FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 28, 2026
Human Rights Alliance Launches Project THRIVE with $39,700 New Mexico Outdoor Equity Fund Award
New year-long initiative will support the well-being, belonging, and leadership of LGBTQ+ youth across Northern New Mexico
SANTA FE, N.M. — Human Rights Alliance (HRA) has been awarded $39,700 from the New Mexico Outdoor Equity Fund to launch Project THRIVE: Healing in Nature, a year-long outdoor program designed to strengthen the well-being, confidence, belonging, and leadership of LGBTQ+ youth across Northern New Mexico.
Healing in Nature is one of five interconnected pathways that make up Project THRIVE, HRA’s new year-long youth development and healing initiative. The five pathways are Mental Wellness; Healing Arts & Creative Expression; Healing in Nature; Belonging & Community; and Leadership & Empowerment.
“Project THRIVE represents an important next step in how we support LGBTQ+ young people in Northern New Mexico,” said Kevin Bowen, Executive Director of Human Rights Alliance. “We want young people to have more than a place to turn when they are struggling. We want them to have opportunities to build friendships, discover their strengths, experience joy and belonging, and ultimately become leaders in their communities.”
The Outdoor Equity Fund award will support 20 LGBTQ+ youth ages 15–18 through a year-long progression of guided outdoor experiences. Activities will include hiking, camping, environmental stewardship, Leave No Trace education, wildlife observation, outdoor photography, mindfulness in nature, journaling, navigation and map reading, campfire cooking, team-building activities, and snowshoeing when conditions permit.
Activities will take place on public lands, in state parks, national forests and open spaces throughout Northern New Mexico. HRA will remove many of the financial and logistical barriers that can prevent young people from participating in outdoor recreation by providing transportation, equipment, meals, activity costs, and professional guidance at no cost to participants.
HRA is working with Great Southwest Adventures as a key partner in developing the outdoor component of Project THRIVE.
The program is intended not simply to introduce young people to outdoor recreation, but to help them develop a lasting relationship with New Mexico’s natural environment while strengthening resilience, confidence, peer relationships and leadership skills.
The $39,700 award is part of a statewide Outdoor Equity Fund investment supporting 54 programs and more than 17,000 young people across New Mexico. The fund is administered by the New Mexico Outdoor Recreation Division and was created to expand equitable access to outdoor recreation for young people, particularly those who have historically faced financial and other barriers to participating.
For HRA, Healing in Nature also marks the beginning of a longer youth-development pathway. As Project THRIVE develops, participants will have opportunities to progress from participant to creator, contributor, peer mentor and youth leader, with future connections to outdoor workforce development through HRA’s developing OUTbound initiatives.
“Ultimately, we want young people who were once seeking community to become the people who create it,” Bowen said.
HRA expects to begin recruiting participants for the 2027 Project THRIVE cohort in the coming months. Young people, parents and caregivers, educators, counselors and community organizations interested in learning more may contact Kevin Bowen at .
About Project THRIVE
Project THRIVE is a year-long Human Rights Alliance initiative designed to strengthen the well-being, belonging, confidence, and leadership of LGBTQ+ youth in Northern New Mexico. Through five interconnected pathways—Mental Wellness, Healing Arts & Creative Expression, Healing in Nature, Belonging & Community, and Leadership & Empowerment—young people build relationships, develop skills, and discover opportunities to become leaders in their communities.
About Human Rights Alliance
Founded in 1993, Human Rights Alliance advances equity and opportunity for LGBTQ+ individuals and families throughout Northern New Mexico through advocacy, education, direct services, and community building. HRA operates the PRIDE Center in Santa Fe and provides year-round programs supporting mental wellness, youth, older adults, community connection, and economic opportunity.