Refugee Women’s Network & the Georgia Conservancy Partner on New Hiking Group

Welcome to Georgia! During Spring 2021, in an effort to introduce some of our state’s newest residents to Georgia’s most precious natural areas and outdoor recreation destinations, the Georgia Conservancy partnered with Refugee Women’s Network (RWN) on a brand new monthly hiking program.

Refugee Women’s Network is an Atlanta, Georgia-based non-profit that serves refugees resettled in the state of Georgia by inspiring refugee and immigrant women and equipping them with the resources to become leaders in their homes, businesses, and communities. For more than 20 years, Refugee Women’s Network remains the only organization in Georgia that specifically serves refugee women.

SUMMIT OF PINE MOUNTAIN IN BARTOW CO. BY ILEANA YUSTIS

The Women’s Hiking Program, the newest program from Refugee Women’s Network, seeks to promote physical and mental health, community integration, and environmental stewardship for a group of women survivors of war, conflict, and displacement. Through this community-based program, diverse participants traditionally underrepresented in the outdoor experience have built confidence, developed a sense of belonging, and established positive relationships with peers and community members within the natural spaces of their new Georgia home.

The Women’s Hiking Program is entering its third year in 2023.

“In my observation, most of the refugees and immigrant communities tend to live in silos where there is minimal interaction between peers from other cultures,” says Refugee Women’s Network Executive Director Sushma Barakoti. “The Women's Hiking Group brings together women from different communities to not only hike and enjoy Georgia's outdoor together but to build camaraderie and develop an understanding of each other's cultures.”

The Georgia Conservancy has coordinated with RWN on planning, logistics, and resources for the monthly hikes in metro Atlanta and North Georgia. The series began with educational hikes in local parks, gradually building in difficulty until the hikers were ready to climb mountains. In its first two years, the Women’s Hiking Group has completed 20 hikes exploring Sweetwater Creek State Park, Davidson-Arabia Mountain Nature Preserve, Cascade Springs Nature Preserve, Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park, the West Palisades and Vickery Creek Units of the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area, Tallulah Gorge State Park, and Pine Mountain in Bartow County.

During the second year of the program, the Georgia Conservancy has helped support the Women’s Hiking Group by facilitating a first-time camping experience during our annual Cloudland Canyon Adventure Weekend, organized a service project at Panola Mountain State Park, and helped with a Paddling 101 experience at Fort Yargo State Park with REI.

“It is an honor for the Georgia Conservancy to partner with Refugee Women's Network on this very important initiative,” says Georgia Conservancy President Katherine Moore. “A key part of our mission is to ensure that all Georgians have a voice in the protection of our environment and access to enjoy that environment. By helping to introduce our newest residents to the natural wonders of Georgia, we are welcoming their voices as stewards and outdoor enthusiasts.”

With more than five decades of experience leading educational trips that showcase Georgia’s great outdoors and build advocates for our environment, the Georgia Conservancy has been excited to lend its support for RWN’s Women’s Hiking Group.

“Hiking and the outdoors made me a better and healthier person,” says Nahid, an immigrant from Iran who found social integration through hiking when she moved to Georgia ten years ago. “When I go to nature I feel relaxed and forget all my problems and give them to nature, then go back home happier and stronger. Nature is medicine.”

Nahid joined the Women’s Hiking Group as a volunteer mentor and resource for participants as they explore their new home.

“When I was talking on the hikes it helped me with English, speaking and listening,” adds Nahid. “Because hikers are from all over the world, I became more familiar with other cultures. When we hike, we have enough time to enjoy nature and also enjoy the company of others. I found most of my best friends through my hiking friends. I learned from them everything I needed as a newcomer. We are addicted to nature and hiking.”

To learn more about the Women’s Hiking Group and to follow along on this year’s journey in Georgia’s great outdoors, please visit: www.refugeewomensnetworkinc.org/rwnhiking

To learn more about the work of Refugee Women’s Network, please visit: www.refugeewomensnetworkinc.org

To learn more about the work of the Georgia Conservancy, please visit: www.georgiaconservancy.org

Click here to read an October 2021 AJC article on the Women’s Hiking Group.

Enjoy this segment on the Women’s Hiking Group from PBS’s This American Land, beginning at minute 11:35