Outdoor Recreation and Our Military Family
Subtitle
Pathways to Recovery
Edited by Kelly S Bricker
The book Outdoor Recreation and Our Military Family is a collection of essays exploring how outdoor recreation can help military members, veterans, and their families cope with the challenges of military life through healing and community. It highlights the physical and mental health benefits of these activities, as well as the importance of creating supportive environments and addressing barriers like lack of awareness or funding. The book emphasizes shared experiences and community building as crucial for overall well-being, supporting the idea that nature-based programs are valuable alternative therapies for psychological healing and reintegration.
Bio
Associate Dean, Hainan-Arizona State University International Tourism College.
Director, School of Community Resources and Development, Arizona State University.
Dr. Kelly S. Bricker is a globally recognized academic leader, scholar, and advocate for sustainability with over 25 years of experience in higher education, international research collaboration, and program innovation. She currently serves as Associate Dean of the Hainan-Arizona State University International Tourism College and Director of the School of Community Resources and Development at Arizona State University. In these roles, she provides strategic vision for transnational academic programming, fosters cross-cultural faculty collaboration, and advances global learning across the fields of tourism, parks, recreation, nonprofit leadership, and community development. A lifelong champion of ecotourism, Dr. Bricker has dedicated her career to aligning tourism development with environmental conservation and community well-being. With her husband, she co-founded Rivers Fiji, an ecotourism business in the highlands of Viti Levu, which became internationally recognized for its innovative approach to community partnerships and protected area stewardship. This personal and professional commitment to sustainability continues to shape her scholarly work and global engagement. Dr. Bricker’s expertise spans sustainable destination assessment, visitor use management, and tourism’s role in ecosystem and cultural resilience. She has led projects in partnership with the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC), contributing to sustainability evaluations in Summit County Utah, Palm Beach County, Los Angeles County, and the Cook Islands. Her international capacity-building efforts have supported protected area management and tourism development in China, Latin America, and the Pacific Islands. She has served in advisory roles to the U.S. State Department, the U.S. Travel and Tourism Advisory Board, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), among others. Honored as a Fellow of both the Academy of Leisure Sciences and the American Academy for Park and Recreation Administration, Dr. Bricker has received numerous awards including the George R. Butler Lecture Award, the Benton H. Box Award from Clemson University, and the University of Utah’s Global Engagement Award. She has authored or co-authored over 70 peer-reviewed journal articles, numerous books, and more than 45 book chapters focused on ecotourism, sustainability, and the human-nature relationship. A visionary educator and researcher, Dr. Bricker continues to inspire global efforts in destination stewardship, environmental ethics, and equity-centered tourism development, preparing students and professionals to lead with purpose and care in an interconnected world.
