Faith Briggs and her Mission
This week we will continue to celebrate Black History Month by discussing one of the outdoor industry’s most influential and fierce female athletes.
Since Thanksgiving day of 2019, I set my sights on completing a new goal. I signed up for a half marathon. I trained through the cold winter months, ran the same old Amazon river trail nearly every day, and pushed myself to be better every week. When Coronavirus swept through the nation the entire world seemed to stop. Things were cancelled and much larger and more terrifying issues appeared in the world. As I sat in my house for weeks at a time, trying to complete online classes, I couldn’t help but ask myself, “why?” What was the point in running anymore.
One spring afternoon changed all of that for me. Our Outdoor Program was hosting a film festival and encouraged students to hop online to partake. One film in particular took me by surprise and really changed my perspective. It felt like an answer to my “why?”
This Land
Faith Briggs, runner and advocate for public lands, lived in New York for years. She ran the busy city streets until one day she found herself running over 150 miles of dirt through US Monuments in the Southwest. She wanted to provoke change in the world, and brought along her own fleet of diverse running companions wanting to change the world with her. The goal of her journey was to empower others, strive for inclusivity and take back public lands that are losing the protection they deserve. Briggs produced the film This Land and has it available for screening on the website. You can also find resources on the website for how to take action, where the film will be screened, how to learn more about protecting our lands, information on the political plans for public lands, and education on important conversations about environment, policy, race, history and culture.
Orvis Mission: #5050OntheWater
Briggs is paired up with several corporations to continue to force change in the world. Briggs works with Orvis, a successful flying fishing company, to represent equality and diversity on the water through the 5050 On the Water campaign. She represents a woman of color in an industry generally dominated by men, and Orvis supports that. She now lives in Portland and works with several other Orvis sponsored non-profits to bring youth and veterans together and educate them on conservation as well.
Just Add Water
Last February Orvis teamed up with NRS, a white water focused gear distributor, to work on the Just Add Water campaign which is dedicated to breaking down barriers in the outdoors. Briggs co-hosted the film project. They are striving to put more focus on diversity and representation in the outdoors.
The Future
So many corporations in the outdoor industry are finding ways to support a wider range of representation in the great outdoors. Briggs is passionate about connecting with others, using her voice to make change happen, taking action in the conservation world and never giving up on the fight to make the outdoors a place for everybody.
