The

Fut

ure

ofL

and

Con

serv

atio

nin

Am

eric

a

9

100 million people . . . Envision, for a moment, what the conservation movementmight be like if it brought in a major infusion of newsupporters. What would it look like? What would it meanto have so many advocates? At first glance, an expandedconstituency would translate into more political victoriesfor conservation, more public support, more members,a larger volunteer base, richer partnerships and morefinancial support. In other words, we, the conservationmovement, would find more success in conserving ournatural resources.

The good news is that animmense opportunity standsbefore us. Today, our nationboasts a population of over 100million people of color (about 33percent of the population), manyof whom support environmentalissues at a higher level than theirwhite counterparts. For example,an exit poll for a 2002 Californiamulti-billion dollar bond issue for water quality and open spaceprotection revealed 77 percent of African Americans, 74 percent of Latinos, 60 percent of Asiansand 56 percent of Caucasiansapproved the measure. We needto be more effective at connectingpeople of color to the conservation movement and lever-aging their substantial support and talents.

The sad news is that the movement continues to struggle with diversity, whether it’s in outreach,collaborations, hiring and retention practices, or otherfacets. For example, people of color are not well repre-sented in the conservation workforce. In a recent study of 158 environmental institutions, the Minority Environ-mental Leadership Development Initiative found that 33 percent of mainstream environmental organizationsand 22 percent of government agencies had no people of color on staff. Another study found that people ofcolor make up only 11 percent of the staff and 9 percentof the boards for organizations that are members of

the Natural Resources Council of America.To many conservation leaders, this last set of statis-

tics actually seems to over-represent the involvement ofpeople of color on boards and staff of conservation organ-izations and does not reflect other considerable problemsthat go much deeper than simple numbers. People of colorare often hired as support staff and into positions notnecessarily earmarked for leadership potential. The fewpeople of color who actually are a part of a professionalstaff often leave conservation organizations (and at times

the movement altogether).Many feel unwelcome anduncomfortable in institutionsbecause of the homogeneousculture within both specificorganizations and the move-ment in general. The bottomline is that most organizations

fall short in devoting adequate staff time, money andresources to improving the diversity of their respectiveorganizations. Organizations that want to diversify oftenare at a loss regarding what to do and where to start, andeventually either do nothing or venture down a path

Diversifying the Conservation Movement

by Marcelo Bonta and Charles Jordan

MOUNTAINS RESTORATION

TRUST (CA) has partneredwith Outward BoundAdventures, Inc. for 7 years,providing youth in theprogram with on-the-groundconservation experience.Here, Jo Kitz, MRT programdirector, plants a tree withher OBA crew.

Mo

un

tain

sR

esto

rati

on

Tru

st

Lan

dT

rust

Alli

ance

SP

EC

IAL

RE

PO

RT

10

destined for failure. Thereis no question that diversify-ing is a difficult task; how-ever, it still needs to be done.

The diversity crisisgoes further than issueswithin organizations.Effective outreach to com-munities and groups ofcolor, especially in the areasof cultural competency andequitable collaboration, israre. A common belief inthe movement is that peopleof color are not an impor-tant constituency because ofthe assumption that they donot care about the environ-ment. However, polls andstudies reveal the contrary.For example, a recent pollshowed 77 percent of Latinovoters (versus 65 percent ofall voters) support “a smallincrease in taxes” to “protectwater quality, natural areas, lakes, rivers or beaches, neigh-borhood parks and wildlife habitat.” Furthermore, manyorganizations and professionals do not work on diversityissues because they believe it to be merely optional andnot a requirement for successful work. Also, both currentand past diversity activities are not well known amongthe environmental community, in part because they arenot well publicized. Finally, a lack of funding dedicatedtowards diversity efforts severely limits the movement’scapability to diversify in a comprehensive way. Theseoverwhelming issues have led the movement to a crisis.

Therefore, how do we respond to one of the con-servation movement’s greatest challenges? Diversifyingthe movement is complex, and the changing demographicsof our nation will not make it easier. By 2050, the numberof people of color in this nation will more than double,growing to almost 220 million, and will comprise themajority of the population. The political and social impli-cations of an increasingly diverse nation are vast. Com-munities of color continue to have a mounting influenceon society and politics, including the distribution of pub-lic finances, the way cities develop and grow, and thestrength and creation of environmental laws and policies.

