As camp professionals, we know all about camp magic — that feeling where connection to the outdoors, your peers, your mentors, and true belonging all mixes together. We’ve seen many young people have that experience in our programs, and many of us would say that’s the most rewarding part of the job.
I would like to share one such moment. In 2021, a counselor-in-training (CIT) was dropped off at camp — we’ll call her Ashley for this story. Ashley, who also happened to be transgender, didn’t realize what her family had signed her up for, and she felt out of place and nervous right away. But one early moment changed that: her counselor asked that folks share their pronouns during introductions if they were comfortable. She did share pronouns, and her preferred (not legal) name with the group, and staff and peers used them faithfully during her time at camp.
I watched as a camper who felt scared, uncertain, and alone blossom into a confident CIT, leading groups with ease, getting super into theme day (make-up look and all) and leading songs for campers. On the final day of camp, she asked me to use her preferred name and pronouns when calling her for pick up on the radio. I asked if that was safe to do in front of her family, and she shared, “They know who I am — now they need to get used to it! It’s safe.”
I proudly called her by that name, and she got into the car beaming: a camper transformed by the power of small moments of belonging.
I like to share that story because it so clearly shows how the choices we, camp professionals, make to create belonging can help a camper who is disconnected and afraid experience their first taste of camp magic. It’s these intentional choices that make camp magic real. It's not just something we feel — it’s a spell we cast together. To cast this spell for all youth, we must consider the needs of gender nonbinary and transgender campers and staff.
A First-of-Its-Kind Study on Gender Identity and Camp
While Camp Fire was America’s first multiracial, multicultural, and nonsectarian organization for girls (founded in 1910 as Camp Fire Girls), it opened its programming to all genders in 1975. Because of this core vision, and the journey we have been on, we’ve continued to be an inclusive leader in camp and recreation programs. We believe that young people of all genders need spaces to connect with themselves, others, and the outdoors.
We also know that a majority of young people say that they see gender as a spectrum, instead of a binary male/female identity, and 60 percent of Gen Zers believe that there should be an option besides "man" or "woman" on forms that ask about gender. This shift in how our culture perceives, communicates, and celebrates gender continues to influence how camp programs operate and provide safe spaces for campers to enjoy today.
This led to Camp Fire exploring the question:
Which, in turn, led to a year-long, first-of-its-kind study at two of our overnight camps, engaging nonbinary and transgender youth and their caregivers following their summer camp experience. We partnered with Dr. Kia Darling-Hammond for this study, a leading educator, psychologist, and researcher with a focus on thriving and human development.
What we found was that, because of the intentional and affirming spaces that Camp Fire created, young people received high levels of belonging, community, sense of relief, and pleasure and joy during their time at camp.
Intentional Spaces for Youth Thriving
We know creating inclusive spaces with supportive adults matters because it literally saves lives. According to Trevor Project’s recent research, “LGBTQ young people who had accepting adults in their lives reported significantly lower odds of attempting suicide compared to those who did not.” Other research from the Trevor Project shows that transgender and nonbinary young people who had access to gender-affirming clothing, gender-neutral bathrooms at school, and had their pronouns respected by the people they live with had lower rates of attempting suicide compared to those who did not.
But these practices don’t just benefit 2SLGBTQ+ youth!
CDC research shows that inclusive practices benefit 2SLGBTQ+ students and heterosexual students, with heterosexual students seeing greater benefit in some risk categories. The reverse is also true. Restrictive 2SLGBTQ+ policies and practices negatively impact heterosexual students as well.
How can camp programs create spaces intentionally to ensure all youth feel affirmed and accepted?
Through our time implementing inclusive policies, Camp Fire has identified some key practices, based on our research, for any youth program seeking to create more inclusive spaces. We’ll focus on these four areas:
- Adult Support
- 2SLGBTQ+ Representation
- Health and Hygiene Practices
- Gender-Neutral and Gender-Inclusive Policies
1. Adult Support
Practice: Adults are accepting and affirming of young people’s identity.
In my story, I shared about a camper who immediately felt better when their counselor shared their pronouns and encouraged others to do so. This created a supportive environment where young people decide how they are referred to and what respect looks like to them.
We encourage all camps to set a standard that 2SLGBTQ+ people will be supported in your program. You can start with policies and practices that hold your organization and staff accountable. One way Camp Fire does this is through our national statement of inclusion which reads,
“Camp Fire believes in the dignity and the intrinsic worth of every human being. We welcome, affirm, and support young people and adults of all abilities and disabilities, experiences, races, ethnicities, socio-economic backgrounds, sexual orientations, gender identities and expressions, religion and non-religion, citizenship and immigration status, and any other category people use to define themselves or others. We strive to create safe and inclusive environments that celebrate diversity and foster positive relationships.”
