Category: Access Nature Forums

Your donation can open the outdoors.

A gift to Nature: Accessible for All can help provide adaptive wheelchairs, improve accessible trails, expand beach and water access, enhance sensory experiences, and create inclusive outdoor programs for people with disabilities.

Every contribution helps remove a barrier.

Every improvement creates an opportunity.

Every opportunity brings someone closer to nature.

Help us build a New Jersey where everyone can explore, experience, and enjoy the outdoors.

Join us at Soirée Under the Stars and help expand the Nature: Accessible for All initiative

Get your ticket – Soiree Under the Stars – Nature: Accessible for All

What happens when we make room for everyone in nature?

People explore.
Families connect.
Communities grow.
Possibilities expand.

Through Nature: Accessible for All, we are making New Jersey’s outdoor spaces more inclusive and accessible. From accessible trails and boardwalks to beach wheelchairs, adaptive recreation, sensory trails, inclusive playgrounds, and accessible fishing and boating opportunities.

This work is happening because people, organizations, volunteers, and land managers are coming together with one shared belief: The outdoors should be accessible to everyone.

Join us for Soiree Under the Stars to celebrate the progress, honor the partnerships, and look toward what comes next.

Get your ticket today – https://www.accessnaturenj.org/soiree-under-the-stars/]

Spotlight 🔆

The Pemberton Lake Trail features an accessible, obstacle-free surface, gentle slopes and cross-slopes, widened trail areas, pedestrian gate access, and two boardwalk sections through the wetlands. Designed with mobility in mind, the trail makes it easier for more people to get outside, explore, and enjoy the beauty of Pemberton Lake.

This would not have been possible without the support of advocates, donors, and activists. Want to make more trails accessible for all in New Jersey?

Join us for Soiree Under the Stars to celebrate the progress, honor the partnerships, and look toward what comes next. If you can’t attend this event, you can support this effort by sharing with your contacts, donating or sponsoring which can allow us to provide reduced rate tickets to those who can’t afford to attend. We appreciate any help you can provide.

Donate, and get your ticket today! https://www.accessnaturenj.org/soiree-under-the-stars/]

The New Jersey Healthy Communities Network has announced the launch of the New Jersey Healthy Communities Network (NJHCN) Community Grants Program Request for Proposals.
Since 2011, the New Jersey Healthy Communities Network (NJHCN) has brought together local, regional, and statewide partners to support community-driven initiatives that improve health and well-being where people live, learn, work, and play. The NJHCN funding collaborative provides grants to community-based organizations to implement projects that strengthen community health, advance equity, and address priority areas identified across New Jersey, including:
• Maternal, Paternal, Caregiver, and Child Health (priority will be given to Baby Cafe applications)
• Mental Health and Wellness
• Community Food Systems
• Healthy Environments for Active Living
• Other (Community-Identified Need)

Funding for this grant cycle is in partnership with the Partners for Health Foundation. Eligible organizations must serve one or more of the following 15 communities: Bloomfield, Caldwell, Cedar Grove, Clifton, Essex Fells, Fairfield, Glen Ridge, Little Falls, Montclair, North Caldwell, Nutley, Roseland, Verona, West Caldwell, and West Orange. Statewide organizations that support local coalitions or advocate for statewide policy change to advance health equity and social justice may also apply.
Partners can begin submitting grant proposals on July 30, 2026, via the link below. The application period will close on September 15, 2026.

Application Link: https://go.rutgers.edu/pmhef502

Congress is currently debating an updated Farm Bill, and the Appalachian Trail Conservancy is asking land preservation advocates to contact their Members of Congress to support passing this important legislation.

Updated every five years, the Farm Bill typically contains a range of rural development, conservation, and forestry programs that benefit the trail landscape and hiking experiences in the outdoors.

Learn more about how this legislation benefits the Trail and its landscape, and let your members of Congress know you support an updated bipartisan Farm Bill – Here.

Join The Nature Conservancy in New Jersey to discuss how digital and on-site updates can make outdoor spaces, communication and programming more accessible to wider audiences, especially people from emerging communities. We covered topics such as relevant accessibility guidelines, the importance of easily accessible information, and both minor and major physical upgrades along with real-life examples of each.