To have influence in the areas of outdoor education and recreation, and wilderness management, NOLS Patagonia needs to actively take the lead in a manner that considers the collaborative culture and social formalities of Patagonia. NOLS Patagonia has many strengths to emphasize, and is in a positive position with a good reputation in the area. The following steps will enhance its role in the community, which is necessary for NOLS Patagonia to have an impact in protecting its outdoor classroom.
Show off! Recognize the strengths of staff and instructors, and share those outside of NOLS Patagonia.
- Emphasize their expertise: technical outdoor skills, expeditions, leadership, outdoor education, expedition logistics, backcountry geography, Patagonian natural history.
- Celebrate their achievements through profiles and announcements on social media and the web.
- Publicize outstanding expeditions through traditional and social media.
- Allow staff to incorporate their personal interests and skills into their jobs, as part of their duties (not as extra responsibilities), especially where those skills contribute to community participation. This can include skills such as writing, photography, public speaking, and organic gardening, plus the technical outdoor skills that NOLS Patagonia staff possess.
- Highlight the aspects of NOLS Patagonia which reflect their Patagonia-ness or local-ness, whether it is acknowledging staff from Patagonia or Chile, or the embracing of Patagonia by non-Chileans.
- Recruit and support alumni in giving presentations and hosting activities that tell the NOLS Patagonia story.
- Give partners a reason to attend graduations and other events. It can be to recognize them for their contributions or to give them a chance to talk about their own work. For example, if there is a hostel that is popular with students, give them a few minutes at a graduation to tell the audience about their business.
Participate
- Support staff participation in organized activities in Coyhaique and Patagonia, such as races, workshops, forums, and service projects. Provide incentives such as work time or assistance with fees, and provide them with NOLS-branded gear and clothing to use in the activity, as appropriate.
- Prepare staff to speak about NOLS Patagonia in public. Make sure everyone can answer questions such as “What is NOLS Patagonia?”
- Share these activities on social media and in other venues.
Maintain a Patagonian identity.
- Continue to incorporate local culture into NOLS Patagonia: celebrate with asados, drink mate, and share and make positive gestures with neighbors, partners, and others.
- Keep growing the Spanish program. Include residents of Patagonia and Chile as direct beneficiaries of NOLS Patagonia. Consider the Spanish program a core part of NOLS Patagonia.
- Maintain scholarships for Patagonian and Chilean residents in NOLS Patagonia catalog courses. Keep access to NOLS programming as open as possible.
- Publicize the new Patagonian Cultural Expedition and Patagonian Coastal Expedition.
- Strengthen alumni activities in Patagonia and Chile.
Focus on the mission and vision.
Collaborate strategically based on the themes of outdoor education and recreation, Leave No Trace, wilderness management, and environmental conservation.
Partner with actors identified as allies and resource providers: the organizations that directly impact NOLS Patagonia courses and the outdoor classroom.
Social Media
- Emphasize people: use staff and instructor profiles and stories to build a personal connection with NOLS Patagonia.
- Tell local stories related to expeditions, staff’s participation in the community, and relationships with families in Patagonia.
- Share stories by and about partners and collaborators. Support the work that others are doing which contributes to the big picture of outdoor education in Patagonia.
- Enlist staff, instructors, and students in using #NOLSPatagonia on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter
Nurture “Competitors” Business experts working with NOLS headquarters observed that NOLS trains its competitors, because its graduates go on to work in outdoor education and adventure guiding outside of NOLS. In Patagonia, NOLS does not have a true competitor who offers the expedition-based outdoor education, Leave No Trace, and leadership training that NOLS Patagonia provides.
- Stay engaged with alumni who go on to work as guides, trainers, and adventure athletes in Patagonia and Chile. Invite them to activities and support their projects.
- Participate in industry forums and collaborations
- Continue to be involved in tourism and policy initiatives related to outdoor education and recreation.
