Outdoor Report features collective work member states have accomplished for FY2022
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – December 29, 2022
NATIONWIDE – The Confluence of States released their first-ever Outdoor Report providing an overview of the collective work 16 offices of outdoor recreation have accomplished for fiscal year 2022. Offices include:
The Confluence of States are guided by four pillars to ensure outdoor recreation retains a bipartisan approach:
- Conservation and Stewardship
- Education and Workforce Training
- Economic Development
- Public Health and Wellness
The report highlights each pillar describing efforts from across 16-member state offices and their departments. From facilitating grant funding to supporting outdoor economy summits and passing meaningful legislation to support the outdoors.
“Outdoor recreation impacts every state’s economy,” said Colin Robertson, Administrator of the Nevada Division of Outdoor Recreation and 2021 Chair of the Confluence of States. “We continue to grow as a collective group and welcome new states who want to learn more about what we have accomplished this past year. This report is the reflection of what common ground shared among different states can do for the great outdoors.”
The outdoor industry is a powerhouse of meaningful job creation, and a driving force of our Nation’s economy. This industry is an economic multiplier, creating a unique quality of life in rural and urban areas, attracting new businesses and professional talent to our communities. U.S. federal data show that the outdoor recreation economy accounted for $862 billion in gross economic output, 1.9 percent of gross domestic product, and 4.5 million jobs in 2021.
“The Outdoor Recreation Roundtable celebrates this showcase of so many outstanding accomplishments of the Confluence of States over the past year,” said Chris Perkins, Senior Director of the Outdoor Recreation Roundtable, a coalition of made up of 36 outdoor recreation trade associations — as well as other nonprofit organizations and business entities — serving more than 110,000 businesses. “As this Outdoor Report clearly shows, state offices of outdoor recreation sit at the intersection of so many aspects of a well-functioning society, from healthy public lands and waters and improved public health to resilient economies and connected communities. We look forward to supporting the Confluence in the years to come as well as helping other interested states chart their own path to create offices of outdoor recreation.”
“The Outdoor Industry Association is grateful to be a core partner to the Confluence of States,” said Rebecca Gillis, State & Local Government Affairs Manager of the Outdoor Industry Association, the premier trade association for outdoor businesses. “This report is a testament to the Confluence and its individual members’ work being foundational to the creation, strengthening, and growth of vibrant outdoor economies across the U.S. The influential leadership of the Confluence will only continue to multiply as outdoor recreation becomes increasingly more popular as a transformative power for communities throughout the nation.”
The Confluence of States is a bipartisan organization developing a national platform to grow the outdoor recreation industry, protect our nation’s wild places and transform conservation into a driver for economic prosperity.
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