IV 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. RES. 601 

Recognizing the importance of engagement with the Latino community to 

get into the outdoors and participate in activities to protect United 

States natural resources, and expressing support for the designation 

of the third week of July as ‘‘Latino Conservation Week’’. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 19, 2023 

Ms. BARRAGA ́N (for herself, Mr. ESPAILLAT, Mr. CA ́RDENAS, Mr. SOTO, Ms. 

SALINAS, Mr. CORREA, Mr. COSTA, Ms. ESCOBAR, Mr. FROST, Mr. 

GALLEGO, Mr. GOMEZ, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. LEVIN, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, 

Ms. OCASIO-CORTEZ, Mr. VARGAS, Ms. VELA ́ZQUEZ, and Mr. GARCI ́A of 

Illinois) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the 

Committee on Natural Resources 

RESOLUTION 

Recognizing the importance of engagement with the Latino 

community to get into the outdoors and participate in 

activities to protect United States natural resources, and 

expressing support for the designation of the third week 

of July as ‘‘Latino Conservation Week’’. 

Whereas ‘‘Latino Conservation Week’’ was created by the 

Hispanic Access Foundation to support the Latino community getting into the outdoors and participating in activities to protect United States natural resources; 

Whereas, during this week, Latino community, nonprofit, 

faith-based, and government organizations and agencies 


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•HRES 601 IH 

across the United States will go on hiking or camping 

outings in National Conservation Lands, national monuments, and parks and other public lands, learn about 

conservation efforts in their community, and show their 

support for permanently protecting United States land, 

water, and air; 

Whereas local activities include community-wide public 

events, private events, film screenings, discussion, ground 

hikes, birdwatching, picnics, neighborhood cleanups, and 

more; 

Whereas national monument designations celebrate the 

Latino community’s contribution to this country, contribute to local economies, and provide beautiful spaces 

for outdoor recreation; 

Whereas 78 percent of Latinos say they have directly experienced the effects of climate change; 

Whereas two-thirds of Latinos say air pollution and contaminants in drinking water are serious threats to the health 

of their families; 

Whereas Latino children in the United States are 40 percent 

more likely to die from asthma than their White counterparts, in part due to the disproportionate pollution burdens their communities are exposed to; 

Whereas Latinos are more likely to lack access to health insurance and thus are less able to treat health ailments 

caused by exposure to poor air quality; 

Whereas access to natural spaces— 

(1) provide mental and physical health benefits; 

(2) can save almost three dollars in health care on 

every dollar spent on creating and maintaining park 

trails; and 


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•HRES 601 IH 

(3) helps mitigate climate change and can aid economic recovery; 

Whereas communities of color in the United States are 3 

times as likely as White communities to live in naturedeprived places, which means there are far fewer parks, 

forests, streams, beaches, and other natural places near 

Black, Latino, and Asian communities; 

Whereas Latinos are 21 percent more likely than non-Hispanic Whites to live in urban heat islands, or areas dominated by asphalt and concrete without access to parks 

that provide shade for urban cooling; 

Whereas public lands are a key component of the Latino 

identity, and they weave a narrative of the diverse and 

complex history of the Nation; 

Whereas Latinos are the largest minority group in America, 

with over 62.5 million people making up 19 percent of 

the Nation’s population and are projected to become 

nearly one-third of the population by 2050; 

Whereas 4.4 million Latinos participate in fishing, averaging 

more outings per year than the general fishing population; 

Whereas all communities should have equitable access to 

nearby green space, the ability to reach it, and features 

that honor and welcome diverse languages, inclusive histories, and uses of parkland; and 

Whereas the third week of July is an appropriate week to 

designate as Latino Conservation Week: Now, therefore 

be it 

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 


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•HRES 601 IH 

1 (1) recognizes the Latino community’s commit2 ment to conservation and the importance of getting 

3 outdoors; 

4 (2) recognizes the future of public lands de5 pends on engaging and welcoming our diverse youth 

6 and Latino communities that already deeply care 

7 about our environment and feel a moral obligation to 

8 take care of it; and 

9 (3) supports the designation of ‘‘Latino Con10 servation Week’’. 

Æ 


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