The Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics protects the outdoors by teaching and inspiring people to enjoy it responsibly. The Center accomplishes this mission by delivering cutting-edge education and research to millions of people every year.

We provide innovative education, skills and research to help people care for the outdoors. By working with the public and those managing public lands, we focus on educating people—instead of costly restoration programs or access restrictions—as the most effective and least resource-intensive solution to land protection.

The Seven Principles of Leave No Trace provide an easily understood framework of minimum impact practices for anyone visiting the outdoors. Although Leave No Trace has its roots in backcountry settings, the Principles have been adapted so that they can be applied anywhere — from remote wilderness areas, to local parks and even in your own backyard. They also apply to almost every recreational activity. Each Principle covers a specific topic and provides detailed information for minimizing impacts.

When working to take care of the natural world, it’s not about what you do when people are watching. It’s about what you choose to do when you’re on your own, when you’re left to make those ethical decisions, big and small, on a daily basis. Because in the end, that is what Leave No Trace is about—learning what you can do on an individual level to minimize your impacts on the natural world, and taking action to ensure that all the world’s ecosystems are healthy, thriving, and a safe place for all to enjoy.