We, as a movement, need to respond accordinglyand immediately if we are to succeed. We need a move-ment that appeals to and benefits all Americans from all

walks of life. It will not be an easy road to follow.But change is not anoption, change is a mustif we want a movementthat is sustainable and relevant in the public andpolitical consciousness.We have a great opportunityand responsibility beforeus. How we respond willdetermine the fate of ourmovement. We need a strategy that will suffi-ciently address the diversitycrisis and create sustain-able, lasting change.

How Do WeDiversify?There have beennumerous past effortsto diversify organizationsand the movement.We need to acknowledgethe pioneers of the 1970s,1980s and early 1990s

for pushing diversity at a time when the movement andorganizations were struggling to survive and experiencinggrowing pains. Over the past 35 years, leaders, such asSydney Howe, Gerry Stover, George T. Frampton, Jr.,Richard Moore and Pat Noonan, identified the loomingdiversity crisis and raised questions as to the direction ofthe movement. There have also been a number of articles,research and discussion sessions devoted to the topic.A late 1980s survey revealed that many leaders from over500 environmental organizations felt “the lack of racialand cultural diversity in their own organizations andthroughout the environmental movement makes themovement less powerful and less effective in accomplish-ing its goals.” There is no doubt that these leaders andearly efforts raised awareness on diversity issues, yet sus-taining an effective, long-term effort has been challeng-ing, to say the least.

In order for diversity efforts to be sustainable,conservation leaders need to view diversity as a top priority.Diversity needs to be worked on in many areas and interwoven throughout organizational operations, such as programs, projects, initiatives, mission and policystatements, recruitment, staff retention, partnerships andcollaborations, outreach, and work experiences for youngpeople. We need to work on making the movement and

THE BONTA FAMILY, (l to r) :

Kyra, Marcelo, Micia and Stella

The

Fut

ure

ofL

and

Con

serv

atio

nin

Am

eric

a

11

our organizations attractive places to work for a diversearray of people while also drawing out the conservationvalues of people of color, especially to the point of pursu-ing a conservation career.

Recruitment is the main area in which many conservation organizations focus their diversity efforts.Hiring people of color at all levels, including the executivelevel and board, and having a diverse job interview panelis essential. However, the amount of energy many organi-zations put into recruiting a diverse staff may be mis-placed. Organizations will most likely find more successin recruiting people of color and diversifying if they workon diversity in multiple areas, including changing theorganizational culture and working equitably with com-munities and organizations ofcolor. Limiting diversity effortsto recruitment only, especiallyat entry-level positions or forsupport staff, is insufficient andwill fail more often than not.

Creating cultural changewithin conservation institu-tions and the movement isarguably the most importantaspect of diversifying. It couldbe daunting to be the singleperson of color or one of a fewin an organization that ishomogenous in its appearanceas well as thinking and culture.Transforming into a multicul-tural movement requires con-tinually addressing diversityand providing workplaceswhere all staff feel comfortableand are attaining their truepotential. It entails becomingculturally competent and adeptat understanding different waysof acting and communicating. A multicultural organiza-tion acknowledges that remaining diverse and managingvarious viewpoints will be an ongoing challenge and pro-vides regular discussions, open forums, and learningopportunities to help resolve organizational diversityissues. Institutions that become multicultural will discoverthat people of color will want to work for them and stayfor the long term, and will most likely find it easier towork with any community or organization.

Diversifying also means effectively reaching out to communities of color. Being culturally competent iscrucial to outreach efforts and can be the deciding factor

of a successful connection or not. If we want to startengaging people of color, we need to meet them wherethey are and speak to their environmental values. We willneed to invest time building relationships and trust andprovide something of value. We must also choose ourmessengers wisely because sometimes the messenger mayactually be more important than the message. Finally,we will need to communicate effectively by understandingthe community with which we want to work, adjustingour language and communication methods accordingly,and working through the community’s main informationsources, which may be the local church or an elder.

