Side Quest Overland

You’ve meticulously planned your next backcountry trip. The maps are printed, your gear list is set, and you’re eyeing that ultralight tent that would shave a pound off your pack weight. But when you check the price, you do a double-take. Did this tent really cost $100 less last year? While inflation and supply chain disruptions have played their roles, another force is silently reshaping the price of your gear: tariffs . These hidden economic policies don’t just affect your wallet—they’re also influencing the sustainability movement in outdoor gear . As gear prices climb and manufacturers rethink supply chains, outdoor enthusiasts face an important question: Will tariffs push the industry toward sustainability, or make eco-conscious gear even harder to access? Understanding Tariffs: How Policy Meets the Outdoors Tariffs are taxes imposed on imported goods, meant to protect domestic industries and encourage local manufacturing. However, for the outdoor industry—where cutting-edge mat...

  The Importance of Outdoor Education at an Early Age... is beyond the sights, smells, and sounds of the outdoors. It is where we can expand our palette beyond the technology we are exposed to for hours on end. But sadly, many children today are growing up disconnected from nature. They spend more time indoors, in front of screens, than outdoors, in contact with living things. They miss out on the benefits of outdoor education, which can help them develop a variety of skills and traits that are essential for their well-being and future success. Outdoor education refers to education that occurs outside of a classroom. It can take many forms and settings, such as nature-based learning, place-based learning, forest schools, environmental education or experiential learning. It can happen in green spaces, on playgrounds, on school grounds, in nearby natural environments, gardens or any other accessible place in the community. Outdoor education has many benefits for children, from cognit...