America's Great Outdoors initiative

So, tomorrow the Outdoor Industry Association and the North Face are hosting an industry breakfast with Ken Salazar and the director of the Outdoor Foundation to discuss the America's Great Outdoors Initiative... then from 10am - 2pm Ken Salazar and the Director of the Bureau of Land Management will be hosting a listening session to have the publics ideas on how to get people outside.... and here are a few of mine:

1. Put money back into the state & national forest and park system.

2. provide funding for community outreach programs. This will allow rangers to go to local schools and talk to the kids about what it's like to go outside. It's like when the local firefighters showed up with the fire truck in 5th grade... but the rangers will show up with a cool hat.

3. Protect lands that have been held up in congress for over 20 years and finally designate them as wilderness.

4. Provide funding to the parks & forest services to create partnerships with local community groups or outdoor education centers.

5. promote programs to help families access the parks. In Shenandoah National Park, the rangers are leading weekend family camping programs where they provide the gear and help first time camping families learn the ropes.

Part of the AGO Initiative is to get ideas from normal human beings instead of politicians. So, if you have an idea, or want to vote on someone else's, you can go to their website here

If you want a fun history lesson, and really like Obama, check out this video



if you're really struggling at work, here's a really cool video



so... key take away from all of this? Job creation. This means, i'll have a job when i get out of college. And why is that important? Outside of the obvious answer of economic security... It means that there will be a movement to get kids off their couch and outside. It also means that there will be funds to conserve the amazing lands we have.


just something to think about...