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SNEWS® Live: As a group, African-American people in the United States have been conspicuously under represented among those involved in outdoor recreation. But an organization of community leaders say they believe that a message of environmental activism and preservation could be well received by African-Americans and other people of color throughout the country.



As visitation to national parks and wilderness areas nationwide continues to decline, concerned environmental activists are reaching out to minorities in the hopes of encouraging them to embrace outdoor recreation as a way of life. Numbers of blacks, Latinos and Asians are expected to exceed those of whites in the United States by the year 2050. If the conservation movement fails to engage these populations now -- to help them establish an appreciation and love for the outdoors -- activists suggest that an entire generation of environmental advocates could be lost.



SNEWS® Live attended a recent gathering of African-American leaders at Red Top Mountain State Park, several miles outside of Atlanta, Ga. The group met to discuss their role and their future in the conservation movement. Here's their story.