Title: 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".
Policy area: Environmental Protection

Summary:
This resolution supports the designation of Latino Conservation Week.

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 1235 Introduced in House (IH)]

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117th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. RES. 1235

 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 20, 2022

 Ms. Barragan (for herself, Mr. Espaillat, Mr. San Nicolas, Ms. Ocasio-
  Cortez, Mrs. Napolitano, Mr. Gomez, Mr. Gallego, Mr. Cardenas, Ms. 
     Escobar, Mr. Ruiz, and Mr. Grijalva) 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 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 communitywide public events, private events, 
        film screenings, discussions, 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 twice as likely to die from 
        asthma attacks 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) provides 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

    (3) helps mitigate climate change, extreme heat, and air pollution, and 
can aid economic recovery;

Whereas communities of color in the United States are 3 times as likely as White 
        communities to live in nature-deprived 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 84 percent of Latino voters in the West, and 89 percent in the 
        Chesapeake region, agree that the United States should create new 
        national parks, national monuments, national wildlife refuges, and 
        Tribal protected areas to protect historic sites or areas for outdoor 
        recreation;
Whereas 87 percent of Latino voters in the West, and 89 percent in the 
        Chesapeake region, support setting a national goal of conserving 30 
        percent of United States land, waters, and ocean by the year 2030;
Whereas 89 percent of Latino voters in the Chesapeake region support the 
        creation of new marine sanctuaries to protect ocean waters and wildlife;
Whereas 92 percent of Latino voters support addressing the backlog of 
        infrastructure repairs, reducing risk of wildfires, and natural resource 
        protection on national public lands such as national parks by providing 
        jobs and training to unemployed people;
Whereas Latinos are the largest minority group in America, with over 60,500,000 
        people making up 18 percent of the Nation's population, and are 
        projected to become nearly one-third of the population by 2050;
Whereas 4,400,000 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
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) recognizes the Latino community's commitment to 
        conservation and the importance of access to nature and getting 
        outdoors;
            (2) recognizes that the future of public lands depends on 
        engaging and welcoming diverse youth and Latino communities 
        that already deeply care about the environment and feel a moral 
        obligation to take care of it; and
            (3) supports the designation of ``Latino Conservation 
        Week''.
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