Why does everybody want minorities to do this/that e.g more women in IT, more women MPs. If ethnic minorities want to go outdoors surely they can do we are not Alabama and all outdoor types I know are very inclusive. If they can't go for financial reasons surely this also applies to the less well off of any ethnic group. Isn't this article just enforcing racial segregation and instead we should be saying everybody, whoever they are, should have access. Another point, will they be forced to go outdoors against their will?
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 Doesn't it make you tired?
It's cold, it's wet and there are no facilities, why the hell should anybody be forced to go to these out of the way places where there's nothing going on.
I haven't read the article, the intro wound me up.
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 I read the article last Wednesday. And the Mosaic programme is more about telling the "ethnic minorities" that the outdoors actually exists.
Some of those minorities questioned thought that National Parks had swings and things, rather being open wide spaces for doing whatever you want in. They didn't know what to expect or that they were even allowed out there.
I fully support the programme. I want EVERYONE out there on the hills. That's what the article is about.
We have all seen outdoory programmes aimed at kids...this is just a similar scheme aimed at a particular group.
Andy read the article, you'll be suprised at how much any normal minded person would agree with what it says.
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What makes you think that I have a normal mind?
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 your a polar bear...corse your normal...we're all normal on OM
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Can we get back to the point here?
Did you read the article?
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ok
IMHO....the outdoors should be available to everyone, even the twits who wear trainers in winter. Mainly cos if we start trying to ban people, then we're as bad as the national distrust etc.
Other reasons being, people should be able to make their own minds up. If they (ethnic minoritys) don't want to go out into the hills then fair enuff. If they do, they should be allowed to do so...
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what the hell am i rambling about...far to long a week...
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 no one is stopping anyone from going into the national parks, anyway all the swings are broken.
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 All the trees are brown
and the sky is grey
I went for a walk
on a winter's day
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The point is that those groups that this project is aimed at don't know the outdoors is there.
It's a difficult concept for US to grasp I know, but they just aren't aware of it's availability.
Anything that does let people know is a GOOD THING.
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 The author of this article has obviously not been involved in the Duke of Ed scheme in a London borough.
But on the other hand..... I'm a borough co-rdinator for the London Cycling Campaign and am aware of their atempts to encourage more ethnic minorities onto bikes in London (and increase LCC membership). I've attended several forums to work out ways to acheive this. IMHO if a representative of a minority wants to ride a bike, walk in NP's or be a police officer there are NO barriers in the way.
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 One of my favourite songs, that, Jeannie.
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The barriers in their way are their own pre-conceptions and the aim of the scheme is to break those down.
We are all on the same side here, and in the words of the article no-one in the groups has seen any racism from other outdoorsy types. We should be thankfull for that, and encoursge by every means possible more, indeed, EVERYONE out onto the hills.
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Well, obviously, not everyone.
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Without looking at the statistics, i think that the ethnic minorities are probably represented proportionally in the hills. They are given the same opportunities as anyone else as they go through school and as they grow up, as long as their parents allow them to fully integrate into society.
Personally I found the hills through the Duke of Edinburgh’s award and have subsequently gone on to run and help supervise expeditions in which ‘ethnic minorities’ were fairly represented from London boroughs and central London. On these expeditions most of the participants regarded it as a chore that needed completing so they could get the award, of the 100 or so people I helped with their expedition I would say about five of them started going into the hills on their own, one of which was Afro-Caribbean another was of Bangladeshi descent. The other 95ish% were completely uninterested in going into the hills regardless of race.
The bottom line is; the hills are there, they’re free to use, so go and use them. I didn’t need special awareness campaigns to get me out there…
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I have to disagree John. Lets have a quick look up on the summit of Helvellyn last Saturday.
How many ethnic minority faces did you see there?
In addition I saw a black face as I was driving through Paterdale later in the day, and thought to myself: "that's an unusual sight, you don't often see an ethnic face in a place like this."
Similarly, when I lived "oop north like" I used to go to the top end of the Cleveland Hills, where there is a high proportion of ethnic minorities living nearby. I NEVER saw an ethic face on Roseberry Topping. Saw plenty of fat white blokes in Middlesboro tops shouting at their kids not to go close to the edge, but no ethnic family groups.
I think that DoE is slightly different to what the MOSAIC scheme is trying to do. DoE encourges children and young people. MOSAIC is to encourage families.
It's good that you didn't need a special awareness campaign (but what is DoE if it's not just that?) to get out onto the hills. But some people do. More power to the MOSAIC scheme.
(And Bobby...yes, EVERYONE, but not necessarilly at the same time!)
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 Surely anything that encourages people to be aware of the opportunity to get outdoors and makes it easier for them plus increases awareness of national parks and what they offer is a good thing?
And if ethnic minorities are proportionately represented among adult climbers and walkers, I'm a chihuahua.
Why not just appreciate this for what it is, an organisation which is trying to break down some of the barriers and misconceptions and sheer ignorance that stop people, who in this case belong to ethnic minorities, from getting into the hills?
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 As a Scout Leader, I don't think this a bad idea at all as we face a similar (albeit less dramatic) situation in our movement.
I would however like to see it aimed at inner city areas in general, not just certain ethnic groups.
Si(C)
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 What needs to be appreciated is that the people this scheme is aimed at generally don´t read the Guardian/Trail/Wainwright, don´t have friends/relatives from a rural background and don´t talk to people who visit the countryside regularly. The countryside is as alien to them as Bora Bora is to the users of this forum.
This scheme is not about forcing anybody to do anything. It´s simply about providing information to people who don´t have ready access to it, so they can make their own decisions. Nothing wrong with that, surely?
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