Open to All
As a parent of an adult child with multiple disabilities and as someone who loves the outdoors, I can personally attest to the importance of accessibility so that everyone can benefit from spending time in nature.
It wasn’t until my son Jack was a teenager, when he was no longer able to be lifted over boulders or carried on our backs, that it hit home for me: Barriers to accessibility don’t just affect the person with a disability. If they can’t go, neither can their families, friends, classmates or caregivers.
Disability does not discriminate. Anyone, regardless of race, ethnicity, age, socio-economic status, address, gender, sexual orientation or any other characteristic, can at any time acquire a disability. While disabilities are not always evident, there are people living with disability in every community around the globe.
As land trusts consider how to better serve a wider range of people — how to be more inclusive, address equity and ensure diversity — our community can play a transformational role in providing access to nature for all. A great place to start is with our newly published handbook, Open to All: A Disability Inclusion Guide for Land Trusts. This resource was created by a dedicated group of people who came together to form an Advisory Council on Inclusive Health and Disabilities under the guidance of the Land Trust Alliance and our partner, the Lakeshore Foundation.
This guide recognizes that people with disabilities have the same desire to experience nature as people without disabilities and offers concrete steps to create opportunities for enjoyment. Spending quiet time outdoors may provide calm to someone struggling with post-traumatic stress disorder. A person with developmental disabilities may take pride in helping to build a boardwalk. Someone with a mobility disability may enjoy birdwatching or exploring a trail to listen for frogs or watch a sunset. People with vision impairment could take joy in feeling the temperature shift when travelling between sun and shade on a hike. When an American Sign Language interpreter is made available, a person who is Deaf will appreciate being included in a lecture on how your land trust is helping to save the rusty patched bumblebee!
You can download the guide here. If you find it useful, please pass the word! Also, the Advisory Council and I welcome your comments. Write us at disabilityguide@lta.org.