To effectively reach out to communities of color,environmental institutions will need to expand their part-

nerships and collaborations.They will need to work withgroups that already effectivelywork with communities ofcolor, including organizationsof color, such as Latino IssuesForum, youth-serving organ-izations, urban parks andrecreation departments, andschools. Many of thesegroups, a number of whichare led by people of color,have a proven track record of successfully working withcommunities of color. Theyhave earned the respect andgained the trust of these com-munities. Most importantly,partnerships need to be basedon equity, meaning all partiesequally share resources, powerand decision-making respon-sibilities.

Conservation organi-zations seeking to diversify will need to partner and work

together to share information, efforts and lessons learnedabout diversifying while more efficiently using resourcesand keeping costs down. Diversifying on your own ischallenging. Organizations attempting to diversify havecommonly done it alone, and many have ended up abort-ing their effort because the hill became too difficult toclimb. Failure is no longer an option. Diversity is a neces-sity for building a successful and effective organization.Working together will ease the difficulty and providemore lasting results.

Foundations are an integral part of diversifying,not merely because they can provide much-needed funds

CHARLES JORDAN

Lan

dT

rust

Alli

ance

SP

EC

IAL

RE

PO

RT

12

but because they are another segment of the movementlooking for diversity guidance. The EnvironmentalGrantmakers Association, a leader in promoting diversityin its over 250 foundation members, has found that manyenvironmental foundations want to diversify. If founda-tions see this diversity need in their funded organizationsas well, then they can work on making progress together.Also, as organizations show their commitment to diversity, it would be extremely useful for foundations to devote more funds to helpleverage the existing efforts andcreate more impact.

Working along the educa-tional pipeline by providingopportunities for young peopleof color from kindergarten tograduate school is essential toachieving a diverse environmen-tal community for generations to come. We need more organi-zations like EnvironmentalLearning for Kids in Denver andOutward Bound Adventures inthe Los Angeles area, both ofwhich help raise the next gener-ation of environmental stewardsby providing positive outdoorexperiences for young people of color. Partnering with youth-serving organizations and urbanparks and recreation departmentsis important to making the youth connection. Providingopportunities for youth to exercise leadership skills andvoice their opinions is an effective way to engage youngpeople. Also, internships are often the entry point to conservation careers for young folks. Therefore, it may be essential for organizations to provide paid internships.

In sum, diversifying on many fronts, especially on cultural change, recruitment, outreach, partnershipsand the educational pipeline, will be more effective thanfocusing a diversity effort in one area.

Recommendations for the ConservationMovementOur diversity crisis is a systemic problem. Therefore,we must approach the problem systematically across themovement. A comprehensive strategy for diversifyingincludes working on cultural change, outreach, partner-ships and collaborations, recruitment, and the educationalpipeline. To carry out this strategy, every organization,business, agency, foundation and academic institution

that works on conservation issues needs to commit to the cause. Therefore, movement-wide, we must focus on four major areas in order to initiate effective change:

1. CREATE CULTURAL CHANGE. Creating culturalchange within conservation institutions and the move-ment is imperative to diversifying. Cultural change meanshaving an inclusive, diverse mindset that translates intoactions, behaviors and attitudes that exemplify multicul-turalism and equity. We need to build a conservation

movement that is relevant to allAmericans. To help create cultur-al change, organizations need toincorporate diversity throughouttheir operations.

2. SEEK PARTNERSHIPS AND COLLABORATIONS.

We need to seek strategic alliances both within and out-side the movement. Within the movement, collaboratingwith each other on our diversity efforts is essential, so wecan move forward synergistically and grow exponentially.We also need to work across movements, including thelabor, civil rights and faith movements. Expanding ourlist of partners will extend our reach, improve our under-standing and ensure our relevance.

3. ENGAGE YOUNG PEOPLE. We need to effec-tively connect young people of color to nature throughenvironmental education programs and provide positivework experiences for students of color if we want aneffective movement for generations to come. How weengage young people today will have significant effectsfar into the future since many of these same people

NEIGHBORHOOD PARKS

AND URBAN GARDENS

often draw a diversity ofpeople, as land conservationgroups that work in theseareas realize.

