June is Great Outdoors Month

The outdoor recreation industry – along with federal, state, private, and nonprofit partners across the country – is celebrating June as Great Outdoors Month®, a national recognition of outdoor recreation on America’s treasured lands and waters.

Great Outdoors Month®, which began as Great Outdoors Week under President Clinton, has been proclaimed by every president since 1998 and has been unanimously declared by the Senate each year since 2017.

On May 26, led by Senators Steve Daines (R-MT) and Gary Peters (D-MI), the Senate unanimously passed its 6th consecutive resolution saying, “regular outdoor recreation is associated with economic growth, positive health outcomes, and better quality of life,” and “it is imperative that the United States ensure that access to outdoor recreation is inclusive, equitable, and available to all its people for generations to come.”

This year, Great Outdoors Month® has an organizing theme based on the principles of the Together Outdoors initiative. Together Outdoors is a coalition of outdoor businesses and organizations working to make the outdoors more inclusive.

During June, Outdoor Recreation Roundtable (ORR) with Together Outdoors and partner organizations that host millions of people at events in all 50 states, will message around growing diversity, equity, and inclusion in outdoor recreation through education and action. By collectively orienting around these principles, we can ensure People of Color, members of the LGBTQIA+ community, the disability community, and marginalized people of various backgrounds and faiths feel welcome in the outdoors and have their stories told.

To learn more or get involved, check out the Great Outdoors Month® toolkit. To learn more about events taking place during June, click here.