Outdoor Equity Funding & Community Input Needed
Have you heard about the new California State Parks outdoor equity grant?
WYP and many community partners are excited that California has passed legislation to fund outdoor equity.
"California is home to over 280 State Parks and millions of acres of public lands that exhibit the natural beauty and history of our state. However, access to outdoor experiences is often out of reach for communities and students of low-income communities. AB 209 brings equity to the accessibility of our parks to these students."
- Assemblymember Monique Limón.
Community Partnership
Lower Westside & Lower Eastside Community Input Needed Now
As WYP prepares to apply for this funding for outdoor equity, we want to hear from you! We’re excited about the way this grant is built- it really emphasizes a community planning process.
We are seeking input from residents of Santa Barbara’s Lower Eastside and Westside communities to share your voice about how you like to connect to nature and what kinds of activities, trips, and programs you would like to see.
WYP’s two “community home base*” partners are El Centro at the Lower Westside Community Center and the St. George Community Center - and for the community input phase, we’re looking to talk with community members who live near those locations.
This outdoor equity grant is specific about geographic regions, and those are the two areas where WYP already works that fit within the guidelines. Please share this with friends and neighbors in these areas.
Survey for Residents (Respond by August 31, 2021)
Survey for Lower Westside Residents
If you live on the Lower Westside near El Centro, give input here.
El Centro at the Lower Westside Community Center
629 Coronel Place
Santa Barbara, CA 93101
Survey for Lower Eastside Residents
If you live on the Lower Eastside near St. George Community Center, give input here.
St. George Community Center
1032 Mason Street
Santa Barbara, CA 931013
*community house base (definition from the grant application) – a central gathering place for residents of an underserved community where the majority of targeted participants live. For example, a school, recreation center, community meeting space, or local park may serve as the central gathering place in the underserved community.
What's Next
After we gather the first round of community input, we will propose a set of nature trips and community activities to take place between the spring of 2022 and 2026. The public will be able to offer feedback on the plan one last time before the grant proposal is finalized in early October 2021.
WYP is hoping to maximize the potential for collaboration between community members and local service providing organizations throughout the grant performance period with a strong emphasis on developing service learning, career pathway and leadership opportunities.
What do you think? Is this worth discussing?
We’re interested in collaborating on:
- Community input! Surveys and conversations with folks to learn about what kinds of nature connection activities people want to see. This phase needs to happen during the month of August.
- Program planning based on that community input.
- Program delivery (specifically outings in nature or activities within the community). Including paid internships/ professional development for community members.
Our hope is that other organizations are also applying directly for this grant. For those organizations that aren’t applying, there is an opportunity to work together and receive grant funds for program delivery through a collaboration with WYP.
If you would like to partner with us or have questions, contact Ana Fabian, Family and Community Engagement Coordinator, Wilderness Youth Project, at nan@fgntr.jlc.bet or (805) 570-3364.
Learn More: Outdoor Equity Grant
Instagram Live!
The California Outdoor Equity Program
Who: Senator Monique Limón, Gloria Sanchez-Arreola, Michelle Howard and Graciela Cabello
What: Discussion of the recent legislation to establish the Outdoor Equity Grants Program which invests in creating opportunities for equitable access to the outdoors
Where: Watch the archived recording of the event
More Info...