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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!

Chivan Lim
/ Categories: General Interest

ORR Released New Recreation Funding Report

The Outdoor Recreation Roundtable (ORR) released a groundbreaking report, "Recreation Funding in America: Current Results and Future Insights.” This comprehensive study, conducted by Southwick Associates, Inc. on behalf of ORR, aggregated and analyzed current federal funding streams for outdoor recreation and identified potential future threats to these funding sources. These threats include changing energy demands, evolving participation, inflation, weather events and climate change, and stagnant appropriation trends.

A notable statistic from the report is that outdoor recreation contributes 2.2% to the U.S. GDP, yet only receives 0.16% of federal funding—a nearly 14x difference in scale.

The report underscored the urgent need for innovative solutions to secure sustainable funding for the $1.1 trillion recreation economy, which millions of Americans and communities depend on. ORR and experts discussed the report in a 30-minute webinar held today at 11 AM EDT.

Read the key takeaways here: https://recreationroundtable.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/ORR030_RecFunding_Jun24_Rd2.pdf

 

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Washington State's Outdoor Recreation Economy Generates

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