Respect Outside

Over a Zoom call this summer, I sat down to chat with Gina McClard, J.D., and Jim Miller, founders of Respect Outside. I was trying to stay cool in a sweltering Southern California heatwave while Gina and Jim enjoyed nicer weather at their home base in Bend, Oregon. I initially reached out to them for an interview after seeing their post in a mutual outdoor group on Facebook regarding sexual harassment and discrimination and its prevalence in the outdoor industry. I read story after story from group members detailing their own experiences with sexual harassment and discrimination, and I could identify with many of their stories. It felt good to understand I wasn't alone in what I had experienced. It felt good to know there are people out there, like Gina and Jim, dedicating their lives to shifting an outdated and toxic culture into new ways of thinking that create a safer, more inclusive, and respectful work environment for all.

Gina's twenty-five years of experience working as a lawyer advocating and litigating for survivors of sexual and gender-based violence, and Jim's thirty-year career as a member of the outdoor recreation industry was the perfect combination of experience to address sexual misconduct, discrimination, and gender equity. While their expertise is essential, on a deeper level, their purpose comes from a commitment to social justice coupled with their passion for working and playing outdoors. They know the transformative nature of the outdoors on young people and adults and think it should be brought into the workplace by creating welcome spaces for folks that have not traditionally felt welcome in these spaces.

I asked why this kind of work is so vital, even if we haven't all experienced sexual harassment and discrimination. They explained that the outdoor industry had been focused on "sustainability" but only so far as it relates to supply chain and not including the "people part" of what it is to be sustainable. In other words, they were missing a big piece of the picture- their people. Jim explained, "Everyone wants to come to work as their whole selves and be respected for who they are. COVID taught us that in tough times being outdoors is healing and freeing. We are seeing a shift in outdoor participation; younger, female, urban, and slightly more ethnic. The industry wants its employees to mirror their customers. However, you have to lay the groundwork and lead with creating inclusive spaces. A company's policies and procedures create a framework for inclusive and civil behavior. This is the work that needs to be done, as a starting point, before you can successfully diversify your workforce. "

Respect Outside’s mission relates to the outdoor industry, its consumers, and how we all recreate by aiming to help the outdoor recreation industry take their written values and mission statements and bring them to life. They help them to "do" what they say, not just "say" what they say. Respect Outside's tagline is "Equity through Action" - and they teach employees at every level, including top leadership and HR teams how to bring these values to life with reallife simulations and trainings designed to cultivate a healthy and respectful workplace.

Of course, many myths revolve around gender equality- like the myth that "we are already there." According to Gina and Jim, "there are so many women identifying people working and recreating outdoors we assume that parity has been reached. But because the entire industry was built (primarily) by white men; the structures both at work and at play are full of rules they wrote to serve themselves. We recommend having conversations with women, BIPOC folks, LBGTQ+ folks, and alter abled people to really understand how they perceive their experiences and educate yourself on how to be an ally to them with the goal of creating more equitable spaces" .

So what is Gina and Jim's advice on how we can support Respect Outside's mission in our everyday lives? Jim says, "It comes down to being a good steward of the environment. That means to encourage folks to broaden that definition to include equity for all folks. The environment is not just the land, rivers and lakes but the people on the land. We are seeing a big push for people to vote with their wallets and support brands, retailers, outfitters, camps, that uphold their values – including equity, inclusivity and diversity" .