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THE BIG TENT FOR OUTDOOR RECREATION
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The mission  of the Big Tent  is to promote sustainable, diverse, equitable, and inclusive outdoor experiences in Washington state through advocacy and education.

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2025 Big Tent Outdoor Recreation Coalition Weekly Policy Calls

January 17 - end of session
Fridays 12:00 p.m. - 12:15 p.m.
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#RecreateResponsibly to Protect Yourself, Others, and the Outdoors

During this public health crisis, spending time in outdoor spaces has become even more important for many Americans. Yet these unusual circumstances mean that all of us, from seasoned outdoor enthusiasts to families heading out to their local park for the first time, could use a little guidance about how to stay safe. The Recreate Responsibly guidelines offer a starting point for getting outside to keep yourself healthy and to maintain access to our parks, trails, and beaches. [ LEARN MORE ]

 

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We Represent
Outdoor Recreation

The power of the Big Tent lies not with any individual or with any shiny advertising or marketing campaigns, but with the combined weight of dozens of organizations and agencies who believe in the collective value of outdoor recreation.

We are an organic group, with no Executive Director.  We come together periodically, meet on an as-needed basis, and gather each year in Olympia to show policy-makers and opinion leaders that outdoor recreation is a critical sector in Washington, one that brings jobs, revenue, active and healthy living, and tourism to a state blessed with mind-numbing natural beauty.  
 
On this website you will find a statement about who we are and how we came to be; a listing of our current members; contacts; information about how you can join us; meeting announcements; links to press releases and topical articles; and of course some background pictures of the outdoors.
 
We hope you find this site helpful, and that you won’t hesitate to tell us how we can add to it and improve.  It belongs to all of us who marvel at the stunning natural resources which make Washington a special place in which to live, work, and play.  Thanks for stopping by!

State Senators, Representatives Highlight the Importance of Outdoor Recreation Economy

Big Tent Outdoor Recreation Coalition

Olympia, WA - The Big Tent Outdoor Recreation Coalition, a 501 (c)(6) umbrella organization made up of several dozen individual organizations and state natural resource agencies, will be in the State Capitol on Tuesday, Feb. 24, for its third Annual Rally Day to highlight the importance of outdoor recreation to our state.  The Rally Day will include a press event featuring legislative leaders speaking about the economic impact of outdoor recreation and its role in the state budget process.

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Guest: Our state parks are heavily used but underfunded

Seattle Times - Published January 27, 2015

State parks get 33 million visitors a year, yet funding cuts have them operating with “bailing wire and duct tape,” write guest columnists John R. Floberg, Mark O. Brown and Jim van Loben Sels.

STATE parks need everyone’s support this legislative session. Years of underfunding and layoffs have left the state with one of the most awesome park systems in the country that is held together, as Gov. Jay Inslee says, “by bailing wire and duct tape.” The equivalent of 200 positions out of 595 at state parks were lost in the recession, and the condition and hours of operation for park facilities have continued to decline. 
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Washington State Parks - Legislative Update

By Daniel Farber, Policy and Governmental Affairs Director

The legislative session is of course off and running and a number of State Parks-related bills are already being considered.  See the links below for a summary of the most significant bills and the basic analysis of each bill by State Parks staff.  You can read any of the bills by going to http://app.leg.wa.gov/billinfo/ and typing in the bill number in the block provided.  If you have any questions or comments on the bills, feel free to contact me at any time and I’ll be happy to provide you whatever information I can and hear any thoughts you have about each bill.

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Outdoor Recreation in Washington Generates $21.6 Billion Each Year

The Olympian

Washingtonians love to play outdoors, especially in local parks and public waters. That is the basic conclusion of a report released earlier this month that studied the effect outdoor recreation has on the state’s economy.  The study was done for the State Recreation and Conservation Office by Earth Economics in Tacoma. Requested by state Sen. Kevin Ranker (D-Orcas Island), this is the first comprehensive look at the state’s recreational economy.
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Veteran of Idaho Wildlife Agency Named to Lead Washington's Fish and Wildlife Department

The Olympian

Jim Unsworth, who has spent more than 30 years with Idaho’s wildife agency, was chosen Saturday to head Washington’s Department of Fish and Wildlife. The 57-year-old Unsworth, who has been the deputy director of the Idaho Department of Fish and Game, was chosen from four finalists by the state Fish and Wildlife Commission. The commission had interviewed eight candidates to take over for Phil Anderson, who announced in August he was resigning.
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Expect Higher Fees, Limited Access to Popular Recreation Spots in 2015

The News Tribune

It’s the first weekend of the NFL playoffs, so the most pressing outdoor issue on your mind is probably, “Can I squeeze in a side trip to the Grand Canyon on the way to Glendale, Arizona, to watch the Seahawks play in the Super Bowl?”

Well, if you don’t do it now, you’ll pay for it later. The cost to visit national parks will likely increase by 67 percent in 2015.

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Outdoor recreation in state yields $22 billion in spending

The Associated Press

SEATTLE — A new state study finds that people in Washington spend nearly $22 billion each year hiking, skiing, boating, golfing, and in other outdoor pursuits.

The report released Thursday estimates that residents spend on average about 56 days a year on outdoor recreational activities. And they spend money while doing so — on hotels, recreational equipment, food and other items.

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Big Tent Beginnings

If you’re looking for the time the “Big Tent Outdoor Coalition” drew its first breath, leap back to Spring 2012.  We were fresh off legislative sessions where the Washington Wildlife & Recreation Program (WWRP) had to fight to survive in a 2011-13 biennial budget, and funding had been diverted from dedicated recreational accounts in the 2012 supplemental budget process.  I sat in a meeting room with Kaleen Cottingham, the Director of the Recreation & Conservation Office, wondering how outdoor recreation could grow a louder and more formative voice in the State Capital.
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Washington State's Outdoor Recreation Economy Generates

View the 2020 Economic Analysis of Outdoor Recreation in Washington State for details