2025 Wilderness Risk Management Conference

Main Conference: Tuesday, September 30 - Thursday, October 2, 2025

Preconference: Monday September 29 - Tuesday, September 30, 2025

*Schedule subject to change.

8:30am EDT

Don’t Wait - Learn from everyday work using Human & Organizational Performance (HOP)

Wednesday October 1, 2025 8:30am - 10:00am EDT

When an incident occurs, a traditional approach is to investigate, starting with the event and working backwards to identify causes (or “root causes.”) This approach, while common, may miss significant context for the incident, or it may trap us into waiting for incidents to occur in order to learn.

Drawing from research in Human and Occupational Performance (HOP), Operational Learning is a process of learning from everyday work, not waiting for incidents to occur, providing us with strategies to look forward rather than backwards. In this workshop we will explore the theory and practice of operational learning, apply it to outdoor and experiential education programs, and identify useful questions to create a psychologically safe space for operational learning to occur.

Speakers

Gates Richards

Operations Director & Associate Consultant, Experiential Consulting

Gates Richards has been involved in outdoor education and EMS since the early 90's. Over the years he's worked outdoor programming throughout the Rockies, Pacific Northwest and Alaska as a field instructor and supervisor for several outdoor programs. He's worked urban EMS in DC... Read More →

Steve Smith

Consultant, Experiential Consulting, LLC

Steve Smith (he/him/his) is the founder of Experiential Consulting, LLC, specializing in risk management for outdoor programs and the lead author/editor of Beneficial Risks: The Evolution of Risk Management for Outdoor and Experiential Education Programs (2021). After taking a NOLS... Read More →

Wednesday October 1, 2025 8:30am - 10:00am EDT
Cumberland / Kennebec / Lincoln Holiday Inn By the Bay:88 Spring St, Portland, ME 04122

Program Administration, Breakout Session

10:30am EDT

Partnering with Purpose: Building Strong Alignment Between Ground Operators and Educational Institutions

Wednesday October 1, 2025 10:30am - 12:00pm EDT

Vermont

When educational institutions and ground operators partner effectively, there are great opportunities for creating impactful programming for students. Each side of the partnership contributes its own unique experience and perspectives informed by their institutional history, internal risk tolerance, and regulations or policy that dictate the scope of their operations. To build strong partnerships, it is essential to have processes in place to recognize these potential divides and find common ground that leads to well-aligned expectations and execution. This session will focus on the unique proactive and reactive risk management considerations of running programs alongside partner organizations. Through a series of real world case studies, we will share tools that both organizations can use to create well-aligned, successful, long-lasting relationships.

Speakers

Dave Haffeman

Risk Management Director, Where There Be Dragons

Dave has worked as field staff and an administrator in outdoor and international settings since 2005. Dave began his tenure at Where There Be Dragons in 2015 as a South America semester instructor. Over the years he has gathered valuable knowledge of Dragons programming while holding... Read More →

Kevin Porter

Partnership Program Director, Where There Be Dragons

Early in his career, Kevin moved to Kenya to consult for various NGOs, completing projects such as developing an inventory system for pharmacies and conducting needs assessments in remote communities. Kevin spent a decade with Rustic Pathways as their director of Global Program Operations... Read More →

Wednesday October 1, 2025 10:30am - 12:00pm EDT
Vermont Holiday Inn By the Bay:88 Spring St, Portland, ME 04119

Program Administration, Breakout Session

1:30pm EDT

How to prepare your employees to act in emergencies big and small

Wednesday October 1, 2025 1:30pm - 2:30pm EDT

Vermont

Many outdoor educators are lay medical providers who get their wilderness medicine certification, but have no real-world experience. You wouldn’t hire a climbing guide without any climbing experience, or a raft guide who has never been down a rapid, but we routinely hire folks into roles where they need their WFR, but have no real medical experience. In this workshop, we’ll discuss ways to enhance your staff’s wilderness medicine training and help create a culture of learning. We’ll talk about what you can do as an employer to ensure your staff are ready to act in emergencies big and small.

