Washington, DC – Interior Secretary Sally Jewell joined American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. and the U.S. Department of Agriculture to announce a private sector investment of $1 million to put young people to work on our public lands through the 21st Century Conservation Service Corps. Members of the Outdoors Alliance for Kids (OAK) braved the record cold temperatures to join the Secretary by the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial on the National Mall.
“OAK applauds and shares the Secretary’s vision to inspire millions of young people to play, learn, serve and work outdoors,” says Jackie Ostfeld, Chair of the Outdoors Alliance for Kids. “We look forward to working with Secretary Jewell to advance the goals of the 21st Century Conservation Service Corps and other programs to provide opportunities for young people to get outdoors across America.”
Initiatives that provide young people with jobs, training, service and volunteer opportunities, like the 21st Century Conservation Service Corps, empower youth to assume responsibility for the stewardship and preservation of America’s great outdoors and the healthy development of the next generation. The Corps will teach youth basic job skills at a time when youth unemployment is near record levels and young people are missing out on critical early job experiences. In addition, 21st Century Conservation Service Corps programs will improve public health by helping young people develop and maintain active lifestyles. Corps projects connect youth to the outdoors in a fun, educational, and engaging manner, increasing the likelihood they will live active lives that will improve their health and enhance their quality of life.
Today, OAK members also sent a letter to the White House urging President Obama to support and prioritize the 21st Century Conservation Service Corps.
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The Outdoors Alliance for Kids (OAK) is a national strategic partnership of organizations from diverse sectors with a common interest in expanding opportunities for children, youth and families to connect with the outdoors. The members of OAK are brought together by the belief that the well-being of current and future generations, the health of our planet and communities and the economy of the future depend on humans having a personal, direct and life-long relationship with nature and the outdoors. OAK brings together more than sixty national organizations including the American Heart Association, Children & Nature Network, Izaak Walton League of America, National Association of State Park Directors, National Recreation and Park Association, National Wildlife Federation, The North Face, the Outdoor Foundation, Public Lands Service Coalition (a program of The Corps Network), REI, Sierra Club, The Wilderness Society, and the YMCA of the USA to address the growing divide between children, youth and the natural world. Find out more at www.outdoorsallianceforkids.org.