2. 2SLGBTQ+ Representation
Practice: Hire queer staff and encourage them to share their true selves at camp.
One camper in shared during our research, “I know that my parents were super worried about me growing up being part of a minority, and what would happen? and would I be in danger? But it shows that, like there are some aspects of people not being great, but it can turn out fine. I mean my biggest thing for camp is I want to be a counselor this year. I'm doing leadership focus, so I can actually start on that path. I'm really excited for stuff like that.”
For some 2SLGBTQ+ youth, belonging at camp and becoming leaders at camp was a sign that they could “make it”.
It’s worth noting that your 2SLGBTQ+ staff also need inclusion and support to do well at camp and feel welcome. Many of the practices for young people apply to them too! This includes allowing staff to self-identify by sharing their own pronouns, wearing a Pride flag pin on their lanyard, or mentioning (appropriately) about their same-sex partner.
3. Hygiene and Health
Practice: Consider the unique (and not-so-unique!) needs of non-binary and transgender campers when making plans for showers, changing, and rest time.
For example, many Camp Fire camps provide pop-up changing tents, which offer spaces for youth to change clothes or take care of hygiene needs privately. These pop-up tents allow campers to change without being seen by others. They are easy to transport and can be used in cabins, taken to the waterfront, or used on hikes.
A variety of campers appreciated the increased privacy updates to camp, including many who did not identify as 2SLGBTQ+. Middle school boys, for instance, were appreciative because the changing tents allowed for greater privacy which reduced instances of bullying at camp. I mean really — wouldn't we all prefer to change privately?!
4. Gender Neutral and Gender Inclusive Policies
Practice: Create policies that are not defined by gender or where more options exist for campers to select than “boy” or “girl.”
For example, one Camp Fire camp has implemented a gender neutral swim policy. Everyone at camp must wear swim gear that covers their tops, clavicle to stomach, and some kind of swim bottoms. The camp developed a universal swim shirt that was a bright color, and this had the added benefit of helping lifeguards monitor youth in the water more easily. The shirts also prevented sunburn, adding to the benefits.
We Know These Practices Help
Ultimately, these are just a small sample of practices that can make your program more inclusive to nonbinary and transgender campers. We like to take the approach of asking “What barriers to camp magic stand in the way of these campers? How can we remove them?”
These practices can be implemented across any program to create welcoming and affirming environments for young people to get outdoors. Youth told us directly that when camps implemented these practices, it impacted their personal experiences. One young person explained:
“The pop-up tent to change in is the best invention in the cabins ever. That's super helpful where it makes it so much more comfortable changing clothes and such. Having the privacy and making it a lot more accessible. Because the other option is a sleeping bag change where you're forced to change clothes inside of a bag.”
For this camper, being able to dress themselves privately increased their comfort around changing during the week-long overnight camp.
Other benefits of implementing gender-affirming practices include community building. Camp programs can specifically offer an alternative place away from school for youth to connect with others. One parent explained the impact of this for their camper saying,
“... [my child’s] school experiences [can be compared to] their camp experiences. They tend to feel a little bit more isolated [at school], and they'll talk about it, like, ‘[camp] felt like a community and we all jelled’, and doesn't use the language of affinity spaces or caucuses or something like that, but it was clear it just felt very relaxed to be in that space and not have to feel difference, which they often do.”
It is hard to connect with other people when feeling othered or different, but camp can offer a place that fosters community. When intentionally created with trans* and nonbinary youth in mind, camp spaces have the potential to alleviate some of the work youth must do to be accepted within a group. In the case above, camp granted a greater sense of peace and belonging, and the young person could feel relaxed in community with others.
By considering best practices for supporting gender nonbinary and trans* youth, we can continue to evolve and adapt outdoor spaces to be more inclusive and bring about more opportunities for relief, joy, and friendship. That is the power of the work that we do — creating environments for young people to thrive in community with others and outdoors. Places where youth can exist in their beautiful fullness.
Camp Fire will continue sharing with ACA about gender-affirming practices at camp in the coming months. We hope you’ll check out our upcoming podcast episode and webinar.
Want to learn more? Reach out to Camp Fire at training@campfire.org to learn more about Camp Fire’s best practices guide and training offerings.
Photo courtesy of Camp Fire Alaska's Summer Adventure Camp, Anchorage, AK.
