Photo courtesy of Sergio Avila
I grew up attending conferences from an early age. My father, an allergologist and medical school professor in Zacatecas, Mexico, attended conferences to present on his research and clinical observations of seasonal allergies. Sometimes he used photos of me showing the typical symptoms and reactions of allergies. I felt comfortable in these spaces because I had a role model in my father, my pictures were part of the science, and I was somewhat familiar with the topic. As a kid, I dreamed of becoming a big-cat biologist; I achieved my dream thanks to the support of my scientist-parents, and my curiosity and willingness to move to where jobs were available.
In my college years I attended scientific conferences on wildlife research and conservation. I remember traveling by bus all night to attend my first "wildlife management" conference in 1991 in Mexico and my first time presenting at a conference in English in 2000. I was nervous, but I also had something in common with the other scientists there. I met authors of the scientific papers and books I had read in college, but I had no connection to them other than their interesting research or presentation.
Last year I attended the Outdoor Retailer Show -- a massive meeting of the outdoor recreation industry, in Denver, Colorado. Despite the fact that we all worked in the "outdoors," I struggled to find a connection with the people attending (a predominantly white, male, dude audience), how “stoked” they were about skiing and rock climbing, or any of their other interests. I did not belong there, and trying to fit in was extremely difficult. Connecting with an audience that sees nature as a playground ("outdoor recreation") was difficult, contrasting with my understanding of the environment as "home’" -- not just a place to play, but to live, learn, interact with, and care for.
Obviously I’m a seasoned conference attendee and presenter. But I never knew what an "affinity-based" conference could be until I attended PGM ONE. At the People of the Global Majority for the Outdoors, Nature and Environment summit (PGM ONE) in Oakland last year, I met and connected with friends, not "colleagues.’" PGM One is an affinity-specific space for people of color/of the global majority with the mission to “convene emerging and established professionals of color/the global majority who work in the environmental and outdoor movement to share, learn, collaborate, heal, celebrate, build community, find support, and sharpen their analysis of racial equity in their fields.” At this conference, I didn’t have a research topic or discipline in common with other attendees, but we had so much more that connected us personally, through time, generations, and our families’ histories: our identities. In this space, I didn’t have to describe my degree or publications to gain credibility. My knowledge and experience were not "peer-reviewed"; instead life experiences were shared. This made me realize I belonged in that group and space, and how much I’ve been trying to fit in in other spaces for almost two decades.
Sergio and his Sierra Club homies at PGM ONE in 2018
At PGM ONE I met friends for life, not so-called "experts." These friendships were based on identity, culture, language, and relationships, not publications, statistics, or methodologies. I was met with trust and acceptance, not "peer-reviewed."
I can’t wait to go back to PGM ONE this year and reconnect with old friends and meet new ones. I’m excited for the genuine learning opportunities and shared experiences, and for the expanded network of support of wonderful people breaking paradigms, creating new narratives, and giving a voice to those who have been quieted. And I am happy to bring my full self -- my emotions, doubts and pain, to a safe space where I belong and feel connected.