The Year Nine Kid: Growing Pains in the Outdoor Industry

What does the future hold for Australia's outdoor industry? In this candid, thought-provoking forum, outdoor professionals strip back the layers to reveal both challenges and opportunities facing our sector.

The conversation evolves into a powerful metaphor that resonates throughout: our industry resembles a "Year 9 teenager" – full of potential yet grappling with growing pains. Having evolved from its infancy 40 years ago, we're now at a critical juncture that will determine our maturity path. Will we develop into an established, professional sector, or remain caught in adolescent disorganisation?

Leadership emerges as a fundamental concern, with participants noting we often use the term without truly understanding or embodying what leadership means. This disconnect creates ripples through program quality, risk management, and professional development. Similarly, the fragmented state-by-state approach to industry standards and advocacy undermines our collective voice on national issues.

The financial realities prove equally challenging. Many operators consistently undervalue their offerings, creating a cycle where inadequate compensation drives staffing shortages. Meanwhile, the traditional volunteer model that supported organisations like Scouts and Guides is transforming toward "micro-volunteering," complicating training and risk management structures.

Yet alongside these challenges lie significant opportunities. The growing recognition of outdoor experiences as vital for physical and mental health positions our industry as part of the solution to broader societal concerns. Corporate interest, while potentially disruptive, could bring needed investment and business acumen. Most encouragingly, as workplace preferences shift toward flexibility and multiple career experiences, our industry's established seasonal patterns and transferable skills could become advantages rather than limitations.

The forum concludes with practical suggestions for moving forward: developing a dedicated industry award, mapping transferable skills to other sectors, and possibly reviving "Outdoors October" as an industry awareness initiative.

Join us at the upcoming Outdoor Industry Summit in Canberra this July to continue these crucial conversations and help shape where our "teenage" industry heads next. What role will you play in our collective journey toward maturity?

Chapters

• 0:00 Welcome and Introduction
• 2:30 National Volunteer Week Celebration
• 4:30 Recent Advocacy and Updates
• 7:30 Upcoming Events and Resources
• 15:00 Interactive Discussion: Industry Concerns
• 23:30 Trends Affecting Outdoor Businesses
• 33:30 Defining the Outdoor Industry
• 43:00 Attracting New Talent
• 53:00 Closing Thoughts and Next Steps