Bay Area Wilderness Training (BAWT) is a project of the Earth Island Institute (EII), a 501(c)3 corporation.

Mission Statement

To create opportunities for urban youth to experience wilderness first hand.

Vision Statement

BAWT exists as a vital, comprehensive and ongoing source of support to agencies that lead youth wilderness trips. We believe that urban youth, once exposed to wilderness, have a broadened sense of themselves, each other, and the world around them. BAWT extends it services to the eight counties of the San Francisco Bay Area. We hope other organizations will take this vision to the rest of the country and the larger world.

Primary Strategy

BAWT's primary strategy for achieving its mission is to provide Bay Area youth agency staff with wilderness leadership training and outdoor equipment so that they, along with the youth they serve, may explore the power and beauty of California's wilderness.

Values Statement

With this vision in mind, BAWT has developed a set of four core values:

1.  Diversity - We promote a diverse community of environmental educators
2. Risk - We foster the virtues of positive, calculated risk taking
3. Environmental Stewardship - We honor and protect the earth
4. Relationships - We nurture a culture of learning through relationships.