BY VIC THASIAH
Mainstream environmentalism has long been associated with middle-to-upper class power elites focused on “protecting” wild places and endangered species while maintaining their environmental privileges and amenities. This “woods, waters, and wildlife” approach—not necessarily concerned about the “welfare” of working-class and BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) communities on the frontlines and fencelines of environmental threats—has limited appeal and potential today, especially amid demographic changes underway in the U.S. It’s time to reimagine conservation as a collective effort that transcends both socioeconomic and racial-ethnic boundaries, combining mainstream environmentalist and environmental justice forces.
Outdoor recreation: Play together, slay (environmental threats) together
With over half of the U.S. population (168 million people, 55%) participating in outdoor recreation, playing outside together presents powerful opportunities to learn about the environmental insights and concerns of different communities. The bonds we create as a result, with both each other and public lands, is the new catalyst for a more inclusive, relevant, and effective conservation movement.
The Latinx community: A rising force in the outdoors and climate action
The Latinx population, the second-fastest growing racial/ethnic group in the U.S. after Asians, provides a compelling example of how specific communities can lead the way:
- Numbers spike: Latinx outdoor recreation has skyrocketed from 34% in 2015 to 56% in 2022, with a 9.2% jump in 2022 alone.
- Growth potential: The Latinx participant group boasts the highest average annual growth rate at 5.5% over the past five years.
- Demographic shift: By 2060, Latinx people are projected to comprise 28% of the U.S. population.
- Popular activities: Latinx outdoor enthusiasts pursue above all: running, jogging, and trail running (20.2%); bicycling (17.2%); camping (17.1%); hiking (17%); and fishing (14.7%)
- Climate concern: Latinx communities demonstrate a higher level of climate change awareness and willingness to act: 69% of Hispanics/Latinos are either alarmed or concerned about global warming, compared to 49% of Whites; 37% of Hispanics/Latinos would “definitely” or “probably” join a campaign to convince elected officials to take action on global warming, versus 22% of Whites; and 57% of Hispanic/Latino voters consider global warming “very important” to their vote, ranking it 6th out of 29 policy issues, compared to 35% of White voters who consider it “very important,” ranking it 17th.
Lessons from Latinx environmentalisms
To reimagine conservation, we can draw valuable insights from past and present Latinx environmental perspectives:
- Historical knowledge and experience: Recognize long-standing environmental values pertaining to land and resource stewardship held by Latinx communities, which often predate the modern environmental movement.
- The environmental-social connection: Learn from Latinx experiences of being exploited alongside the land, the intertwining of social and environmental ills, and how we can meet these challenges in just, wise, and sustainable ways.
- Grassroots movements, positive change: Draw deep inspiration from the farmworker movement and campaigns against pesticide exposure, and from people like Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta.
A new vision for conservation
The imperative to reimagine conservation is not just an option, it’s a necessity for our collective well-being and flourishing. By embracing the environmental perspectives of Latinx communities and other underrepresented groups, we take a new approach to conservation that is as robust and resilient as the ecosystems we seek to protect. This inclusive approach doesn’t just add more voices to the same conversation; it totally transforms how we conceive of, talk about, and practice environmental stewardship.
As we face unprecedented global challenges—from climate disruption to biodiversity loss, and from extreme weather to devastated communities—no place is immune. Reimaging conservation is now our best bet and greatest hope. It joins the protection of wild spaces and endangered species on the one hand, with the safeguarding of urban and rural communities, and the ensuring of equitable access to nature, on the other, uniting diverse groups under a common cause.
The future of our planet depends on our ability to break down the artificial barriers that have long divided environmental efforts. Communities that recreate together, conserve together. By doing so, we create a collective and formidable front capable of protecting the people and places we love—a movement that honors the interconnectedness of all life and empowers every individual to become a good steward of our shared Earth.
Notes: Below are two quotes from Dorceta E. Taylor’s work — The Rise of the American Conservation Movement — that inform the piece above:
- “From the outset, conservationism and preservationism were divorced from the inequities prevalent in society. That is, the activists…did not tend to connect their understanding of the environment with social issues. They did not challenge social injustices such as slavery, the appropriation of land from indigenous people, the expulsion of Native Americans from their traditional territories, the creation of the reservation system, widespread poverty, and rising inequalities. Emerson, Thoreau, and other Transcendentalists opposed slavery, yet they took only limited steps to articulate how the racism and discrimination arising from colonial practices such as slavery manifested itself in environmental inequalities (such as lack of housing, poor living conditions, poor health, and denial of the right to own land, etc.).”
- “The adherence of early activists to the dominant social dogmas of their time is reflected in the nature of the conservation and preservation organizations they established. The organizations were not established as multiracial or cross-class institutions…Coincidentally, this was also the time period when Jim Crow segregationist policies were being put in place, the last of the Native American tribes were being relegated to reservations, and Asians were being subjected to restrictive immigration laws. When minorities made it into conservation and preservation discourses, they were often portrayed as landless vagrants or menial and servile laborers who were out of place in the environment and were the root cause of environmental ills (wildlife slaughter, degradation, disease, crime, poverty, etc.).”