S01:E15 Safety, Culture, and the Hidden Work of Outdoor Leadership with Stuart Slay

What does real safety leadership look like in outdoor education and why can it sometimes feel like such an isolating role?In this episode of The Outdoor Education Podcast, Rob sits down with Stuart Slay, founder of Slay Risk, a safety leadership and risk advisory practice that works with schools, experiential programs, and outdoor organizations around the world.Stuart shares his journey from climbing gyms, ski patrol, and avalanche forecasting to becoming a leading voice in safety science and systems thinking. Together, Rob and Stuart explore how culture, leadership, communication, and organizational structure shape the safety of outdoor programs and why many of the biggest risks appear long before anyone steps into the field.They also discuss:Why traditional risk assessments often miss the bigger pictureHow culture influences safety in ways many programs overlookWhat systems thinking can teach outdoor educatorsThe growing importance of psychosocial safety and mental health in outdoor programsWhy safety leaders often feel like the “department of no”How risk managers can gain influence inside schools and organizationsThis episode offers valuable insights for outdoor educators, program leaders, and risk managers who want to build safer, healthier, and more resilient learning environments.For more information, you can visit Slay Risk's website  www.slayrisk.com and read the full paper on https://js.sagamorepub.com/index.php/jorel/article/view/12408