useful opportunity to tease out the differences when we talk about outside,outdoors, and the Outdoors.

First, “outside” simply means being outside, but which presents a range options. Latinos ARE outside. In some cases for many Latinos, ironically, much of that outside experience is working the fields—an experience that is important to note because it provides a frame and starting point for that particular demographic.

But it has also been documented that Latinos readily engage in outdoor activities of a recreational nature much like other groups, with family as a focus. This can start in the backyard but extend to municipal and county parks. I call this the “carne asada” effect. Thus, local parks with recreational space are a draw for Latinos. This is also not limited to the grill and a soccer field—there are many Latinos who like to fish in the rivers, jog on shoreline trails, bicycle, or simply go for a walk around the lake.

What makes many of these spaces safe and enjoyable is that there is a sense of comfort and connection to family, still within reach of “home”. We may be in a new space but still within familiar context and with many of the skills needed to be in these environments: play in an open field, fire up the grill, set up the volleyball net, etc.

Second, there is being in the “outdoors”, which can be an intermediary step for some communities or a brand new experience for others. This can involve really travelling to a new park or encountering a new set of experiences with new skills needed.

Take for example a Latino family going to Yosemite for the first time. They will start where it is comfortable, in the valley or near the recreational areas. They will venture out on the trails to familiar spots, they may want to get in the river, bring food—maybe some birotes/bolillos with a particular stuffing. But they may or may not know all the fees or the option of purchasing a federal lands pass. They may also be unfamiliar with the particular regulations for a National Park, and the differences compared to BLM or Forest Service land.

Such knowledge is important, and many Latino communities know that. But the expectation of HOW they should know can be an issue. As Latinos, we will make mistakes; maybe we will not come prepared and stand out a bit. We may not have “the right shoes” or “look like we belong there”. But how that initial interaction and experience goes will determine if we come back and with what frame of mind. It does not mean we need a “taco stand” at the food court to make us feel welcome, but a Latino ranger taking some time to welcome them, check in, and connect with some cultural understanding can make an incredible difference to bridge misunderstanding, close knowledge gaps, and learn from each other.

Does this mean that you NEED a Latino ranger or your program will be ineffective? Of course not, but if that is an opportunity that is not explored, it is a missed opportunity.

Some accounts note that some families avoid park rangers because they look too much like immigration agents. Some avoid them because they think “federal agent” and wonder about what information is asked for, reported, and for what purposes.

But there are several examples of how to engage Latinos in these “intermediary outdoor steps”. Some programs such as the Environment for the Americas use Latino interns to server as cultural connections for Latino families to access and learn about nearby public lands. Others, such as Pura Vida in Grand Teton National Park work to connect Latino youth with bilingual activities. These examples provide opportunities for Latinos to see themselves in the outdoors in a positive manner, with cultural connections as starting points.

Lastly there is the “Outdoors”, which I propose as a frame of mind and experiences that many of us in outdoor conservation take as a given set of values or overlook what bridging opportunities and skills are needed to get communities to this stage—apart from the “if they just had the information and the equipment”. For example, visiting Yosemite is going to the outdoors. But hiking up Half Dome or backpacking one of the remote trails for a couple of days is being in the Outdoors. This may be out of reach for some Latino communities because of time, experience, skills, or a welcoming environment.  This is where many of us want to connect Latinos because it can showcase the wonders of our public lands and we hope to instill that sense of preservation and conservation.

Organizations that handle this well can instill those connections. Organizations that do not handle it well end up “rushing” communities to “want to love” the Outdoors without considering relevance and cultural connections.

There is also the question of skills provided in a supportive manner.  If you expect Latinos to simply show up for a “camping class”, then you may only get a certain group for whom it seems relevant. Some may have a bit of experience, have the time, have the money, or have someone to go with. You may also only get young professionals or youth that have been exposed to connections with outdoor experiences. But many times you may need to address the whole family and especially the parents so as to really connect conservation ethics with cultural values and relevance. A great example of this is the work of Camp Moreno, which explicitly frames its program with connecting to parents and the family, and giving them the skills with supportive and fellow parents to practice camping skills—and being aware of their concerns and needs.

The point of it all is that we are trying to address a recognized need of getting more diversity outdoors and in the Outdoors, while recognizing where Latinos are and would like to be. You have National Park Superintendents stating that there is a need for more diversity in National Parks. More so than a challenge, this presents an opportunity because we all benefit from increased diversity in the broad range of our public lands, from municipal parks to wilderness areas.

We have solutions bubbling around but it is important to note how programs complement each other and support Latino leadership. Programs like the California Mini-Corps Outdoor Education Program and Camp Moreno highlight Latino leadership, which is needed. This is complimented by the work of organizations like Nature Bridge, Sierra Club Mission Outdoors, and Outward Bound, among many others, that have the resources to get more Latinos outdoors.

