When the van door slides open, it’s often met with hesitation. The young men inside step out cautiously. There’s a moment, brief yet profound, when the silence of the woods settles around them. One of them, usually around 14 or 15 years old, whispers incredulously, “I didn’t know it could be this quiet.” That quiet is the first exhale; a subtle, significant release from the constant tension of urban survival.

Being able to access nature is a basic human right, yet systemic racism has denied this right to many people of color. A right that has been sometimes forgotten as such by the people who need it most, largely in part because of generational trauma, lack of education, resources, representation, fear, and even shame.

At a time when people of color have reported increased levels of stress, trauma and anxiety, experts suggest nature experiences might be a crucial coping tool… Amid pandemic stress and racial violence, many communities of color have turned to wilderness areas for healing.