Atlanta Conference Aims to Increase Participation in the ‘Green’ Movement
Posted by Sonja Ebron
The green movement is taking on more color as professionals from coast to coast prepare to convene at a first-of-its-kind conference in Atlanta, September. 23-26. Top African-American, Latino, Asian and Native American professionals from around the country in the academic, government, business, recreation and nonprofit sectors will share their expertise at the event: Breaking the Color Barrier in the Great American Outdoors.
The conference will encourage participation in the “green” economy and showcase people of color engaged in sports, such as mountain climbing, skiing, sailing and scuba diving. It also will highlight the efforts of Americans of diverse ethnic and cultural heritage to protect the environment and the scenic treasures in the nation’s public parks, forests and wildlife refuges.
Audrey and Frank Peterman, conference organizers and long-time outdoor enthusiasts, have been promoting America’s natural beauty to communities of color for the past 14 years. When the Petermans took a cross-country trip in 1995 and discovered the Badlands, the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone and Yosemite national parks, they saw very few other Black people in the parks. Inspired to alter that picture, they launched a campaign to publicize the parks to Americans of color.