Community activist/nature specialist, Outdoor Afro, Oakland, California outdoorafro.com
As CEO and Founder of Outdoor Afro, Rue Mapp’s main aim is to reconnect African Americans and others from culturally diverse backgrounds with the great outdoors. To that end, with the support of leading outdoor retailers, national nonprofits and park agencies, she has launched a national team of outdoor leaders who design nature experiences that speak to the values and history of thousands of men and women of all ages.
Since creating Outdoor Afro in 2009, Mapp has published hundreds of blog entries and has been widely quoted in many publications, including Grist, Outside, High Country News, Audubon, Jet, and Ebony. Her innovative leadership has been recognized by the Obama Administration, the Outdoor Retail industry, the National Wildlife Federation, and Backpacker magazine. Mapp is on the 2012 Root 100 List of Most Influential African Americans; is a NewsOne 2013 Game Changer; received the prestigious National Wildlife Federation award for communications; and was featured in the 2014 Camping edition of Sunset, among many other distinctions. She holds a BA from U.C. Berkeley and is the proud mother of three active children.