Why Create the Fund?

The National Forest System is an area of the Forest Service agency that oversees 154 national forests and 20 national grasslands on 193 million acres of public lands.

The National Forest Community Recreation Fund is intended to increase recreation and participation among communities that historically lack access or infrequently visit national forest system lands. While many factors contribute to these disparities, this Fund aims to provide support to recreation programs and gear libraries that consistently engage disproportionately affected communities and work towards addressing outdoor recreation and access disparities. Furthermore, the Fund emphasizes support for programs and gear libraries interested in strengthening partnerships with local Forest Service districts to reduce barriers and streamline future engagement efforts.  

The following statistics provide an overview of visitor use on national forest system lands. The data outlined below provides context for the importance of the National Forest Community Recreation Fund, and it is only a small representation of the many groups and populations across the U.S. who lack access to lands managed by the Forest Service. For additional information on visitor participation, please visit the resource link below that will be linked to the full report developed by the Forest Service.  

The graph above is sourced from "Barriers and Facilitators for Accessing Outdoor Spaces Among Urban Hispanic Recreationists" by Lee Cerveny, Research Social Scientist, Forest Service