Foundations of Adventure Safety
Sixteen-Hour In-Person Training for Outdoor, Adventure, Travel and Experiential Professionals
Viristar’s Foundations of Adventure Safety course offers an intensive, 16-hour classroom-based training in safety management for outdoor, adventure, experiential and travel programs.
The course covers safety science, risk assessment, legal principles, emergency planning, staff training, incident response, document development, safety standards and more.
The training is designed for coordinators, managers, directors, and executive leadership of adventure programs; policy-makers; and anyone interested to understand how to develop effective safety management systems for adventure programs.
Graduates receive a course completion certificate and can use knowledge and skills gained in the course to improve risk management practices at their organization.
Host A Course. Or Enroll in a Course.
There are two ways to engage with Viristar's Foundations of Adventure Safety training. Host a course in your location, or enroll as an individual in a currently scheduled class.
Host A Course
Viristar offers its Foundations of Adventure Safety training in collaboration with a local Course Host. The Course Host arranges for classroom and practical space, recruits and registers participants, acquires a minimal amount of teaching gear, and handles customer service and logistics duties. The host collects tuition, and sets the course fee. Viristar provides the instruction, textbooks, and certification, and invoices the course host.
To learn more about hosting a course, contact us.
Host A courseEnroll in a Course
Individuals seeking training can register for a currently scheduled open-enrollment (public) course.
To enroll in a Foundations of Adventure Safety training, use our Course Finder to see what trainings are currently scheduled and available, and where the courses are held.
find a CourseCourse Curriculum
The Foundations of Adventure Safety course aims to provide participants with essential skills and knowledge important for achieving risk management excellence in adventure travel, outdoor education, outdoor recreation, experiential learning, wilderness expedition, and adventure tourism programs.
The curriculum is grounded in safety science research, internationally recognized good practice standards for adventure activities, and Viristar’s deep expertise in adventure risk management.
Participants can expect to gain knowledge about adventure safety system design, engage with course material through interactive activities and application to their own professional context, and leave the course with an action plan for making safety improvements in their organization.
Course Content
The course covers topics including:
- Safety standards
- Legal considerations
- Risk assessment
- Risk management plans
- Safety culture
- Human factors
- Emergency response
- Medical screening
- Incident Reporting
- Working with third parties
- Systems thinking
- And more
Course Format
The 16-hour course is offered in a face-to-face (classroom) setting, and is normally offered over two days.
The course is intensive, intellectually rigorous, and engaging. Course activities include:
- Lecture presentations
- Role plays
- Case study scenarios
- Small-group discussion
- Organizational self-assessment
Participants use case study analysis to apply course content to real-life settings. On the last day of the course, participants synthesize and apply their knowledge and skills by developing a Risk Management Plan outline and drafting a Strategic Action Plan for improving safety management in their organization.
Certification
- Course completion certificate issued by Viristar
- Certificate valid for three years from date of course completion
- To be awarded certificate, participants must fully attend the entire class, demonstrate satisfactory application of knowledge and skills during course activities, and pass written quiz and final exam
Information for Learners
Recertification
Recertification is done through taking the course again, prior to the expiration of the original course certification.
Participants may also take Viristar’s 40-hour online Risk Management for Outdoor Programs training, and receive certification for that 40-hour course.
The Viristar Course Alumni Community
Build lasting connections with adventure, outdoor and travel professionals around the world.
Course participants value meeting and networking with fellow attendees, who share similar interests and challenges.
Graduates of the Foundations of Adventure Safety course become part of the Viristar alumni community. This is a global network of professionals from six continents, active in adventure tourism, experiential education, wilderness excursion, outdoor education, service learning, outdoor recreation, and other fields.
Foundations of Adventure Safety course graduates are invited to deepen their professional connections with their new colleagues on a one-on-one basis and through a special Viristar social media group open only to Viristar alums.
Continuing Education Units
Graduates of the Foundations of Adventure Safety course may be eligible for Continuing Education Units (CEUs) from a number of adventure and outdoor associations and higher education institutions. Contact Viristar for details.
