Building a More Inclusive Tenafly Nature Center
We are committed to making our natural areas and our organization a more inclusive and equitable place. This is an ongoing process for us, and this page explores some of the ways we are striving towards inclusivity and working to become a place of belonging for all.
This page is meant to serve as a working document of our efforts here at the Tenafly Nature Center and to help hold us accountable. We invite you to use this page as a resource of our access initiatives and, if you have any additional resources or suggestions of ways we can be equitable to ALL of our community, please do not hesitate to reach out.
Thank you.
Please contact our Executive Director with comments, questions and suggestions.
Tenafly Nature Center creates equitable and inclusive spaces for people to enjoy, experience, and learn about our environment. We endeavor to make our outdoor spaces safe and welcoming to all visitors and we aspire to create experiences that are accessible to all. We welcome people of all races, religions, sexual orientations, gender and gender identities, nationalities and creeds. Our programs and offerings reflect our surrounding diverse community. In recent years, we have put great efforts towards inclusion, diversity, equity and access; we will review these statements from time to time to improve them and ensure that we stay current with the mission of TNC. At the Tenafly Nature Center we strive to hold ourselves – the staff, volunteers, program participants, and members – to these principles so that our organization is a safe and inviting space for all to experience nature.
-
Surveyed accessibility of facility and grounds and launched accessibility project to make upgrades where needed, including the development of an accessible trail and facilities.
-
Added more (and continue to) benches across the property as places to stop and rest.
-
Updated and added more welcoming, wayfinding, and safety related signage to counter barriers caused by an unfamiliar, unwelcoming, and uncomfortable trailhead and trail system.
-
Utilized Korean in some of our important signage (to reflect the diversity that surrounds us).
-
Broadened our programs while ensuring core offerings are welcoming to all. Additionally, program offerings were expanded to weekends and evenings to accommodate different schedules and community needs.
-
Through grant assistance provided by Wells Fargo and the Lillian Schenck Foundation we expanded our Environmental Education For All program. Reaching low to moderate income schools through outreach programs that make a difference and create opportunities for students and families to learn how to make change happen for healthier local environment.
-
Expanded our scholarship assistance for our environmental education programs, including camps through grant assistance provided by the Community Chest of Englewood.
-
Changed our restroom signage and design to be more inclusive and accessible and updated our forms, signage and digital media with gender-inclusive language and opportunity to collect and share the preferred pronouns of our students, members, visitors and staff
-
Update language and signage across our organization to ensure we are welcoming to all of our community
-
Prioritize community access and ensure organization-wide awareness of, commitment to and accountability for these initiatives
We continue to:
-
Further expand our scholarship program, so that lack of financial access is no longer a barrier to environmental education
-
Continue to offer TNC to Go program opportunities so that bus fees are not a impediment to educational programming
-
Portray the diverse community that we serve in our staffing structure and marketing materials
-
Applying inclusive hiring practices. Striving to create job opportunities at TNC with hours, salaries, and benefits that are attractive to a wide range of applicants. Updating our hiring and interview process to be more equitable and accommodating of a wide range of candidate abilities and experiences. TNC is an Equal Opportunity Employer.
-
Endeavor to strengthen our organization by diversifying our staff and board.
-
Provide professional development and networking opportunities for our staff to improve education and communication
-
Build and strengthen new and existing partnerships and outreach to connect with new audiences, groups, and local organizations to better meet the needs of our diverse community.
-
Review and update our organizational policies, practices and procedures (e.g. hiring practices, language used by teaching staff)