Speakers

Robin Larson

Education Director, NOLS Wilderness Medicine

Robin Larson is the Education Director at NOLS Wilderness Medicine. She has spent the last two decades working in the outdoor education field and has been instructing for NOLS Wilderness Medicine and Expeditions since 2008. Robin is a WEMT, BSN/RN, has her FAWM, and a master’s in... Read More →

Josh McNeary

Staffing & Development Director, NOLS Wilderness Medicine

Josh McNary is the Faculty, Staffing, and Development Director at NOLS Wilderness Medicine. He has been working for NOLS since 2002 and is a long time wilderness medicine and expeditions instructor at NOLS. Josh holds a BA in Public Policy, an MA in International Development, and... Read More →

Wednesday October 1, 2025 1:30pm - 2:30pm EDT
Vermont Holiday Inn By the Bay:88 Spring St, Portland, ME 04119

Program Administration, Breakout Session

1:30pm EDT

What does colonialism have to do with this? The development of a risk management microcredential for Indigenous Land Based Program practitioners

Wednesday October 1, 2025 1:30pm - 2:30pm EDT

Connecticut / Rhode Island

Through the development of a risk management micro-credential for Indigenous Land Based practitioners, two former outdoor educators turned academics critically examine mainstream wilderness risk management practices through a decolonial lens. This workshop will provide a snapshot of the micro-credential developed through Lakehead University’s school of Outdoor Recreation, Parks and Tourism, and an overview of the Indigenous land based programming context in Canada and the US. Next, we will explore our positionality as white settler Canadians working in consultation with Indigenous partners and colleagues and provide some advice and encouragement for other allies seeking to decolonize their risk management practice. Finally, through examples from our work and audience engagement, we will share what we learned, how we applied that learning, and why this work matters.

Speakers

Julie Bremner

School of Outdoor Recreation Parks and Tourism, Lakehead University

Julie’s doctoral interests stem from her long career as a field instructor for NOLS, Where There Be Dragons and similar programs in Canada. Her current work weaves a passion for supporting experiential educators to foster just, equitable, diverse, inclusive learning communities... Read More →

Gail Kuhl

Assistant Professor, Lakehead University

Gail Kuhl (she/her/they) is a settler Canadian who resides in Thunder Bay, ON, the traditional territory of the Anishnawbe people and the treaty Territory of Fort William First Nation, signatories to the Robinson-Superior Treaty of 1850. Gail is an assistant professor in the School... Read More →

Wednesday October 1, 2025 1:30pm - 2:30pm EDT
Connecticut / Rhode Island Holiday Inn By the Bay:88 Spring St, Portland, ME 04119

Program Administration, Breakout Session

3:00pm EDT

BRAINS - their differences, their needs, and how to support them

Wednesday October 1, 2025 3:00pm - 4:30pm EDT

New Hampshire

If you are looking for a workshop to update your understanding, awareness, and ability to support groups of neurodiverse people, look no further. We will dive into brain science and a brief history of neurodivergent diagnosis, we will look at best practices to support all brains in thriving in an outdoor or wilderness setting, and we will encourage participants to reflect on the ways they are supporting their participants and staff in addressing their own needs when growing our brains' capacity to tolerating and managing risk.

Speakers

Teresa Jennings

Mental Health Advisor, Cornerstone Safety Group

Teresa Jennings, LCSW, is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker based in Durango, CO. She serves as the Substance Abuse Program Manager for the Durango School District and a Mental Health Advisor for Cornerstone Safety Group. With over a decade in public education and a background in... Read More →

Margaret Kelso

Risk Management Advisor, Cornerstone Safety Group

Margaret, along with her role with Cornerstone Safety Group, is the Executive Director of Talisman Programs, a non-profit camp in Western North Carolina serving adolescents and young adults with ADHD and on the Autism spectrum. She also currently serves on the Association of Experiential... Read More →

