Contact:
Virginia Cramer, 804-225-9113 x 102, ginny.cramer@sierraclub.org
Kristina Ortez de Jones, Sierra Club,
505-206-9629, Kristina.ortez@sierraclub.org
Sierra Club Hits the Nation’s Capitol for Great
Outdoors America Week
Activists
from all over the country join forces to share their love of connecting people
with the
outdoors and the protection of our wild and green spaces
WASHINGTON, DC (June 25, 2012) – Sierra
Club activists, including outings leaders, veterans, teachers and youth, from
around the country came to Washington, DC to participate in Great Outdoors America
Week (June 25-29, 2012 in Washington DC) and remind their elected leaders how
important it is to not only enjoy our public lands, but to protect them, too.
Studies show that Americans are not
spending much time outdoors and 80% of Americans live in urban areas with
little access to green spaces. The numbers are even bleaker for our nation’s
children, with young people spending an average of 7.5 hours a day connecting
to electronic media, and less time getting outside in nature. This growing
divide between America and our treasured landscapes threatens the health of
future generations and conservation in this country.
"The need for Americans to get
outside is greater than ever. They are more likely to spend their free time
surfing the web than surfing the waves,” says Jacqueline Ostfeld, Policy and
Operations Manager for the Sierra Club Mission Outdoors program. “Great
Outdoors America Week allows our volunteers and activists to raise their voices
and let our leaders know how critically important it is to provide more
opportunities for Americans to connect with our natural heritage.”
Americans recognize the importance
of our national legacy. It’s even something politicians can agree on: Leaders
from both parties over the years—from Theodore Roosevelt to George Bush—have
acted to protect special wild places because they know the great outdoors
provides recreation and enjoyment for American families. Due to this love of
and the benefits from the great outdoors, there is wide public support for
protections.
“Dedicated volunteers are devoting time and resources to come to
Washington to let our leaders know that not only must we protect our public
lands for future generations, but that we should also do what we can to connect
Americans to those lands that we have worked so hard to protect,” said Athan
Manuel, Sierra Club Lands Team Director.
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About Sierra Club
Sierra Club is America's largest and most influential
grassroots environmental organization. Inspired by nature, we are 1.4 million
of your friends and neighbors, working together to protect our communities and
the planet. Sierra Club’s Mission Outdoors program is working to reconnect
America with the outdoors.
Read more at http://www.sierraclub.org/missionoutdoors. Sierra Club’s Resilient
Habitats Campaign actively works to protect the lands, water and wildlife that
Americans know and love. Read more at http://www.sierraclub.org/habitat/
About Great Outdoors America Week
Great Outdoors America Week offers
opportunity for advocates to take direct action on a number of conservation
issues, ranging from wilderness and national monument protection to
reconnecting inner-city kids to the great outdoors. Great Outdoors America Week
serves as another example of the long-standing, bipartisan tradition of
conservation in the United States.
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