Latino Outdoors Interview: A Conversation with Rafael Rodriguez

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Tell us your story, what is your connection to the land and conservation?

My story begins in the city of Lynwood, a town in Southeastern L.A. County nestled between South Gate, Compton, and South Central. Growing up, I loved watching nature documentaries with my dad and letting my imagination go wild. Unfortunately, I was not able to connect first hand with nature as often as I’d like, so I decided to become one of the founding members of my high school’s environmental science club. This led me to apply for an Environmental Science degree at UC Davis.  While at Davis, I became ever more entrenched in my love for water and nature to the point that I switched majors to Hydrology. Soon after graduation, I landed a job as an Ecohydrologist at CBEC Eco-engineering, where I get to enjoy the outdoors and work on projects that enhance fragile ecosystems and habitat for endangered species.

How is this connection expressed or misunderstood in your community and culture—in the broader conservation community?

I feel like this connection with the environment is often viewed as “out of reach” for many in the Latino community.  In my experience, there are Latinos that may even shy away from going outdoors too often because they associate it with farm work.

Latino identities are connected to the outdoors, the environment, and conservation—how are those words reflective of YOU? 

I love being outdoors, even when I have to hack my way through 8’ tall blackberry bushes in order to survey the topography. I see the human race as shepherds of our environment and in order to allow future generations the opportunity to enjoy it, we must do our best to conserve the ecosystems that keep our water flowing and our sustenance growing.

What needs to change and how do we grow, celebrate, and have the broader conservation movement connect with the role and values Latinos bring to the field?

I believe that the greater conservation movement needs to acknowledge the huge portion of the population that is not actively involved with the outdoors. The Latino community might feel ignored by the approach of wildlife officials. I’ve spoken with people who say that they “have more important things to worry about” than the outdoors. There needs to be better environmental education tailored to the Latino community in order to spread awareness and involvement with nature.

Why does this issue and work matter to you?

This issue resonates with me because I’ve seen the physical and mental benefits that time outdoors can bring. I want to help show families the beauty that lies at our doorstep and expand their minds beyond the vecindad.

What does success in this work look like to you and how is your work connected to it?

Success to me would be equal participation in the conservation community. I rarely see other Latinos in my career field or along the hiking trails that are open to the public.

I see my work as a small contribution towards the betterment of our environment. I hope I can contribute towards Latino Outdoors’ mission of “Connecting Cultura and Community with the Outdoors”.

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Rafael Rodriguez is a graduate from UC Davis with a degree in Hydrology. He began a career as an Ecohydrologist in West Sacramento that allows him to spend plenty of time outdoors. However, he wants to support “ways to help my community build an intimate relationship with their environment”. With that in mind he has connected with our Latino Outdoors team in Sacramento to support and participate in our community events.

“This I Believe” ~ Alin Badillo

This I Believe
By Alin Badillo

When I was younger I remember my mother always watering the plants she had around the house. I remember her watering them with a huge smile on her face. Her eyes glowed with such brightness that you could see the reflection of the moon upon the town. She seemed very peaceful and relaxed. I remember her looking at me and telling me about how much peace and harmony the plants brought to our house. She said that the plants gave us peace and harmony. At that age I was confused. I had no idea what she was talking about.

As I grew older the separation of my parents was cruel and devastating for me. I was only eight when my mother, who had custody of me, left me in Mexico and came to the USA. I didn’t know what to do. My two older sisters didn’t mind living with our aunt. Unlike them, I felt very lost with no guidance. Every day after school I spent my afternoons and free time on top of a tall, green and strong tree my grandmother had in her backyard. The tree was very bushy and wide like a tall and buff bodyguard guarding a one year old. The tree made me realized how being near plants and trees put me at ease with myself. I felt protected and safe.

It didn’t take long before my mother brought both of my sisters and me to the USA. All I wanted was to be with my mother so I didn’t mind leaving my history behind to start all over. The four of us arrived in Jackson, Wyoming at five in the morning at our mom’s apartment. That night I fell asleep in her arms. When I woke up she was watering plants. She had plants at every inch of the apartment. If you went to the bathroom, you saw a cactus. If you went to the kitchen you saw a spider plant. The apartment looked like a jungle. The jungle of in her house reminded me of how peaceful and calm I was at my grandmother’s tree.

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Growing up with a single mother and two teenage sisters was very hard. Not to mention growing up in a culture that was different to all of us. Going to school helped me to adapt but it was miniscule. What helped me the most was living in an area surrounded by mountains, plants and wildlife. Every time I was upset or just wanted peace, I went on hikes and stopped to look at the sky and listen to the birds chirp. I went to find the tranquility that only the forests could give me. I knew then that I had one mission in life. My mission was to protect the natural wonders of the world and teach others that plants and wild life can bring peace to the earth.

As I got older and more educated I understood that the only way I was going to fulfill my mission was through education. I wasn’t sure if I could even get that far; I come from a low-income family; my parents did not finish Middle School; my sisters got married and had kids at ages 18 and 19. I was expected to end up like my sisters, at least that’s what my coworkers and others said to me. Every time I spoke to them about my dream of saving the earth, they just laughed and changed the topic. It didn’t matter to me if they believed me or not, because every time I went to take a hike on the mountain or saw swans with their family crossing the street on my way to work, my ambition to protect the wild landscapes and teach others of its magic grew immense.

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Now that I am 21 years old, I am very proud of how far in life I have gotten because of how much I care for the environment. I know that society and nature can live together. I perceive that I can teach society what the natural environment taught me. If people are able to connect to the environment as my mother and I do, society will understand that taking care of our wildlife and plants as if it were part of us will bring peace and harmony to all of us.

Alin Badillo is a student of the University of Wyoming majoring in International Studies and Environment and Natural Resources. This past semester she had the opportunity to write a “This I Believe” essay through a course offered by the UW Haub School of Environment and Natural Resources. She presented her work to students and faculty to share and express some of the core values that help guide her daily life. The “This I Believe” essay is based on a 1950’s radio program hosted by journalist Edward R. Murrow. In 2004, This I Believe, Inc. was founded as a non-profit organization to engage people from all walks of life to share their core values in hopes to encourage people to respect beliefs that may be different from their own. Since then, essays have been featured in National Public Radio (NPR) broadcasts, in classrooms, within organizations, and across communities.

Alin is excited to share her “This I Believe” essay and hopes to inspire other young Latinas and Latinos to explore how they make connections to the natural world around them.

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.