Wednesday October 1, 2025 3:00pm - 4:30pm EDT
New Hampshire Holiday Inn By the Bay:88 Spring St, Portland, ME 04119

Program Administration, Breakout Session

8:30am EDT

Chance Favors the Prepared Mind: Purposeful Admissions for Stronger Risk Management

Thursday October 2, 2025 8:30am - 10:00am EDT

Connecticut / Rhode Island

The admissions process is a critical transition from a participant’s desire to come on your program to the reality of participation. Constructing this “on-ramp” with intention is critical to effective risk management. In this session we will: a) Provide a framework within which attendees can visualize their own admissions process, goals, and stakeholders; b) lay groundwork for drafting an admissions mission statement; c) introduce a variety of tools for tone-setting, information gathering, and customized support; and d) trace the link between the admissions process and the effective management of field incidents. This session is appropriate for any organization looking to identify essential admissions process steps and integrate their admissions and risk management systems.

Speakers

Dave Haffeman

Risk Management Director, Where There Be Dragons

Amina Simon

Admissions Director, Where There Be Dragons

Amina joined Dragons as a traveler in 2013, and is entering her 5th year as Admissions Director. Amina is dedicated to maintaining a responsive admissions process and increasing access and inclusion in cross-cultural exchange. Amina is fluent in Spanish, highly proficient in Wolof... Read More →

Thursday October 2, 2025 8:30am - 10:00am EDT
Connecticut / Rhode Island Holiday Inn By the Bay:88 Spring St, Portland, ME 04119

Program Administration, Breakout Session

8:30am EDT

Reason for hope; The Federal EXPLORE Act legislation and its impact on permitting and recreation on federal lands.

Thursday October 2, 2025 8:30am - 10:00am EDT

Vermont

For years, outdoor leaders have struggled to navigate the systems federal agencies use to issue permits for experiential education programming on public lands. Recently, after ten years of legislative advocacy, Congress passed the EXPLORE Act, an expansive new recreation law that, among other things, seeks to simplify these agency permitting systems and improve access to federal lands for guided recreation and education programs. In this session, two leading advocates for the EXPLORE Act will describe the key features of the new law with a special focus on how the law will improve the permitting process for outdoor programs. Attendees will learn about the new programming opportunities created by the EXPLORE Act and hear how they can assist their agency partners with implementation.

Speakers

Paul Sanford

Director of Equitable Access Policy, The Wilderness Society

Paul Sanford is the Director of Equitable Access Policy at The Wilderness Society, where he advocates for policies that ensure everyone benefits equitably from nature and public lands. Paul has been an attorney and public policy advocate at the federal level since 1991. He has extensive... Read More →

Matt Wade

Executive Director, American Mountain Guides Association

Matt Wade is the Executive Director of the American Mountain Guides Association. In addition to his executive responsibilities, Matt oversees AMGA’s policy advocacy work and chairs the Policy Committee of the Coalition for Outdoor Access. He has been advocating for improvements... Read More →

Thursday October 2, 2025 8:30am - 10:00am EDT
Vermont Holiday Inn By the Bay:88 Spring St, Portland, ME 04119

Program Administration, Breakout Session

10:30am EDT

How Administrative Action is Reshaping the Risk Landscape for Outdoor Recreation Service Providers

Thursday October 2, 2025 10:30am - 12:00pm EDT

New Hampshire

Rapid changes at the Federal level have created a shifting landscape for managing physical, emotional, and business risk in outdoor programs. Are you concerned about the future of your organization’s federal contracts in light of recent equity-related executive orders (EO), while weighing the risks that your organization may face if you remain committed to the principles of DEI and accessibility? Although recent administrative actions envision a grim future for equity-based programs, a growing number of federal court cases prove that your organization may be in less danger than you think. Come hear from Jahir Morris, a public policy advocate for equitable access to federal public lands, on the risks that your organization may face from equity-related administrative actions, how to minimize risks without compromising on equity goals, and what we can learn from legal challenges to equity-related EOs. Executive Orders and work by DOGE have also radically reshaped capacity for our Federal Land Managers, and will impact your organization’s risk management resources. What will you do when your permitted lands are impacted by wildfire and there aren’t enough resources to fight that fire? Or, how can you assess avalanche risk if your local USFS avalanche center is understaffed or even closed? Will political attacks on DEI impact your ability to manage emotional risk for your participants and staff? Joshua Cole, IFMGA Guide and Risk Management Consultant, will introduce systems to help assess and mitigate these seemingly ever-changing risks to your operations, staff, and participants.