Information for Course Hosts
Course Host Responsibilities
Viristar provides instruction, curriculum, course textbook, and certification, and can assist with course promotion activities. The Course Host is responsible for:
- Marketing the course
- Enrolling the minimum number of course participants (normally 16); collecting tuition
- Providing classroom space & basic teaching equipment
- Organizing course logistics such as information to participants, parking, any refreshments, etc.
The Course Host sets the course tuition, to cover Viristar’s fee and their own administrative expenses. Organizations interested to host a course should contact Viristar for fee and group discount information.
Equipment
Viristar asks Course Hosts to provide basic teaching equipment such as an LCD projector and screen, whiteboard with markers, and classroom with tables and chairs.
Viristar will provide a specific equipment list to prospective Course Hosts.
Customization
Case studies, scenarios, and discussions may be customized to a certain degree, based on Course Host request and the professional contexts of course participants.
Course Hosts should advise Viristar of any special requests or requested course emphasis.
Course textbook included
Participants are provided with a print copy of the acclaimed 218-page course textbook, Risk Management for Outdoor Programs: A Guide to Safety in Outdoor Education, Recreation and Adventure. Access to an online, view-only e-book version of the textbook is also provided.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. The course curriculum is designed to be applicable to outdoor, adventure, travel, and experience-based programs anywhere in the world. The principles of incident causation and prevention taught in the course, and the standards of good practice covered, are relevant everywhere. Participants are provided resources to identify locally-relevant legal, insurance, activity-specific, and other resources specific to their circumstance.
Yes. Viristar’s Foundations of Adventure Safety course is recognized by adventure, outdoor and experiential education professionals and organizations around the world as a valuable learning experience. The adventure safety training sector is generally not regulated by government bodies; consequently, no formal accreditations by government authorities are known to exist for trainings such as Viristar’s Foundations of Adventure Safety course.
It’s not necessary to be working for an outdoor, adventure or experiential program in order to enroll in and learn from the training. Part of the course involves participants evaluating risk management practices at an organization with which they are directly familiar. Therefore, it is helpful if you are working for (in a paid or volunteer capacity) or have recently worked for an outdoor, adventure-based or experiential learning organization, but this is not required.
Participants in the Foundations of Adventure Safety training must be available for the full 16 hours of the course, and, independently or with assistance, be able to read, write and speak in the language of instruction (normally English), work constructively with others, perform necessary self-care, and manage personal mobility.
If a participant needs to withdraw from a course in which they are enrolled, they should contact the Course Host for rescheduling and refund policies. Viristar does not offer Foundations of Adventure Safety course refunds.
The Foundations of Adventure Safety course is 16 hours and takes place in person in a classroom setting. The Risk Management for Outdoor Programs training is 40 hours (over four weeks) and takes place online. The core curriculum of the two courses is similar, but due to the additional hours, the 40-hour course covers more content and in more detail.
Viristar collaborates with Course Hosts to put on the Foundations of Adventure Safety course. Viristar provides the instruction, curriculum, and certification. The Course Host provides classroom space, promotes the course, and registers participants.
Viristar welcomes the opportunity to collaborate with organizations to put on a Foundations of Adventure Safety course. Course Hosts must be an organized entity such as a company, government agency, or charitable organization, with a sufficient network and administrative capacity to promote the training and coordinate course logistics. Contact Viristar to learn more.
Tuition for the Foundations of Adventure Safety is set by the Course Host. In some cases, Course Hosts may offer meals, accommodation, transportation, or other services for an additional fee. See Viristar’s Course Finder for a list of available courses and associated tuition rates.
The Course Host may be able to support participants with information regarding transportation logistics and accommodation options, and can advise of any financial assistance (Viristar does not offer scholarships for the Foundations of Adventure Safety course). If you need accommodation due to disability, in order to attend the course, please contact Viristar.
Viristar began offering a two-day, in-person certificated course covering adventure and outdoor safety topics starting in 2018. Viristar has offered the in-person safety training in numerous countries on multiple continents since 2018.
Foundations of Adventure Safety courses are currently offered in English language only, but Viristar expects to offer the Foundations of Adventure Safety training in other languages in the future.
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Testimonials
Participants from a wide variety of companies, government bodies, charitable organizations and other groups have found Viristar’s safety and risk management courses valuable.
