Don Luce
In the fall of 2021, I received an email from the Sierra Club North Star Chapter looking for Outing leaders as COVID restrictions eased. Like many people at the time, I was eager to reconnect with people, and being recently retired, I finally had the time. But more importantly, I wanted to give back - just as others had previously shared their expertise and love for nature with me on hikes, canoe trips, and scientific field research. Through my career at the Bell Museum, I gained a rich knowledge of Minnesota’s natural history and environmental issues, and I wanted to share this with others. I jumped at the chance to become an outing leader and took my first group on a hike through the hills and bog at Theodore Wirth Park that December.
Volunteer-led outings are central to the Sierra Club’s mission to explore, enjoy, and protect the planet. History has shown that people are most passionate about protecting what they love, and they love what they truly know and have personally experienced. Getting people outside to experience and enjoy nature is the first step in protecting the Earth.
Outing leaders Carol Engelhart and Greg Allison brought up another important role of outings beyond exposing people to nature. Outings are a great way for participants to meet others who share an appreciation and curiosity about nature, as well as a commitment to protect it. Outings help build a supportive community that empowers people to take action to protect the planet.
But it’s not just the Earth that benefits from outdoor experiences - people do too. A growing body of research supports the idea that spending time in nature significantly improves our mental and physical health. Being in nature can reduce stress, increase happiness, and enhance overall health. Just as our bodies need vitamins, our minds and spirits need nature; we cannot achieve true well-being without it.
If you visited the Outings page on the Sierra Club website in the past few years, you saw many programs developed and led by JR Hunte. As a veteran, JR discovered firsthand how time in nature helped him center himself after his military service. He wanted to use his experience and skills as an outdoor school instructor to develop programs specifically for veterans and people of color. The Sierra Club gave him that opportunity. “Experiences in nature can help people heal trauma both physically and mentally. Many veterans were mentally siloed. I wanted to find ways to help them connect with a community, as well as reconnect with themselves.”
JR has also developed programs focused on BIPOC communities. Hiking, skiing, canoeing, and other outdoor activities have traditionally been seen as white-centered. “I want the outdoors to be for all. I want to give people of color the skills to feel comfortable in nature. Comfortable enough to bring their friends on outings and then become good stewards of nature.”
Building a community of environmental stewards has never been more important. As we face renewed challenges to progress toward sustainability goals and environmental justice, we need committed individuals to step up and defend our planet. The Sierra Club’s outings do more than bring people outdoors - they cultivate the next generation of passionate advocates for nature.
Don Luce is an artist and naturalist who recently retired from a career as curator of exhibitions at the University of Minnesota’s Bell Museum.