アレックス・オノルドさんのインスタグラム写真 - (アレックス・オノルドInstagram)「Hello! My name is Kai Lightner, founder of @climbing4change . Our team is excited about mobilizing resources to diversify the outdoor industry. I wanted to take a moment to explain why I am so passionate about our work and believe that diversity initiatives are important to our industry. In the midst of a global pandemic and a civil rights movement, social tensions are at an extreme high - our country is divided. The protests, public outcries, heated debates (browse the comment section for context) has exposed one undeniable fact. Conflict is inevitable when people don't understand and cannot empathize with the experiences of others. As a professional athlete, I've had the privilege of traveling the world experiencing so many different cultures and people. Through my travels, I learned to be open minded and understanding of different cultural norms and approaches to life, and appreciate these differences. As a result, when encountering things I don’t understand, my instinct is to listen and ask questions. However, I realize this instinct is not intuitive to many. In fact, the less diversity that one experiences, the narrower your perspective tends to be, making you less tolerant to people and issues that you don't understand. Few industries have a larger diversity gap than ours. Communities of color experience mental, socioeconomic, and systemic barriers of entry that have made the outdoors inaccessible and uninviting. Click on the link in my bio @kailightner to hear a recent podcast that I did (For the Love of Climbing) with my mom discussing these barriers in detail. By removing barriers and increasing diversity in our community, individuals and businesses benefit. We'd be exposing millions of new people to our industry, and bridging an enormous divide. Diverse communities broaden our personal perspectives and help us to understand and appreciate differences. Initiatives like Climbing for Change exist to bridge these gaps. We hope to destigmatize the outdoors and make our community a more inviting and inclusive space so athletes and outdoor recreators who look like me aren’t rare, but common place in our industry. Join us in making a difference!」8月8日 1時18分