Resources
We believe that resources should be open-access and easy to navigate, so we have curated a working archive of some of our favorite readings, activities, media and tips & tools. As we learn about and gather more resources, we will upload them here. Click on the type of resource below (activities, media, readings, tips & tools), then filter by subject on the left.
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In an activity offered by Training for Change, participants are guided through an activity that opens up a discussion about institutional barriers and how individual may interact with those barriers. Click here for facilitation notes.
Test your own hidden bias with this free online test sponsored by Harvard University and taken by millions of people in the past 15 years. The Implicit Association Test is a time-tested method for testing hidden bias. Enter with an open mind. Access here.
This activity is useful for building empathy within participants who do not often find themselves in situations where they are an outsider. By getting participants to reflect on situations in which they were an outsider, they can better relate to others who might feel this way because of exclusive cultures and behaviors within your organization.
This activity uses a reading to explore how dominant perceptions of wilderness can lead to exclusion. Though it is structured for facilitation during an outdoor experiential education trip, you can adapt it for use in any context in which your organization is grappling with wilderness and its various constructs.
This activity helps guide you in drawing the line between behavior and needs that your organization and its leaders should honor, and behavior and needs that participants will need to modify to adapt to your organizational culture. The take-home is that inclusion doesn’t mean welcoming everything. There will be pinch points when you will need to decide what to include and when to ask participants/staff to adapt.
This is a relatively safe approach to exploring privilege and power structures in a way that minimizes feelings of resentment and empowering participants to be allies. Use this as an alternative to the Privilege Walk if you want to lower risk. But realize that this activity is too safe in that it doesn’t require that participants talk about their lived experiences of privilege.
Participants will recognize the beliefs and stereotypes they were taught about their own and other racial and ethnic groups. They will also recognize that stereotypes are learned behaviors, something we are socialized to believe, and can therefore be unlearned by openly discussing and purposefully combating them. This activity helps to move participants from feelings of denial, shame or blame, to taking responsibility for unconscious behaviors.
This seminal work by feminist Peggy McIntosh continues to be the source for the “go to” activity on privilege-the “Privilege Walk.” Social justice facilitators typically ask participants to line up, then ask each of the questions in the series posed by McIntosh, with participants stepping forward if their answer to the question is yes and backward if their answer to the question is no. The activity can be high-risk, so don’t facilitate it unless you are with a group that has established mutual trust and rapport, and unless you can frame it up in a way that inspires learning and behavior change, and not shame and resentment. For more information about the activity along with a customized list of questions geared toward participants in the outdoor and environmental space, please search our list of activities.
Fair warning: this is actually not free, but a great resource if you have the capacity to buy it. Ariel Luckey, a performance artist, puts on a one person show that describes his very personal journey to understanding how colonialism shaped the West and impacted his life as a white man. He investigates both historical land politics and current land politics in his home, the Bay Area. You can purchase the DVD of the performance and the curriculum guide.
Access here.
This film tells three stories about land disputes between indigenous communities and outdoor reactionists and/or mining companies. It highlights how different groups and cultures understand and experience land. The film is available for purchase or available to rent on Netflix. The film also comes with a lesson plan, available here.
Read the summary here.
Colors of Nature is an anthology of writing that links place and culture together, from a diverse group of writers and thinkers. The book is accompanied by a robust teaching guide. Access here.