Hunters of Color
$40,000

Hunters of Color was founded to address this issue by creating access to hunting and conservation for BIPOC Oregonians through mentorship, educational opportunities, and access to shared resources. We have identified four main barriers to entry for BIPOC in hunting: lack of exposure to, and knowledge of, hunting; lack of access to private land; fear of exclusion in predominantly white spaces; and lack of capital to purchase equipment. To address these issues, our diverse leadership creates programming that is culturally specific and racially literate with the support of state and federal agencies, private foundations, and outdoor-centered organizations and corporations. By breaking down these barriers through mentorship and hunting education, we are able to recruit and engage more BIPOC in hunting and conservation. This grant would directly support our long-term goal of establishing a HOC community in every state by 2032. Additionally, this funding will support our newly established Ambassador Program– a network of volunteer leaders who steward chapters in various regions. Through our work, we are giving BIPOC communities the tools, skills, and awareness they need so that they can create familial lines of hunting, access mentorship, and gain knowledge to self-recruit and self-perpetuate hunting/conservation for generations to come.