Celebrating Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage

May is Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) Heritage Month. During this month and throughout the year, we pay tribute to and honor the generations of Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islanders who have contributed to America’s history — and share their knowledge of and ways of connecting to the natural world. We celebrate and uplift the rich stories of the many communities — Bangladeshi, Bhutanese, Burmese, Cambodian, Chinese, Fijian, Filipino, Hawaiian, Himalayan, Hmong, Indian, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Laotian, Malaysian, Maldivian, Mongolian, Nepalese, Pacific Islander, Pakistani, Samoan, Sri Lankan, Taiwanese, Thai, Tibetan, Uyghur, Tongan, Vietnamese, among others — who, together, compose the “AANHPI” population of the U.S.

We invite you to join in the celebration and learn more about Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander heritage through the following resources. Please help us to improve this list — share your ideas at editor@childrenandnature.org.

Asian American Heritage Month resources and information

• Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month official website
• National Park Service celebrates Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Heritage Month
• Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander History & Culture in Parks, National Park Foundation
• Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage, National Park Service
• Explore Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage, Department of Interior
• What It Means to Be Asian in America, Pew Research Center
• Why some have mixed feelings about the terms Asian American and AAPI, CNN
• Federal documents don’t provide enough checkboxes for all AAPI ethnicities. That may be about to change, the 19th

Stories and inspiration: Leaders in the environmental movement

• Asian American Pacific Islanders in the Environmental Movement: Rhymes, refractions, and reflections, by aparna rajagopal, Sierra
• AANHPI Heritage Month: Coming Full Circle on Environmental Justice, by environmental justice movement leader Charles Lee, Environmental Protection Agency
• Why the Environmental Movement Should Stop Ignoring Asian Americans, by Christina Choi, NRDC
• I’m an Asian American Environmental Educator. White Supremacy Is a Threat to Me and to the Planet, by Kimi Waite, Ms. Magazine
• Honoring Asian American and Pacific Islander Environmentalists in the Face of the Climate Crisis, by Navily Zhen, Seaside Sustainability
• Meet 13 Asian and Asian Diasporic Nature and Environment Writers, by Aaron Mok, Sierra
• Through the Eyes of a Grassroots Leader: How the Asian American Community Reclaims Its Voice in Environmental Justice, by Brooke Zhang, Earthjustice
• Celebrating Asian and Pacific Islander Voices in Conservation, the Nature Conservancy
• Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander History & Culture in Parks, National Park Foundation
• Meeting the Moment for Asian Americans and the Environment, by Ann Lien, NRDC
• Remarkable National Park Stories of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders, by Rebecca Watson, National Park Foundation

Organizations and programs to support

• Asian-American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Led Organizations Building A More Inclusive Outdoors, Diversify Outdoors
• Asian Pacific Environmental Network — an environmental justice organization building a world where all people have the resources they need to live full, dignified lives
• Outdoor Asian — creating a diverse and inclusive community of Asian and Pacific Islanders in the outdoors
• Asian Environmental Youth Network — unites Asian youth in the fight for climate justice and increases global coverage of Asian environmentalism
• Give In May — Give In May is a national online giving campaign to support nonprofits dedicated to addressing the needs of the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community. The purpose of the month-long campaign is to raise awareness about issues AAPIs face which are often unseen. It is held in May in recognition of AAPI Heritage Month.
• Soy Sauce Nation — a community highlighting Asian-American and other historically underrepresented groups with a goal of bringing people of all identities together through a mutual love of snow and skate culture
• The Asian American Foundation (TAAF) — Founded in response to the rise in anti-Asian hate and violence, TAAF serves the Asian American and Pacific Islander community in their pursuit of belonging and prosperity that is free from discrimination, slander and violence
• AAPI Victory Alliance — builds AAPI political power across the U.S. on a variety of issues including climate justice
• AAPI Data — producing and advocating for accurate data that supports community narratives and drives action toward enduring solutions to ensure that all Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander communities are recognized, valued and prioritized

Children & Nature Network resources

• Stat Sheet: Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month, May 2025, Finding Nature News
• How the 52-Hike Challenge helped carry on a family tradition of ‘love moments’ in nature, a Finding Nature News feature
• Celebrating the rhythms of life with the harvest moon, a Finding Nature News Voices guest column
• Park pilgrimages: Unearthing new ways of being in nature, a Finding Nature News Voices guest column
• Research Digest: Social justice in research
• Research Library: Children and nature studies of the Asian American population

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