NRF Blog Highlights Urban Wilderness Program

By Kyle Oblong

The National Recreation Foundation (NRF) has been a close partner and generous supporter of Camping & Education Foundation for years. Our missions align deeply. We both believe in helping young people access the outdoors and grow through meaningful, confidence-building experiences in nature.

At the Camping & Education Foundation, we’ve expanded our impact by bringing transformative outdoor education beyond our traditional summer camp roots and into urban communities. With early support from the National Recreation Foundation, we launched our Urban Wilderness Program in Cincinnati, partnering with local schools to teach students hands-on skills like boatbuilding, camping, and paddling, while fostering confidence, teamwork, and resilience.

When the pandemic challenged traditional programming, we adapted by creating a mobile makerspace that allowed us to bring outdoor learning directly into neighborhoods. That innovation helped us grow into new cities and ultimately break ground on a permanent work shop in Cincinnati, called the Shuman Urban Wilderness Center. These developments have has further strengthened our commitment to making meaningful outdoor experiences accessible to more young people.