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From Exploring Trails to Leading Utah’s Outdoors: Meet Jason Curry
July marks Park and Recreation Month, a time to celebrate the spaces and leaders who inspire us to connect with nature and each other. This month, we are proud to feature Jason Curry, Director of the Utah Division of Outdoor Recreation.
Tell us about your personal and professional journey.
In 1999, I was preparing for my final year at the University of Utah pursuing a degree in economics. I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do, but I had a strong desire to work in natural resources. Partly, because I couldn’t see myself spending my whole career in an office, or at a desk; moreover, I had a friend at the time who worked for the Department of Natural Resources (DNR). He would come back from work telling me about how he was on the river, or in the mountains and I decided then I would have a career in the outdoors. I heard about a job opening that was coming available at the DNR for a public affairs coordinator, so I immediately signed up for a communications class and some parks, recreation and tourism courses. I also taught myself how to build websites and to code in HTML. I was hired for that position and have had the privilege of working for the State of Utah for 26 years. I’ve been able to serve in roles dealing with public lands, policy, wildfire, law enforcement, public affairs, and outdoor recreation.
What pivotal experiences shaped your current path?
When I was young, I could not stand being indoors. As a typical GenXer, I had full autonomy for my daily schedule after school, on weekends, and all summer. I spent time living on my grandfather’s cattle ranch in Idaho along the Bear River. I would always rush to get my chores done so I could go explore the tops of the mountains on game trails, build forts and shelters down by the river, or track animals wherever they were. Those years engraved a love of the outdoors on my soul. When I moved to the city, I felt like a huge piece was missing. I had to work hard to find wild spaces to escape (or return) to.
In 1983, I saw a commercial on TV for a new kind of bicycle that was unlike anything I had ever seen. They called it a mountain bike. I only saw my father about once per year, and when he called me before my birthday, I told him it was the only thing I would ever ask for for the rest of my birthdays and christmases and held my breath. He came through and when I got home from school the following week, the bike was there. I still get choked up thinking about that moment. I explored every path and trail I could on that bike, and I have had at least one mountain bike ever since then and still ride multiple trails per week.
When I had young children, I tried to get them outdoors, which, at the time felt like mixed success, and it was a struggle as a parent trying to prioritize everything that kids need. Now that they are adults, they have embraced the outdoors and are regular hikers, campers, climbers, and bikers. This taught me an important lesson; that when we go into nature, it’s not an escape from life, it’s a return to a connection with the natural world that is inherent in all of us. Once we expose young people to that place in their brain (the nature connection) their desire to be outdoors will last a lifetime.
What are the most important lessons you've learned through your work in parks, nature programs, or recreation initiatives?
Working with adaptive outdoor recreation partners has taught me a number of lessons, most importantly, that the outdoors is for everyone and that takes a bit more effort from everyone else in the community to support things like proper trail design, wheelchair accessible amenities, and adaptive program funding. I admire parents of disabled youth. The amount of work involved in taking a child with a disability into the outdoors is enormous and without help from adaptive sports programs, it seems impossible. So many parents are driven to put in that work, and I have grown to see inclusive outdoor recreation from a more informed perspective. I’ve also learned that adaptive users just want to recreate and occupy their place on the trail just like everyone else.
Utah has a huge immigrant community, and it continues to grow and diversify. Watching immigrants from around the world come here and participate in outdoor recreation has reassured me that “outdoor people” don’t have one type of look or demographic, we come from all cultures and backgrounds.
Beyond your own journey, what are your hopes for your community, generation, or people?
My hope is that people gain an understanding of what it means to have an outdoor recreation community that is welcoming and available to all. The benefits of being outside go beyond just getting in shape or training for an event. Type 2 diabetes, heart disease, depression, anxiety are all at unsustainable levels, and we’re all paying for that both socially, and in healthcare costs. I envision a world where there is complete consensus among medical providers, mental health professionals, educators, and public health administrators that time in nature is an effective complement to (and at times, substitutes for) medications and clinical work.
How can organizations like GlobalMindED better support leaders like yourself in ensuring that parks and outdoor spaces remain inclusive, safe, and empowering for future generations?
It comes down to love for our fellow humans. The outdoor community loves the land, we love nature, and we love the idea of preserving it. If we take time to ask questions of others, think about the one person who may be left out or who needs extra help accessing the outdoors, that has ripple effects for our own ability to connect with nature and with people. GlobalMindEd has a great power to make those things happen, to increase our awareness, and through authentic outreach, we get to see the world through other’s perspectives. That’s the path to love, and it leads to inclusivity and empowerment.
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