June 2023 Newsletter
As environmentalists, we all share a common affection for the great outdoors. Unfortunately, what most consider nature (i.e., national parks and recreation areas), hasn't felt accessible or welcoming to all communities. Enter Pattie Gonia! Pattie is an environmentalist drag queen on a mission to make the outdoors and what popular culture depicts as an outdoorist inclusive and accessible to ALL people.
Out of drag, Pattie is Wyn Wiley, an avid outdoorist and professional photographer. We are beyond thrilled to have them join our EMA Activist Board, and we look forward to amplifying and assisting the fantastic work of Pattie and the nonprofit she co-founded, The Outdoorist Oath.
Please enjoy our interview with the incomparable Pattie Gonia.
We always start from the beginning. What inspired your environmental activism and love of nature?
Queerness! Growing up, people told me that my queerness was "unnatural" and wrong, so I never spent much time outdoors connecting to nature. Through my drag, activism, and meeting with scientists who study queerness worldwide, I now know that my queerness is nothing but natural. So, I go outdoors to reclaim much lost time that the little queer me never got to live.
You're a Co-Founder of The Outdoorist Oath. What motivated you to start the nonprofit, and how is it going?
The future of outdoor culture and environmental movement will be built on actions of allyship for people and the planet. So, I co-founded the Outdoorist Oath to educate and organize allies, BIPOC, and Queer people to get outdoors and fight for planet, inclusion, and adventure.
