The Outdoor Recreation Roundtable has launched America's Outdoor Era, a bold national vision to reposition outdoor recreation as a cornerstone of U.S. health infrastructure. The initiative aims to combat rising rates of chronic illness and the growing mental health crisis by leveraging the $1.3 trillion outdoor recreation economy. This economy already supports 5.2 million jobs and has the potential to improve health outcomes and reduce costly downstream interventions.
The vision for America's Outdoor Era is built around three critical pillars: catalyzing a national conversation, aligning policies and investments, and activating a solution that is already within reach. The initiative frames outdoor recreation as an upstream solution to prevent illness before it starts and help with treatment of chronic conditions. This approach can improve health outcomes and grow a key sector of the U.S. economy.
The launch of America's Outdoor Era comes at a time when recent policy wins provide a foundation for change. Twenty-four states have created offices of outdoor recreation, and the bipartisan EXPLORE Act has expanded the role of outdoor recreation in education, innovation, and public-private partnerships. The Legacy Restoration Fund directs billions of dollars into our recreation infrastructure each year.
Jessica Turner, President of Outdoor Recreation Roundtable, emphasizes that we have a choice: accept a future where nature disconnection and chronic illness become norm or build a health system where time outdoors is core to living well. The infrastructure exists, but alignment across health systems, insurers, educators, and policymakers is needed to activate this solution.
The National Executive Forum on Health and Outdoor Recreation will convene in May, uniting outdoor recreation CEOs, healthcare and pharmaceutical executives, and state and federal policymakers to develop a forward-looking agenda for scaling outdoor recreation as national health strategy. This invite-only Forum will catalyze the vision and bring together key stakeholders to drive change.
Aligning policies, investments, and partnerships across sectors is a practical, bipartisan, and scalable opportunity to improve public health, reduce long-term healthcare costs, steward the lands and waters that sustain us, and unlock a new era of wellbeing in America. Integrating outdoor access into health strategy can have a significant impact on the nation's health infrastructure.
The launch of America's Outdoor Era marks an exciting development in the outdoor recreation industry, with far-reaching implications for public health and wellbeing. As the initiative gains momentum, it will be crucial to monitor progress and ensure that the vision is implemented effectively.
By leveraging the $1.3 trillion outdoor recreation economy, we can create a national health strategy that prioritizes prevention over treatment. This approach has the potential to transform the way we address chronic illness and mental health crises in America.
The success of America's Outdoor Era will depend on the alignment of policies, investments, and partnerships across sectors. If successful, this initiative can have a lasting impact on the nation's health infrastructure and wellbeing.
Aligning policies, investments, and partnerships across sectors can improve public health and wellbeing in America.