Speakers

Joshua Cole

Equitable Access Policy Fellow, The Wilderness Society

Joshua Cole is an owner of North Cascades Mountain Guides, a senior risk management consultant for Experiential Consulting, and a former program director for the Northwest Outward Bound School. He is an instructor and examiner for the American Mountain Guides Association (AMGA), and... Read More →

Jahir Morris

Equitable Access Policy Fellow, The Wilderness Society

Jahir Morris is the High Meadows Fellow for Equitable Access Policy at the Wilderness Society, where he advocates for policies that guarantee safe and meaningful engagement with nature and federal public lands for everyone. Jahir is a recent graduate from Princeton University, where... Read More →

Thursday October 2, 2025 10:30am - 12:00pm EDT
New Hampshire Holiday Inn By the Bay:88 Spring St, Portland, ME 04119

Program Administration, Breakout Session

1:00pm EDT

Adventure-Ready HR: 5 Tips for Outdoor Organizations Without an HR Team

Thursday October 2, 2025 1:00pm - 2:30pm EDT

Vermont

Discover how to effectively identify and manage people-risk and tackle HR challenges, even in a complex environment without a dedicated HR professional on staff. We’ll take a practitioner’s approach, framing all our recommendations around building an equitable, accessible, and fair workplace in light of the changing legal landscape.

Speakers

Tess Carlson

Vic Kerr

Human Resources Director, Outward Bound USA

Thursday October 2, 2025 1:00pm - 2:30pm EDT
Vermont Holiday Inn By the Bay:88 Spring St, Portland, ME 04119

Program Administration, Breakout Session

3:00pm EDT

Sleeping Together Safely: How can national best practices for sexual misconduct prevention be applied to the intimate work of outdoor education?

Thursday October 2, 2025 3:00pm - 4:30pm EDT

Cumberland / Kennebec / Lincoln

In this lively, interactive workshop, we will assess your organization’s readiness to both prevent and respond to incidents of sexual misconduct and related encounters. Participants will dive deep into the Socioecological Model, a national best-practice framework on harm reduction in sexual misconduct prevention and response. Attendees will apply this comprehensive resource to their unique work in outdoor education to discern and improve their organizational readiness to respond in any related situation. For the past three years, Kroka Expeditions has partnered with a local Consultant focused on sexual misconduct readiness, Deirdre Loftus, to use this model to transform staff and student trainings, and protocols and resources to keep all bodies, minds, and hearts safe from unwanted interpersonal risk. With the right mindset, tools and support, we believe every organization can elevate their preparedness for the risk of sexual misconduct - a risk that undermines a program’s intended curriculum, significantly impacts the health and safety of community members, and threatens the viability of your organization.

Speakers

Deirdre Loftus

Consultant

Deirdre Loftus is a consultant with a decade of experience working to end sexual misconduct in and outside of the outdoor industry. Initially working in the Adirondacks, Deirdre provided sexual health education, misconduct prevention, and sexual assault counseling to rural schools... Read More →

Nathan Lyczak

Executive Director, Kroka Expeditions

Nathan Lyczak is the Executive Director of Kroka Expeditions, a non-profit wilderness education school serving more than 1,000 students each year with a unique curriculum of adventure sports, sustainable living, and community development. He has more than 30 years of experience... Read More →

Thursday October 2, 2025 3:00pm - 4:30pm EDT
Cumberland / Kennebec / Lincoln Holiday Inn By the Bay:88 Spring St, Portland, ME 04122

Program Administration, Breakout Session