But is important to stress that in getting more Latinos outdoors, is important to support Latino leadership in this issue. It is not necessarily lacking, we are here, and the individuals are out there, especially “bridging” individuals such as myself that bridge the Latino and the conservation community. Much like other mestizos, we encounter challenges of identity, especially compared to more “outdoor people”.

Thus, we just need to keep building this leadership infrastructure and keep connecting while identifying and recognizing the value of bridging individuals and giving them a chance to work in this platform. That should serve as a call for mainstream conservation organizations and for Latino organizations looking for expertise on the issue.

It is already fairly well-established that Latinos are engaging with conservation and environmental issues from an environmental health and environmental justice perspective out of necessity. But in addition to that, we have a role and contribution to make in the spectrum from being outside to engaging with the Outdoors, and in having experiences from enjoyment of the outdoors to conservation of the Outdoors.

This was originally posted on the Green Chicano blog.

How I Overcame My Fear of El Cucuy

por Rena Payan

How I overcame my fear of “El Cucuy”—or how I gained my independence without losing my family.

a team instructors
Credit: Aaron Gilbert, Bay Area Wilderness Training (BAWT)

It took most of my adolescence to wander to the back of my grandparent’s property in rural Merced, California. In case you didn’t know, “El Cucuy” (Coo-Cooey) ACTUALLY lived back there, and just for the record La Llorona also wandered around Lake Yosemite in Merced! Okay, so it seems farfetched in retrospect to believe that Merced was home to two (possibly more) prolific Mexican “monsters”—but man did I believe it when I was a kid. In fact it wasn’t until I was well into adulthood that I was able to sort through the scare tactics that are still such a lasting memory.

I was teaching outdoor education in Southern California when I first fully understood the legends of El Cucuy and La Llorona. I had known the stories all my life, had been terrified that I might be snatched away at any moment by either, but I had never really understood why I knew them. Then one day it hit me as I was talking to mother on the phone. She was telling me that I needed to start hiking with a helmet on—or maybe she was telling me that I could throw my cell phone at a bear if it was chasing me. Either way I had an epiphany! El Cucuy was NOT real! Imagine my shock! I realized in that conversation, which is not out of the ordinary, the beginning of a different outdoor life than I had ever had.  The realization that La Llorona was not lurking at the lake where I taught canoeing, or that El Cucuy wasn’t going to bust into my single-person tent while I was backpacking in Alaska, shifted something in me and my mother’s dynamic that day.

To fully understand this shift, one has to first understand why we learn these legends in the first place. These legends are well-intentioned lies that our parents, grandparents, tias and primos tell us to keep us safe. Just like hiking with a helmet on or carrying a cell phone into the back country, these stories are how we show love. When you are young and your parents don’t want you to wander off all they have to utter is the name El Cucuy, and when you get older and you want to go swimming, but nobody wants to sit around watching you swim in a dirty canal, they tell you about La Llorona so you won’t be tempted to try and go out on your own.


La Llorona pictured here at Xochimilco which serves as the setting for some of the most popular Dia De Muertos performances.

This was the shift in me and my mother’s relationship. All of that time I hid my outdoor adventures until after the fact from my family—all the time that I spent worrying that my mother would disapprove of my callused feet had been in vain. I realized that despite the fact that they didn’t fully understand my outdoor life, their efforts to curb my adventuring, their efforts to get me out of outdoor education and back to Merced—they  were the same reasons that they told me as a small child about El Cucuy. That it was because they loved me, beyond my interests, beyond my need to be outside, beyond my drive to do things that they knew nothing about; they loved me, whole-heartedly, without condition and beyond reason, they loved me.

When I came to terms with this I was able to share more with them about my outdoor life then I ever thought I would even want to. I no longer kept my life hidden fearing disappointment, tired of hearing warnings about things I didn’t think they could understand. I wanted to share with them what the outdoors did for me, how it gave me independence, taught me resilience, challenged me in ways I had never imagined,   and I finally felt that hearing this wouldn’t hurt them; wouldn’t seem like me wanting to separate myself from them, and although I would never be able to stop them worrying, it made me feel that their worry was no longer asking me to not adventure.

In short—

Children, go and explore, play, adventure, live and breathe outside. Don’t let El Cucuy or La Llorona stop you from enjoying the world that was created for you, but rather let the love that your family has cultivated in you inspire you to do these things WITH them. Take your parents outside; bring your primos to the outdoor spaces that you love, garden with your grandparents. Only then will the fear and the worry that they hope to inspire in you to keep you safe give way to the lessons that can be learned together from being outdoors.

Parents, don’t stop worrying, don’t stop trying to keep your children safe, but understand that the values and the lessons you have given them are only enhanced by being outdoors. The time you spent cultivating a sense of curiosity, building their resiliency, teaching them to work hard to reach goals, and to appreciate their own value are enforced and exemplified by spending time and challenging themselves outdoors. In fact the only thing that could further solidify these lessons is by exploring, playing, and learning in these wondrous places together.

 Vamos juntos.

wlt group photo
Credit: Aaron Gilbert, Bay Area Wilderness Training (BAWT)