©B

ost

on

Nat

ura

lAre

asN

etw

ork

The

Fut

ure

ofL

and

Con

serv

atio

nin

Am

eric

a

13

will be our conservation leaders when people of colormake up our nation’s majority.

4. CONNECT THE GENERATIONS. We need to unifythe generations that are currently working within ourmovement and cultivate emerging leaders of color. Weneed to learn from and build upon the progress of thosewho have worked on diversity issues in the past. Experi-ences, wisdom and lessons learned need to be passedfrom one generation to another if we are to effectivelymove forward on the diversity continuum. Baby Boomersneed to identify and mentor emerging leaders who can carry the mantle forward. Likewise young, emergingleaders need to take the initiative in connecting withmore experienced conservationists.

A Leading OrganizationIn order for the movement to carry out these recommendations, we need adequate funding and anorganization or partnership to serve as the central hub for diversifying the movement. It will be charged withcarrying out movement-wide diversity actions and periodically assessing our progress on achieving diversitygoals. Other responsibilities include providing technicalassistance and guidance on what to do and how to proceed in a responsible and culturally competent way,facilitating the creation of accountability measures andmeasures of diversity, and directing funds strategicallytowards diversity efforts.

As we wait for a leading organization to coalesce,there are existing organizations that can be effective atserving in this lead capacity. Organizations such as theLand Trust Alliance and the Environmental GrantmakersAssociation, who have hundreds of member organizations,can (and have already on some fronts) provide leadership,guidance and technical assistance on diversity issues.This service would be especially helpful for organizationsthat have limited capacity and resources and have struggledto initiate a diversity effort. By providing guidance onstrategic actions, lead organizations can help catalyzestronger partnerships and more efficient uses of resources.

Recommendations for OrganizationsComprehensively solving our diversity crisismeans the involvement of every conservation organization.Leadership support, dedicated resources (i.e., staff timeand money), and diversifying throughout organizational

operations are critical to maintaining an organizationaldiversity initiative. To facilitate change, organizationsneed to take these important general steps:

1. ATTAIN LEADERSHIP SUPPORT and a commit-ment of resources.

2. CONDUCT A DIVERSITY ASSESSMENT to estab-lish a baseline from which to work. An assessment helpsidentify an organization’s current status, its needs, itsgoals and tools to diversify. It may also include a compar-ative perspective of other organizations’ diversity activities(see the Center for Diversity & the Environment atwww.environmentaldiversity.org regarding other efforts).

3. CREATE A DIVERSITY ACTION STRATEGY toimplement the assessment’s recommendations. Eachorganization is unique and may need a distinct strategy to meet its needs. The strategy should include periodicevaluations of progress towards diversity goals.

Recommendations for IndividualsWe, as individuals within the movement, have the most important roles and the greatest responsibility.Our individual beliefs, values, thought processes andactions make up the movement. Therefore, we need tohold ourselves accountable for transforming the conserva-tion movement. While it is urgent to begin diversifyingour movement immediately, we should not feel that wehave to do it all now. This will be a long process. Evensmall steps from each of us can take us a long way. Hereare some actions we, as individuals, can take to push forward on diversity issues:

■ FIND ALLIES. Talk to others at your workplace and to people working on diversity issues outside yourorganization. Find and/or create a network of peoplewith which you can comfortably discuss diversity issues.Organize a regular gathering of like-minded people within or outside of your organization. For example, agroup of environmentalists of color in Portland, Oregon,called the Young Environmental Professionals of Color,meets monthly to network, strategize and discuss variousenvironmental topics that affect them.

■ FIND OPPORTUNITIES TO DIVERSIFY within yourspheres of influence. Figure out what you can start doingtoday. For example, if you have access to discretionaryfunds or control of budgets, earmark money towardsdiversity activities. If you work on outreach, learn how to become culturally competent and expand your outreach

activities to include communities of color. If you participate in anorganizational strategic planningprocess, incorporate diversitystrategies and language into visionstatements, the mission and

FOR NOTES AND RESOURCES see this article posted on www.lta.org.A full version appears in Diversity and the Future of the U.S. Environmental Movement,Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies Publication Series, 2007.

goals of the organization. Of course, if you have majorclout, you can implement the broader recommendationsfor the movement and organizations described earlier.

