Meet ENO Giving Back Partner: Outdoor Foundation

Outdoor recreation often gets portrayed as extreme - epic climbs, grueling mileage, pushing the limits. But for the Outdoor Foundation, a leading voice in youth access and outdoor participation, the outdoors is something much broader, softer, and more human.

It’s roasting s’mores around a campfire.
It’s relaxing under the trees with a good book.
It’s a quiet hammock moment with the people you love.

And that belief is exactly what makes the Outdoor Foundation and ENO such natural partners.

We sat down with Lesford Duncan, Executive Director of the Outdoor Foundation, to talk about the heart behind our partnership and the In Good Company Giving Back Hammock. From expanding outdoor access to redefining what it means to “get outside,” Lesford shared how the Outdoor Foundation’s Thrive Outside Initiative is transforming communities across the country and why this hammock design feels like a powerful, welcoming invitation for everyone to belong in nature.

Meet the Outdoor Foundation

The Outdoor Foundation was established in 2000 as an initiative of the Outdoor Industry Association to grow and inspire the next generation of diverse outdoor enthusiasts.

In its two decades of work, the Foundation has connected hundreds of thousands of young people across the country to transformative outdoor experiences, experiences that shape identity, health, community connection, and lifelong engagement.

Photo courtesy of Outdoor Foundation

Thrive Outside: A Model for Community-Led Change

Six years ago, the Outdoor Foundation launched its most ambitious effort yet: the Thrive Outside Initiative.

Instead of funding one-off programs, Thrive Outside invests in existing community networks - schools, nonprofits, health providers, recreation groups, conservation organizations, and local leaders working together toward a shared goal: to make outdoor access stronger, more inclusive, and more culturally relevant for kids and families.

Today, Thrive Outside operates in 15 communities across the country, from major cities to rural regions. And it continues to grow.

One of the newest additions is right in ENO's backyard, Thrive Outside Western North Carolina.  The goal? To rebuild and reimagine the region so outdoor recreation reflects everyone who calls it home.

“Community empowerment is at the heart of Thrive Outside,” Duncan says.
“It means elevating voices, stories, and outdoor experiences that haven’t always been included in traditional outdoor narratives.”

Why ENO and Outdoor Foundation Joined Forces

ENO and the Outdoor Foundation share a common belief, that there are countless joyful, meaningful ways to get outside.

Hiking, fishing, picnicking, camping, hammocking, stargazing… none is more “outdoorsy” than the other.

“The goal of this partnership is to expand the many ways people recreate in the outdoors,” Duncan explains. “We want to expand the narrative beyond peak-bagging to include rest, relaxation, and simple joy.”

ENO's new DoubleNest Hammock Print, In Good Company, was designed to reflect that story.

The Story Behind the In Good Company Hammock

The artwork for the hammock, created by illustrator Carly Berry, celebrates a wide range of people, ages, backgrounds, locations, and abilities, and how they enjoy time outside. It is a tapestry of belonging. The more you look, the more you see: fishing, hiking, camping, gardening, picnicking, stargazing, and sharing time with friends. 

“This design really embodies and captures the many diverse ways that people get outdoors,” Duncan says. “It represents inclusion in a really powerful way.”

His favorite element? A group of friends gathered outside under the stars.

“It brings me back to some of the most powerful moments in my life, sitting around a campfire, having good conversations, making s’mores. I make a mean s’more.”

The hammock is meant to feel like that memory: warm, joyful, shared.

What We Hope You Feel When You Lie in This Hammock

Duncan doesn’t hesitate. “I hope you feel hugged.”

More than comfort, he hopes people see themselves reflected in the artwork, 
their hobbies, their style, their people, their way of being outside.

Because when individuals see themselves in the outdoors, something transformative happens, they return, they repeat, they belong.

And that belonging is exactly what Thrive Outside is trying to grow nationwide.

How In Good Company DoubleNest Hammock Print Supports Real Impact

Proceeds from the In Good Company Hammock directly support the Thrive Outside Initiative, including its newest network in Western North Carolina.

This funding helps:

• Expand community-led outdoor programs

• Increase access for youth and families in 15+ Thrive Outside communities

• Support collaboration between schools, nonprofits, and recreation partners

• Rebuild outdoor infrastructure in more inclusive ways

• Help children develop lifelong, positive relationships with nature

Belonging Is a Powerful Outdoor Skill

Outdoor Foundation’s work is built on a simple truth: People are more likely to return to nature when they feel welcomed in it. The Thrive Outside model helps make that welcome possible. The In Good Company Hammock helps carry that message forward.

And together, ENO and the Outdoor Foundation are continuing to expand what outdoor recreation looks like, because however you enjoy nature, you’re In Good Company.