CWA Blog Archive-Where To Begin With Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion Initiatives

Where To Begin With Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion Initiatives

Pdf Summary

This article offers an approachable starting point for gyms wanting to incorporate diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, addressing the industry's growing conversation about what it will take to get more people tied in and how to make climbing more accessible to a larger, more diverse audience. Its reassuring premise is that if you know where to begin, incorporating DEI is more approachable than you might think. The featured first step is to offer basic instruction. The article centers the perspective of Kriste Peoples, who instructs Women's Wilderness' Girls Lead for Life program, a weekly after-school climbing and leadership program for girls. Peoples recounts her own intimidating entry into climbing: when she first walked into a gym, it looked like everybody else automatically knew what they were doing, and she never saw any promotion saying if you're new to climbing, we'll show you the ropes, which feeds the notion that climbing is really exclusive. As a beginner she didn't know much about what gear she needed or how to tie a figure-eight, and felt intimidated by the lack of information available for newbies. Her insight: offering a short class, even a free community night, on how to tie in would have gone a long way (the text continues into further DEI starting points). The throughline is that meaningful DEI work can start with accessible, concrete steps like offering basic instruction, because much of climbing's perceived exclusivity stems from newcomers feeling intimidated and unsupported, and simple welcoming gestures can meaningfully lower barriers. Through Kriste Peoples' firsthand account, the article illuminates how the absence of beginner-friendly guidance, no visible promotion welcoming newcomers, no easy way to learn basics like tying a figure-eight, makes climbing feel exclusive and intimidating to those who don't already belong. The remedy is refreshingly achievable: offering basic instruction, even a free community night teaching fundamentals like how to tie in, signals that beginners are welcome and demystifies the sport. This reframes DEI from an overwhelming abstract challenge into practical, doable actions. For operators, the article argues that DEI initiatives needn't be daunting, they can begin with concrete, welcoming steps like accessible basic instruction that directly address the intimidation and lack of information keeping diverse newcomers away, making climbing genuinely more approachable and inclusive one practical gesture at a time.

Asset Caption

This piece offers an approachable starting point for gym DEI initiatives: offer basic instruction. Through instructor Kriste Peoples' account of feeling intimidated as a newcomer who didn't know how to tie a figure-eight, it shows how climbing's perceived exclusivity stems from unsupported beginners, and how a simple welcoming gesture like a free intro night meaningfully lowers barriers.