Resource Category: Advocacy, Outreach & Education

Organizational Summary

Inclusive Healthy Communities (IHC) grant program was established in 2021 by the Division of Disability Services, New Jersey Department of Human Services.

The program funds New Jersey communities and organizations engaged in initiatives that promote the well-being of individuals with disabilities in the communities where they live. Supporting projects that partner with the disability community to enhance accessibility, health, and equity. Initiatives supported by the IHC program serve as a model and inspiration for long-term change and focus on policy, systems, and environmental change that shape the way we live, work, and play.

Organizational Summary

Trust for Public Land creates parks and protects land for people, ensuring healthy livable communities for generations to come. We envision an America where all communities can connect to nature, near and far. From neighborhood parks to national parks, Trust for Public Land partners with communities to plan their conservation priorities, fund their visions for their landscapes, protect the lands and waters they value, and create the parks, gardens, and trails they need to thrive. Our work results in cleaner air and water, healthier bodies and neighborhoods, and increased resilience and livability for humans and wildlife. Trust for Public Land has been connecting New Jersey communities to the outdoors – and to each other – for over 30 years. To date, we have preserved nearly 30,000 acres, made possible 220 active or completed projects, and brought a park or natural area to within a 10-minute walk of over 322,000 people across the Garden State.

Organizational Summary

The Appalachian Mountain Club (AMC) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to connecting people to the outdoors. Founded in 1876, AMC is the nation’s longest serving conservation and recreation organization. Protecting natural resources and outdoor experiences from Maine to Virginia drives everything we do. Our overarching priorities include understanding and addressing climate change; protecting land, air, and water; and creating and caring for trails to foster access to the outdoors.

AMC’s expertise in trail construction, campsite planning and management, and mapping services reflects more than a century of experience. We pair the most current understanding of sustainable trail design with techniques that we’ve honed and refined for trails throughout the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic. AMC provides a wide range of professional trail building services to all land managers and landowners, from bridge construction and campsite development to trail maintenance, design, and planning. Whether it’s front country or backcountry work, our AMC professional crews can help you complete your project.

The Appalachian Mountain Club’s Trail Training Program delivers hands-on trail maintenance training and professional trail skills workshops at AMC sites across the Northeast, and on-site with partner agencies. Through events like AMC’s Trail Skills College and youth-focused programs, AMC is growing a knowledgeable, connected trail community—equipping the next generation of stewards with the tools to care for the outdoors.

Here is a link to the New Jersey-New York Chapter – The Appalachian Mountain Club of New York-North Jersey – Be Outdoors

Here is a link to the Delaware Valley ( Southern NJ) Chapter – Appalachian Mountain Club Delaware Valley Chapter (AMC-DV)

Organizational Summary

The coalition was established in 2009 and is the only state-wide advocacy organization for bicyclists and pedestrians. The NJBWC is a collective voice for everyone who believes that a safer, more rideable and walkable New Jersey means a more livable, equitable, and sustainable New Jersey.

This non-profit partners with clubs, advocacy groups, and local, regional, and state agencies and is supported by numerous sponsors dedicated to safe, accessible outdoor recreation. The organization is recognized by both the League of American Bicyclists and the Alliance for Biking & Walking as the state bicycle and pedestrian advocacy organization for New Jersey.

They are dedicated to:

PROTECTING the rights and safety of New Jersey bicyclists and walkers
PROMOTING bicycling and walking for fun, fitness, and transportation
EDUCATING bicyclists, walkers, and drivers about our rights and responsibilities
CONNECTING our communities with a smarter transportation system

Organizational Summary

Federally authorized through the Developmental Disabilities Act as a self-governing organization, the New Jersey Council on Developmental Disabilities is charged with identifying the most pressing needs of people with developmental disabilities and their families in New Jersey, and advancing public policy and systems change activities that support the community we serve. The mission of the NJCDD is to champion and advance advocacy, systems change, and capacity-building activities that honor the rich diversity of people with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities (I/DD) and their families in creating structural change with lasting impact that promotes self-determination, community integration, and inclusion. To learn more about NJCDD, visit http://www.njcdd.org

Organizational Summary

The goal of the Northeast ADA Center is to educate and empower all stakeholders throughout New York, New Jersey, Puerto Rico, and the US Virgin Islands to increase their knowledge of the ADA and to support them to include people with disabilities in local communities, and to implement the ADA in their own lives, workplaces, businesses, and communities.

The Northeast ADA Center is a member of the ADA National Network, which is funded by the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR grant). They provide information, guidance, and training on implementation of all aspects of the ADA. The center is located at the Yang-Tan Institute in the ILR School at Cornell University. Staff consists of individuals with and without disabilities who have extensive experience in the disability field.