■ BROADEN YOUR THOUGHT PROCESSES. Thinklong term and with an expansive vision. Constantly ques-tion your “business as usual.” Ask yourself questions like “For whom am I protecting these lands?” “What kind of movement am I going to hand over to my children and grandchildren?” “When thinking of the communities

or constituencies I serve, whom do I think of? Whomshould I think of?” “When advertising a job opening to my network, who is included (or not included) in thatnetwork?” “What type of people would find working atmy workplace appealing or not appealing? Why?”

■ ENGAGE ORGANIZATIONAL LEADERSHIP. Ask themto adopt diversity as an organizational priority. Ask for acommitment of resources, especially money and staff time.

■ START BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS with commu-nities and organizations of color now, especially beforeyou may actually need their help. Do your homework

about the community and offer something useful first.■ SEEK OPPORTUNITIES TO BROADEN YOUR

EXPERIENCE, expand your network and continue learning.Some conferences, such as the North American Wildlifeand Natural Resources Conference and the Environmen-tal Grantmakers Association annual conferences, haveoffered one-day pre-conference diversity workshops andtrainings. Other conferences may provide individual, or a series of, diversity sessions. The Conservation Fund andthe Land Trust Alliance have started offering a diversitytraining course for land conservation organizations. Be-come involved in efforts that bring a broad range of organ-izations and people together, such as the EnvironmentalDiversity Working Group in Washington, D.C., and theDiverse Partners for Environmental Progress series ofnational summits and regional roundtables. Numerousdiversity resources can be found on the websites of organ-izations (see Resources section in the website version ofthis article at www.lta.org). Reading reports, such as theSoul of Environmentalism and Environmental Stewardshipfor the 21st Century: Opportunities and Actions for ImprovingCultural Diversity in Conservation Organizations and Programs, provide beneficial learning opportunities.

ConclusionAs the nation continues to diversify, the conservationmovement is left with one of the greatest challenges itwill face this century. Will we diversify so that we can besuccessful and relevant to generations to come, or will weignore our diversity problem at our own peril? We haveno choice. Diversifying is not an option. It is a necessity.At the very least, it means survival of the conservationmovement. At most, it means creating a healthy, influen-tial and sustainable movement. Our response to thediversity challenge today will have reverberations andrepercussions for generations to come. We must investour resources at once or our children and grandchildrenmay inherit a world with dwindling natural resources anda movement with no significance in the modern world.We owe it to ourselves, the conservation movement andthe American people to get it right. The future of conser-vation and our future generations are at stake. P

THE CONSERVATION TRUST FOR NORTH CAROLINA is working withwell-known conservation planner Randall Arendt (right) and commu-nity development corporations to plan sites that provide both afford-able housing and protect the conservation values of the property.

Co

nse

rvat

ion

Tru

stfo

rN

ort

hC

aro

lina

We need a movement that appeals to and benefits all Americans from all walks of life.

MARCELO BONTA is the founder and director of the Center for Diversity & the Environment. He consults with environmentalorganizations on diversity issues and has organized numerous workshops, conferences and trainings. Marcelo has also worked on biodiversity conservation policy and planning issues and has guided large-scale conservation strategies. He is an EnvironmentalLeadership Program Senior Fellow and the founder of the Young Environmental Professionals of Color.

CHARLES JORDAN is a passionate visionary who has inspired thousands of professionals in conservation. His commitment to theenvironmental movement came as a result of his service as a commissioner on the President’s Commission on American’s Outdoors and his subsequent involvement as chair of The Conservation Fund. In these roles, he became aware of the centrality of open space,clean air and clean water to the quality of life. He especially championed the need to expand the national constituency for conservationby recruiting new leaders and greater involvement from minority and low-income communities. Charles serves on the board of directorsof the Land Trust Alliance, as well as in national leadership roles for several organizations.

Lan

dT

rust

Alli

ance

SP

EC

IAL

RE

PO

RT

14