Here is a wonderful short video produced by my friend and trusted colleague, Dudley Edmonsdon. He eloquently captures this tribute to nature in words and pictures. Set to jazz and narrated by naturalist friends Audrey Peterman, Shelton Johnson, and Hank Williams Jr., (all featured in his groundbreaking book, Black and Brown Faces in America’s Wild Places) he reminds us of the generous gifts and peace nature provides.
Nature from Dudley Edmondson on Vimeo.

Nature from Dudley Edmondson on Vimeo.

What do you notice in nature?

By Danielle N. Lee Outdoor Afro Contributor and author of Urban Science Adventures! ©
Denene Millner and her family set up a tent
It’s summertime and the living is easy, especially if you’re a kid.  Schools out and fun is all that is on their hyperactive minds.  We adults still have jobs to attend, bills to pay and bellies to feed, but there’s no reason why we couldn’t be on the same page, at least for a single night. So, what’s the best way to enjoy the summer with your kiddos that’s fun, affordable, and …

Saturday, June 11th
10 am to 2 pm
Meet at Rob Hill Campground
Did you know that the Presidio is a birding hotspot in the Bay Area? After a short “binocular bootcamp and birding basics” youth ages 8 to 15 and their families will join experienced birders in teams on different routes throughout the Presidio. After an easy 2 hour walk counting observed bird life, groups will return to Rob Hill Campground to tally their numbers during lunch. The day be topped off with presentations of the day’s numbers by…kids!
Lunch will not be provided, so we recommend …

Your Local REI Invites You to Volunteer this Summer for
National Trails Day on June 4th!
Thanks to the efforts of the American Hiking Society, National Trails Day is celebrating 19 years of hosting volunteer events across the country. This nationwide event is a great opportunity for families

to enjoy the outdoors together. As a national sponsor of National Trails Day, REI invites you to get outside, have fun, and feel good about volunteering on Saturday, June 4th.

REI employee Chuck Courts giving a trail some TLC
 

The …

It was a gift to spend time last weekend with visiting outdoor pioneer Jarid Manos, author of Ghetto Plainsman. Jarid writes poignantly in his book about his coming of age and the ways the outdoors was a catalyst for change in his own life. As Executive Director of the Great Plains Restoration Council in Texas, Jarid has inspired an innovative movement for those most at-risk in our communities, such as those incarcerated, to find healing and purpose through ecological restoration and a genuine connection to the earth. Watch!
 

Local Ecotherapist Phoenix Smith …

I attended the Goldman Prize for Excellence last week in San Francisco as a guest of friend Christy Rocca of the Chrissy Field Center. The awards honored extraordinary individuals who demonstrated a fierce and courageous protection of their local spaces. In common, the prize winners each found ways to significantly protect or restore the local environment for both human and non-human species.
The North American prize winner this year is Hilton Kelley, who is now leading the battle for environmental justice on the Texas Gulf Coast.  Hilton Kelley fights for communities living in the shadow of polluting industries in Port Arthur, …

By Douglas “Birdman” Gray, Outdoor Afro Contributor
Last month’s Bird of the Month was a duck (American Black Duck), and my birding over last month somewhat compels me to remain with this family of birds (anatidae).
As winter is winding down, and temperatures are trending upward, ducks returning north stop at once frozen waters for the feeding opportunities. Just yesterday, while out at Eagle Creek Park here in Central Indiana, I was able to observe rather easily, 14 different species of ducks at the bird sanctuary. I was actually wishing that …

Image by Amy Franceschini
Sunday, March 6, 1PM
Admission FREE | Mess Hall Cafe Open
Reservations are not required, but we invite you to click here as a courtesy RSVP
Invite Friends via Facebook

Join Creative Ecologies in a round table discussion and presentation by artists and creative thinkers from across the country who address the complex relationship between humans, cultural production, and the natural environment. As part of an initiative exploring ways that residencies catalyze collaboration, participants will spend two weeks prior to the event in residence at Headlands, living, thinking, and working …

Many in the Outdoor Afro community are elated by the announcement of the greatly anticipated America’s Great Outdoors (AGO) initiative by the Obama Administration. Following in the tradition of Lincoln, FDR, and Teddy Roosevelt — Presidents who each made great strides toward conservation, President Obama left his own mark today by initiating an historic initiative that is likely to change the way Americans perceive and engage with the outdoors.
Read or watch the President’s Remarks:

From the America’s Great Outdoors website, “AGO recognizes that many of the best ideas come from outside …

Brother Yusuf’s Green Tech Charter High School students are working with private grants as part of an urban renewal project in the city of Albany. An innovative approach to urban renewal. Check them out!