Meet Diversify Outdoors Member Parker Bushman AKA Kween Werk
“I had a love for the environment, but I didn’t think that I was outdoorsy, because I wasn’t represented.”
Parker McMullen Bushman aka KWEEN WERK (she/they) is a Social Justice Activist, Anti-Racism Educator, Environmentalist, Speaker, Artist, and Diversify Outdoors Member. When asked about why they got into environmentalism, Parker recalled an almost innate love for the environment from a young age. Parker recounted how she once sent a letter of concern to the New York Times regarding the amount of trash strewn throughout the streets in their neighborhood compared to the cleaner, neater streets of rich white neighborhoods. Fast forward to present day, and Parker holds an MS in Natural Resources with a focus on environmental education and interpretation.
Their work is driven by the understanding that there is a lack of representation in environmentalism and conservation fields, as well as in the outdoors in general. “Not everyone is at the table when we’re having these conversations about climate change, about how we can make changes within our communities and cities. Until we have everyone at the table, we’re not going to achieve change.” The history of environmentalism is steeped in racism, with many issues still facing the industry today. Parker aims to educate folks on the intersection of these issues so that everyone feels represented in the outdoors and in environmental sciences.
Parker is not only using her skillset to educate people and save the planet, but she’s also building an incredibly useful tool that will make traveling safer for BIPOC and other underrepresented groups. Inclusive Guide, co-founded by Bushman, is a digital platform that allows users to share and review welcoming and inclusive places they’ve visited. During a recent cross-country road trip, Parker reaffirmed how necessary a guide like this is. “We got into some situations that were kind of scary”, Parker noted before describing an incident that involved being followed by an SUV through a campground while they were walking alone. Everyone deserves to feel safe while traveling and accessing outdoor spaces but in many areas, there is still much work to be done.
Parker has also become a voice for the LGBTQ+ community, publicly coming out through social media, despite internal fears of not being accepted. “There is so much that goes into it. The way that society views you, the way that you view yourself. Am I queer enough?” A question that many folks in the community ask themselves, especially with so much bisexual and pansexual erasure, which can be just as prevalent in the queer community as it is in the rest of society. Basically, Parker aka KWEEN WERK is an icon on so many different levels. They are not afraid of being themselves and will fight for other people to have that right and feel that way too. Continue the conversation by educating folks in your community about the issues in environmentalism and conservation. Follow @KWEENWERK and join the @InclusiveGuide to be a part of the movement.
