The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Office of National Marine Sanctuaries and NOAA Fisheries recently signed a Memorandum of Agreement with the National Marine Manufacturers Association, the American Sportfishing Association, the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, and the Recreational Boating and Fishing Foundation to improve communication and engagement around sustainable recreational fishing and boating activities.

The Colorado River is the backbone of the West. The film Milk & Honey explores the intriguing relationship between the Latino community in Yuma, Arizona and this important waterway.

 Denver-based nonprofit Environmental Learning for Kids and Washington, D.C.-based Hispanic Access Foundation have launched an education and outreach campaign that has introduced Denver-area Latino youth to the great outdoors, and empowered them to call on President Obama to protect it.

Our country’s steadfast efforts to protect the environment this year finally paid off last Saturday when Congress granted $322.9 million to the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) to protect lands and jobs in 2012. This is a $20 million increase from last year’s budget and reflects the widespread support for the fund. In 2011, Hispanic Access Foundation (HAF) worked with Environmental Learning for Kids (ELK) and other organizations to push for more funding for LWCF. HAF learned that 95 percent of Latinos supported full funding for LWCF and that 9 in 10 Americans wanted Congress to stop siphoning funds for the program.

Hispanics are passionate about their public parks and open spaces. Parks are often the center of family life and activities, used as social settings for picnics and get-togethers with family and friends. As such, their protection ranks high on Hispanics' priority list. So, it's of little surprise to me when I see the results of polls, like the recent 2012 Colorado College Western States Survey, which shows that the protection of parks, clean air and water is a top issue for Latinos.

Some people were surprised by the pro-conservation findings of a recent Sierra Club-National Council of La Raza national poll of Latino voters. I wasn't, and you wouldn't be either if you saw the thrilled faces of the young people the Hispanic Access Foundation (HAF) and Denver-based Environmental Learning for Kids(ELK) took rafting in Colorado this summer. One trip down Class III rapids in Browns Canyon, and now these kids are vocal champions for the outdoors.

As 19-year-old Annalisa Martinez put it, "It's our job to be leaders." She made the comment after she and a group of her peers from a Catholic parish in Denver met with Colorado's U.S. senators on Capitol Hill for an environmental cause: urging federal protection for Browns Canyon in Colorado. Ranging in age from 12 to 19, the Latino youths from Denver's St. Cajetan Parish and an organization called Environmental Learning for Kids were brought together by the Washington-based Hispanic Access Foundation.

On Nov. 9, the Department of the Interior released a plan that would require oil shale companies to provide solid proof that their activities will balance the state’s economic and environmental needs before starting any commercial exploitation. Reversing a Bush-era decision that would have given industry free reign on 2 million acres of public lands, BLM’s plan effectively protects 1.6 million acres of public land, as well as areas of critical wildlife habitat.

In the wake of the 2012 presidential election, the Latino vote in states like Colorado has been held up as a critical and influential factor. Latino voters turned out in record high numbers and their 75% vote for President Obama nationally set a new high for a Democratic presidential candidate. While much of the attention has been on changes to immigration policy, Latino voters, like all voters, are paying attention to a wide variety of issues.

There is a long history of controversy concerning the Dinosaur National Monument - in Colorado - in regard to the land leases to exploit oil and gas, and how these operations could impact the ecosystem and the beauty of the region. Meanwhile, only 9 percent of the nation’s approximately 54 million Latinos visit our country’s national parks each year.