FOYAN's Strategic Plan

FOYAN's Vision:
All youth in Western Colorado are able to develop into resilient, confident, and healthy individuals through access to the outdoors. Through these experiences, they grow an appreciation for our natural world, fostering a desire to act as stewards of our world in order to provide the same opportunities for future generations.

FOYAN’s Mission:
To eliminate barriers to participation in outdoor activities by Western Slope youth and expand participation by:

• Collaborating with organizations that provide activities to promote healthy physical, social, and emotional outdoor lifestyles that build resilience;
  
• Providing agile and flexible funding opportunities to local service providers and youth groups whose mission aligns with FOYAN’s vision;
  
• Providing agile and flexible funds for individuals to participate in programs that align with FOYAN’s vision;
  
• Educating youth and community members about environmental stewardship opportunities, as well as opportunities to participate in outdoor activities;
  
• Connecting youth with local established outdoor education providers; and,
  
• Providing a platform for collaboration among outdoor education partners.
  

FOYAN’s core values include:

• Collaboration: with provider organizations, with youth and families, and, within communities;
  
• Equity: providing equitable access to the outdoors for youth;
  
• Healthy outdoor lifestyle:  promoting positive physical, social, and emotional interactions with nature;
  
• Stewardship: of our natural environment, instilling "Leave No Trace" principles;
  
• Resilience: helping young people meet life’s challenges in a positive way;
  
• Individual capacity building: development of outdoor skills for safety and enjoyment;
  
• Respect: love of the outdoors and local nature spaces, and, respect for others in the environment;
  
• Integrity: transparency, fiscal responsibility, open communication.
  

FOYAN’s strengths include:

• Reducing barriers through dissemination of information (our website, provider platform, tips and blogs on outdoor experiences), providing outdoor gear, and our ability to fund projects, busing and youth scholarships to camps/programs;
  
• Collaboration with outdoor/environmental education providers, youth organizations, families, funders and serve as a conduit to inform, facilitate and communicate about opportunities for outdoor experiences and nature learning;
  
• Effectively responding to funding requests and having the flexibility to fund various opportunities for youth  to learn about nature and experience new outdoor endeavors.  FOYAN has knowledge of funding sources and has been successful at grant writing and fundraising campaigns since 2019.
  

FOYAN’s Goals:

• Increase participation in outdoor activities among Western Slope youth;
  
• Increase availability of and ease of access to information for those wishing to participate in outdoor and stewardship activities;
  
• Reduce barriers to funding opportunities for organizations whose mission aligns with FOYAN’s vision;
  
• Increase availability of outdoor education services.
  

FOYAN’s Strategy's:

• Obtain and disperse funding to service providers;
  
• Identify and connect with under-served communities (low income, Hispanic, at-risk populations);
  
• Provide individual scholarships to eliminate barriers to participation;
  
• Increase our visibility in our communities;
  
• Continue to develop social media and website presence;
  
• Increase media exposure and coverage;
  
• Strategically reach out to local youth organizations and other community influencers;
  
• Pursue expanded funding opportunities through grants and fundraising opportunities.
  

FOYAN’s Outcomes:

• Increased number of students participating in outdoor activities through FOYAN connections;
  
• Increased teacher outdoor education and scholarship opportunities;
  
• Maintain or increase participation in ongoing (garden, watershed, and stewardship) projects;
  
• Increased disbursement of funds to partner organizations and environmental education providers.