GivingTuesday: Giving to Those Doing Good for the Outdoors

Now that we are well into the season of fall, the holidays are looming on the horizon and the end of 2026 is rapidly approaching. As you begin to mark up your calendar with your end-of-year plans, make sure to put GivingTuesday with extra big stars for December 1st!

What Is GivingTuesday?

GivingTuesday is a global day of hope, community, and putting your resources towards a better tomorrow. GivingTuesday started as a small movement in New York City in 2012 to try and counter some of the holiday consumerism mania. In 2019, GivingTuesday became an independent organization and grew into a global movement of generosity to shift our world paradigm. GivingTuesday isn’t only about giving your dollars, it can also be in the form of volunteering, donating goods, and rallying community support. It is an invitation to get involved with organizations that promote and fight for the things we care about.

Where to Start?

With everything going on in our country (and world), there are a lot of important and impactful organizations to donate your funds to. The tough part is picking where to direct your funds and feel good about what you are supporting. In terms of organizations doing good for the environment and outdoor community, here are some suggestions that we took the time to research and recommend.

Earthjustice

Earthjustice is a nonprofit organization providing free legal representation for clients seeking environmental justice. Notably, Earthjustice has represented the Sierra Club, World Wildlife Fund, American Canoe Association (ACA), and many, many more. They do not receive any funding from corporations or governments and receive all funding from donations. Earthjustice is an important organization because they are the actual lawyers that bring cases to court to make real change happen for environmental law. They do an incredible amount of work to argue legal cases and carry a heavy burden for other organizations. Since 1971, Earthjustice has worked to save wildlands, protect our right to clean air, save species from the brink of extinction, and put limits on polluting industries.

The Nature Conservancy

The Nature Conservancy is a global nonprofit that helps fund science and conservation through lobbying, research, and community action. They are an important organization because they have a wide reach, investing money into scientific research, and purchasing land for protection. The Nature Conservancy has a 2030 goal to:

• Reduce or store 3 gigatons of CO2 emissions yearly
• Benefit 100 million people at risk of climate-related emergencies
• Conserve 10 billion acres of ocean
• Conserve 1.6 billion acres of land
• Conserve 621,000 miles of rivers

The Nature Conservancy is heavily focused on climate change, biodiversity, and their solutions.

Protect Our Winters (POW)

Protect Our Winters is an organization founded by professional snowboarder Jeremy Jones to address climate change. POW is an important grassroots organization that emphasizes the important role we all play as individuals and how we can come together to enact change. POW has helped unite outdoor enthusiasts to pass the largest climate bill in U.S. history, defended public lands, and focuses on the science and economic benefits of climate progress. POW believes and proves that the outdoor industry is a powerful force and if we can unite over our love of the outdoors and the special places we recreate, we can be a loud voice of change.

Trout Unlimited

Trout Unlimited partners with the US Forest Service and the US Fish and Wildlife Service to complete stream restoration projects. They also focus on citizen science advocacy, education programs, and outreach activities for minority groups. Trout Unlimited highlights their optimism and is currently targeting rivers and streams where they can have the greatest impact and are building trout and salmon strongholds for the future. The overarching goal is to provide healthy and clean water for everyone. Trout Unlimited is focused on protecting the Clean Water Act, Public Lands, and the Roadless Rule.

Outdoor Alliance

The Outdoor Alliance is made up of ten activity-specific organizations:

• The Access Fund
• American Canoe Association
• American Whitewater
• International Mountain Bicycling Association
• Winter Wildlands Alliance
• The Mountaineers
• The American Alpine Club
• Colorado Mountain Club
• Surfrider Foundation
• Runners for Public Lands

By bringing together a diverse background of outdoor athletes, Outdoor Alliance creates a strong force for conservation and the outdoors. Their mission is to unite the voices of outdoor enthusiasts to conserve public land with an emphasis on the human-powered experience. The Outdoor Alliance believes that the outdoors has intrinsic and social value. The special places we recreate matter and so do the experiences they provide. The Outdoor Alliance is working to build bipartisan support to defend the outdoors and develop lasting conservation and recreational protections through education, policy, and advocacy work.

How and Why to Give

Giving is easy! Visit the links we have provided and donate directly on their website. You can also contribute by sharing the important work of these organizations with others in your life and encouraging them to support what calls to them. If you have thought about and wanted to give back to outdoor-conscious organizations, GivingTuesday is an excellent time to do so! Hopefully reading about the important work these organizations do has made it easier than ever to give back. These organizations need our help to advance their work, and likewise, outdoor enthusiasts need these organizations now more than ever.