Textbook

Risk Management for Outdoor Programs: A Guide to Safety in Outdoor Education, Recreation and Adventure

The acclaimed textbook Risk Management for Outdoor Programs: A Guide to Safety in Outdoor Education, Recreation and Adventure is available for purchase in paperback and eBook format.

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Your outdoor, experiential or travel program provides fun, personal growth, adventure. It changes lives. But are your safety systems up to standards? If something happens, are you prepared to respond?


Risk Management for Outdoor Programs: A Guide to Safety in Outdoor Education, Recreation and Adventure provides essential knowledge for any adventure or outdoor professional. Program managers, executives, volunteers and group leaders will learn critical approaches and strategies for successfully anticipating and addressing risks.

Packed with real-life stories, current research findings, and good practice guidance, Risk Management for Outdoor Programs: a Guide to Safety in Outdoor Education, Recreation and Adventure gives expert advice on:

  • Approaches to Risk Management
  • Standards
  • Legal Considerations
  • Safety Culture
  • Activities and Program Areas
  • Staff
  • Equipment
  • Participants
  • Subcontractors
  • Transportation
  • Business Administration
  • Risk Transfer
  • Incident Management
  • Incident Reporting
  • Incident Reviews
  • Risk Management Committee
  • Medical Screening
  • Risk Management Reviews
  • Media Relations
  • Documentation
  • Accreditation
  • Seeing Systems

Use the button below to download a 15-page sample of the book, including Contents, Preface, and Introduction.

Download sample

Price: ‎USD 59

Author: Jeff A. Baierlein
Publisher: ‎Viristar (March 21, 2019)
Sold by: Amazon

Language: English

Paperback
Length: 218 pages
Item Weight: ‎ .75 kg | 1.65 pounds
Dimensions: ‎ 21.6 x 1.4 x 28 cm | 8.5 x 0.54 x 11 inches
ISBN-10: 1733349111
ISBN-13: 978-1733349116
OCLC Number: 1273556703

eBook

The e-book edition, a Kindle e-book download, is available for virtually all devices, including

Android, iPhone, tablets, Mac and PC, with the free Kindle app.

Features of this print replica edition include:

  • Notes and highlights
  • Search, copy and paste
  • Zoom and pan
  • Pop-out linked table-of-contents
  • Page numbers matching print edition

Risk Management for Outdoor Programs: A Guide to Safety in Outdoor Education, Recreation and Adventure is used in university classrooms, educational travel programs, adventure tourism operations, search and rescue, adventure centers, outdoor education and forest schools, camps, wilderness therapy programs, park and recreation settings, and more.

About the Author

Jeff Baierlein (he/him) is the director of the consultancy Viristar, providing safety, curriculum, and strategy services to outdoor, adventure, travel, and experiential programs worldwide.

Jeff began working as an outdoor and adventure professional in 1987.  He has over 1000 field days leading mountaineering, sailing, whitewater and flatwater canoeing, backpacking, whitewater and sea kayaking, rock climbing, canyoning and caving expeditions up to three months in length. 

Jeff is the former Executive Director of Chesapeake Bay Outward Bound School and of the Boojum Institute for Experiential Education. He has worked as an EMT and on Search and Rescue teams, leading rescues in North America and Asia.

Jeff has provided risk management reviews, expert witness services, incident reviews, and safety trainings for organizations in over 60 countries in Asia, Europe, Africa, North America, South America, and Africa.

Jeff lives on the traditional lands of the Coast Salish people in Seattle, Washington, USA.

Testimonials

  • The textbook is a great resource to use alongside the course and outside of the course.

    Gijs deJong

    Head of Outdoor Education & Sports, The Global College, Madrid, Spain

  • The material was very thought provoking, giving insights into the short falls of our own organization.

    Wayne King

    Experiential & Service Learning Coordinator, International School of Beijing, Beijing, China

  • Viristar’s Risk Management for Outdoor Programs course was a true game-changer for me.

    Thinuwan Gayantha Nanayakkara

    Freelance Outdoor Educator, Alpha Experiential, Rajagiriya, Sri Lanka

  • Excellent interactive content. Simple to understand and great case studies.

    Muhammad Syafaat

    Programme Executive, InnoTrek Pte Ltd, Singapore

  • The information learned through this course will definitely help our organization move forward to better manage risk and promote a culture of safety.

    Caitlin Pierzchalski

    Manager, Ocean Bridge Pacific, Ocean Wise Conservation Association, British Columbia, Canada

  • [Viristar’s Risk Management for Outdoor Programs textbook is] very comprehensive, well laid out, easy to follow, and has excellent content and useful examples.

    Paul Delane

    Head of Outdoor Education, Sacred Heart College, Sorrento, Western Australia

  • A unique experience – I loved it.

    Manthos Dellatolas

    Owner, Outdoor Explorers, Athens, Greece

  • An invaluable tool when considering the risk management policies, procedures, and practices for my programming.

    John Lacroix

    Race Director, Human Potential LLC, Colorado, USA

  • Ross McHenry

    Program Coordinator, The Hutong, Beijing, China

  • The course provided a detailed and simple explanation of risk management to guide you through assessing your workplace.

    Emma Bartlett

    Trip Safety Manager, United World College South East Asia, Singapore

  • Informative…I greatly appreciated the differentiated learning styles that are offered in this course.

    Lesley Pfeiffer

    Program Supervisor, Sonoma County Regional Parks, California, USA

  • Neil Haarhoff

    Director of Outdoor Education, Stanford Lake College, Limpopo, South Africa

  • Reid Burland

    Owner, Geronimo Construction, North Dakota, USA

  • Jessi Sunkel

    Executive Director, South African Adventure Industry Association, Pretoria, South Africa

  • An in-depth resource which can support risk management.

    Jake Hammond

    Head of Outdoor Education, Australian International School, Singapore